Sarah Wapner

Sarah Wapner has joined the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought as its Impact and Recruitment Officer. Under this new position, she will lead the Center’s Impact and Recruitment Office, which is supported by a grant from The Paul E. Singer Foundation. Her responsibilities will include fostering the growth of the Straus Scholars beyond the walls of the classroom by making them aware of internship and fellowship opportunities and job postings, offering mentorship and networking opportunities over the course of their early careers and arranging continued intellectual enhancement activities following graduation. She will work in conjunction with Yeshiva University Undergraduate Admissions and the YU Career Center in identifying and cultivating aspiring Modern Orthodox intellectual leaders with a passion for the Jewish and Western textual traditions. A graduate of the University of Toronto with a degree in political science and Jewish studies, Wapner has spent time studying at various think tanks and institutions. She participated in the Political Studies Program at Hertog Foundation in 2017 and was invited back in 2018, where she coordinated and managed seminars and fellows and worked to identify top students in the program’s cohorts. That summer, she also studied at the inaugural Summer Honors Academy at the American Enterprise Institute, a four-week program of substantive public policy courses. Additionally, Wapner has been a fellow and consultant at the Tikvah Fund and serves on its Young Professionals Advisory Board. Since 2017, Wapner has worked at Bnei Akiva Schools of Toronto, where she taught history, political science and Judaic studies. She also coached the school’s Model United Nations team. “I am honored to join such an important team of professionals, scholars and students who are at the nexus of the Western tradition and advanced Torah study,” Wapner said. “I greatly look forward to mentoring our Straus Scholars, empowering them to pursue prestigious academic fellowships and professional opportunities to further the impact and ideals of the Straus Center and Yeshiva University.”