New York, NY, Nov 2, 2003 -- In the fall of 1954, Stern College for Women welcomed 32 students at 245 Lexington Avenue, and four years later, these young women became the school’s first graduating class. Now, 50 years later, Stern College has evolved into the nation’s premier undergraduate school of arts and sciences for Orthodox Jewish women. And to commemorate its Jubilee, Stern College and its Jubilee Committee, co-chaired by Dr. Susan Herzfeld ’88S and Dr. Susan Unger-Mero ’97S, will host a series of celebratory events throughout the academic year. Founded through the generosity of the late Max Stern under the guidance of Yeshiva University’s second president, Dr. Samuel Belkin, Stern College currently enrolls approximately 800 students and boasts the largest Jewish studies department of its kind in North America. Stern College for Women remains one of the last women’s undergraduate schools in the US with students entering professions such as law, medicine, science, business, and teaching. “The Jubilee is meant to celebrate a great idea, Stern College, with a strong network of friends and Stern alums, and to invest in building an even brighter future for women’s education,” said Dr. Karen Bacon, Dr. Monique C. Katz Dean of Stern College and a 1964 Stern alumna. The Jubilee kick-off event took place with a Family Day on November 2 at the Puck Building in SoHo, which featured a day of fun and a variety of games, food, and entertainment, including face painters, balloon sculptors, and stilt walkers. Other Jubilee events include a lecture series from February to December 2004 featuring speakers such as David Makovsky, senior fellow and director of Project on the Middle East Peace Process at the Washington Institute, and Sylvia Barach Fishman, a 1964 Stern alumna who will discuss women and Halakhah (Jewish law). A Jubilee dinner is planned for Sunday, November 7, 2004, and an alumnae and friends day will take place at the Tisch Family Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem. An international conference, “Between Rashi and Maimonides: Themes in Medieval Jewish Law, Thought, and Culture,” co-sponsored by the Rebecca Ivry Department of Jewish Studies at Stern and the Leonard and Beatrice Diener Institute of Jewish Law at YU’s Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, is organized for November 2004. The Yeshiva University Museum will host an exhibit that will highlight Stern’s history through photography, text, and memorabilia. “The Stern Jubilee celebration was the perfect cause to volunteer for,” Dr. Ungar-Mero said. “I am indebted to Stern because it gave me life-long tools to succeed. The Jubilee is a great way to bring back alumnae and to thank a wonderful institution.”