Message From Our President
Dear Students, Faculty, Staff and Friends,
I am pleased to present to you this Guide to our plans for the upcoming fall semester and reopening of our campuses. In form and in content, this coming semester will be like no other. We will live differently, work differently and learn differently. But in its very difference rests its enormous power.
The mission of Yeshiva University is to enrich the moral, intellectual and spiritual development of each of our students, empowering them with the knowledge and abilities to become people of impact and leaders of tomorrow. Next year’s studies will be especially instrumental in shaping the course of our students’ lives. Character is formed and developed in times of deep adversity. This is the kind of teachable moment that Yeshiva University was made for. As such, we have developed an educational plan for next year that features a high-quality student experience and prioritizes personal growth during this Coronavirus era. Our students will be able to work through the difficulties, issues and opportunities posed by our COVID-19 era with our stellar rabbis and faculty, as well as their close friends and peers at Yeshiva.
To develop our plans for the fall, we have convened a Scenario Planning Task Force made up of representatives across the major areas of our campus. Their planning has been guided by the latest medical information, government directives, direct input from our rabbis, faculty and students, and best practices from industry and university leaders across the country. I am deeply thankful to our task force members and all who supported them for their tireless work in addressing the myriad details involved in bringing students back to campus and restarting our educational enterprise.
In concert with the recommendations from our task force, I am announcing today that our fall semester will reflect a hybrid model. It will allow many students to return in a careful way by incorporating online and virtual learning with on-campus classroom instruction. It also enables students who prefer to not be on campus to have a rich student experience by continuing their studies online and benefitting from a full range of online student services and extracurricular programs.
In bringing our students back to campus, safety is our first priority. Many aspects of campus life will change for this coming semester. Gatherings will be limited, larger courses will move completely online. Throughout campus everyone will need to adhere to our medical guidelines, including social distancing, wearing facemasks, and our testing and contact tracing policies. Due to our focus on minimizing risk, our undergraduate students will begin the first few weeks of the fall semester online and move onto the campus after the Jewish holidays. This schedule will limit the amount of back and forth travel for our students by concentrating the on-campus component of the fall semester to one consecutive segment.
Throughout our planning, we have used the analogy of a dimmer switch. Reopening our campuses will not be a simple binary, like an on/off light switch, but more like a dimmer in which we have the flexibility to scale backwards and forwards to properly respond as the health situation evolves. It is very possible that some plans could change, depending upon the progression of the virus and/or applicable state and local government guidance.
Before our semester begins, we will provide more updates reflecting our most current guidance. Please check our website, yu.edu/fall2020 for regular updates. We understand that even after reading through this guide, you might have many additional questions, so we will be posting an extensive FAQ section online as well. Additionally, we will also be holding community calls for faculty, students, staff and parents over the next couple of months.
Planning for the future during this moment has certainly been humbling. This Coronavirus has reminded us time and time again of the lessons from our Jewish tradition that we are not in full control of our circumstances. But our tradition also teaches us that we are in control of our response to our circumstances. Next semester will present significant challenges and changes. There will be some compromises and minor inconveniences--not every issue has a perfect solution. But faith and fortitude, mutual cooperation and resilience are essential life lessons that are accentuated during this period. And if we all commit to respond with graciousness, kindness, and love, we can transform new campus realities into profound life lessons for our future.
Deeply rooted in our Jewish values and forward focused in preparing for the careers and competencies of the future, we journey together with you, our Yeshiva University community, through these uncharted waters. Next year will be a formative year in the lives of our students, and together we will rise to the moment so that our students will emerge stronger and better prepared to be leaders of the world of tomorrow.
Best Wishes,
Ari Berman
Since its launch in the Spring of 2019, YU’s Innovation Lab has worked with over fifty innovative startups across many categories - cyber tech, ad tech, on-demand transportation, early childhood education, medical devices, AI-fueled learning tools, and many more. The lab has provided a unique opportunity for over 300 students to learn important skills while helping companies grow and refine their marketing strategies based on the knowledge they’ve acquired in their courses at the Sy Syms School of Business and the Digital Marketing masters degree program within the Katz School of Science and Health.
One such company is SightBit, an Israeli company that offers customizable AI-enhanced lifeguarding technology that can detect distressed swimmers, predict danger zones in the water, offer crowding reports as well as other vital technologies to prevent drowning. The company’s brief was initially part of a market research project within one of the digital marketing master’s courses at YU’s Katz School of Science and Health, and ultimately became an Innovation Lab participant.
According to Thom Kennon, director of consulting at the Innovation Lab and adjunct professor at Syms and Katz, the students performed many critical tasks including developing a CRM database and populating it with potential client leads; conducting market research (digital ethnography, stakeholder interviews) on potential customers that included B2B (business to business) and B2G (business to government) organizations (such as city managers for public beaches, lifeguard associations and directors of sleepaway camps); developing actionable audience insights based on their research to aid in brand value positioning; audience segmentation and product/service design, and pitching potential marketing pilot programs for leads in the U.S.
Adam Bismut, SightBit’s CEO had only great things to say about the students and their participation. “We had the pleasure of working with serious and professional students, who went the extra mile to provide us with a great final product,” said Bismut. “The students' research was thorough and allowed us to better understand the American market and adjust our strategy based on the insights they presented us." Going forward, Bismut looks forward to the Lab connecting SightBit to American investors and decision-makers, adding, “The students did a wonderful job researching the American market, interviewing investors, analyzing market trends, and providing us with a full comprehensive report to assist us with our strategy to penetrate the American market.”
Thanks to SightBit and The Innovation Lab, the students were given a fantastic opportunity to play an important role in the growth of a dynamic, new company that has the potential to save many lives. They have much to be proud of, and in a letter from SightBit’s marketing VP to Dr. Maria Blekher (founding director of the Lab), they learned that their hard work paid off. The letter stated: “Dear Maria, We are so grateful for the big push forward you gave us, and I wanted to share some good news with you – we got funding! Thank you for everything, Maria - we feel that the Lab helped us get here.”
