Cincinnati Graduation Recognizes Distinguished Scholars Alongside a New Generation of Leaders

CINCINNATI, OH – Hebrew Union College’s 2024-2025 school year culminated in beautiful graduation and ordination ceremonies in New York City and Los Angeles, with this weekend’s ceremonies on the Cincinnati campus marking the final celebrations of the season.

Amidst ongoing reminders of the challenges facing the Jewish community, graduation attendees were offered uplifting, congratulatory messages, infused with faith that the graduates are well-prepared to address the needs of the professional worlds in which they are entering. In his Invocation, Rabbi Richard S. Sarason, Ph.D., Director of Pines School of Graduate Studies, spoke of the legacy of Hebrew Union College’s inspiring leadership, stating that “In these turbulent times, when academic institutions and the values of liberal humanistic study are under attack, we must ever more fervently underscore and reaffirm our commitment to those academic, humanistic values that have been articulated in Hebrew Union College’s academic catalogues by our presidents.”

Joshua Holo, Ph.D., Vice President of Academic Resources, set the tone for the day with a warm welcome to both the community gathered in Scheur Chapel and those joining by livestream. In his opening, he posited that Jewish leadership steeped in reason will bring success to the graduates.

After acknowledging the challenges the Jewish People face in America and around the world, and the suffering of all people across the Middle East, President Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D. offered a measured sense of optimism, noting, “Our students and alumni give me hope that this dark period will end soon—or at least end, and enlightenment will be renewed.”

Incoming Provost Judah M. Cohen addressed the graduates.

Judah M. Cohen, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, Research, and Creative Activity, and Professor of Musicology, Jacobs School of Music, and Lou and Sybil Mervis Professor of Jewish Culture, Robert A. and Sandra S. Borns Jewish Studies Program, Indiana University; and Incoming Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Provost at Hebrew Union College, provided the graduation address.

Dr. Cohen outlined the tradition Hebrew Union College graduates have inherited, and the serious and sacred responsibility that comes with it. “What makes our intellectual life so rich is that we can see and debate multiple worlds at once in the same source—to see these worlds plainly, to see the words that describe them plainly, and then to apply them to the world we want, the world we have, and the world we seek.”

President Rehfeld and Rabbi Richard Sarason, Ph.D. conferred the following graduate degrees:

• Graduate Medallions to Tarsee Li, Ph.D. ’99 and Dean Andrew Nicholas, Ph.D. ’00
• Doctor of Philosophy in Judaic, Hebraic, and Cognate Studies to Julia Rose Olsen
• Doctor of Hebrew Letters to Rabbi Judith Schindler ’95 and Rabbi Alexander Grodensky, whose degree was awarded at graduation in New York
• Master of Philosophy in Judaic, Hebraic, and Cognate Studies to Yuliyan Filipov, Cassidy J. Gossage, Connor Clair Ham, and Robert Arthur Ogden

Julia Olson, Ph.D. recipient, pictured with her advisors, Christine Neal Thomas, Ph.D., M.Div. and Rabbi David H. Aaron, Ph.D.

President Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D. with Rabbi Judith Schindler, awarded a DHL, with sponsor Rabbi Richard Sarason, Ph.D. and Graduation Speaker and incoming Provost Judah Cohen, Ph.D.

MPhil graduates Yulian Filipov, CJ Gossage, Connor Ham, and Robert Ogden, celebrated alongside President Rehfeld, Dr. Sarason, and Judah Cohen.

Michael W. Graves, Ph.D. ’06, Amerding Professor of Biblical Studies, Wheaton College, provided the Pines School of Graduate Studies Alumni Association Greeting, and Edward J. Septimus, M.D., HUC Board of Governors and Chair of the HUC North American Board of Advisors gave the confirmation of degrees. Speaking to the graduates, Dr. Septimus gave an encouraging reminder of their new charge as Jewish Professionals: “May you ensure the continuity of our heritage while engaging with others of all backgrounds to create a more just, compassionate, and—at times like this—a more humane world. Your journey has just begun. Embrace challenges…and never stop learning.”

The graduation ceremony closed with an innovative Benediction by Rabbi David H. Aaron ’83, Ph.D., Professor of Hebrew Bible and History of Interpretation. In it, Rabbi Dr. Aaron describes the concept of a medieval panegyric, a poetic form that melds Scripture with a poet’s original words, providing a real-life analogy to how the graduates might approach the steps in their careers. To “celebrate the achievements of the graduates”, Rabbi Dr. Aaron shares a modern take on this form, drawing from the words of Edmond Jabès, a mid-twentieth century Jewish poet, instead of the traditional Tanakh: “Take what’s old and meld it with what is new, with a contemporary message in mind.”

Ordination of Cincinnati rabbis follows on May 31st.

View the full Cincinnati graduation livestream here.

Check back soon for additional photos.