Bernard Steinberg, z”l

“Many of the students who pass through our program will continue into positions of leadership in their careers or communities. Will their leadership be grounded in Jewish values, nurtured by Jewish sources, and inspired by Jewish vision? My goal is to motivate the most energetic, talented, and idealistic young Jews to assume responsibility for the future.”

Under Bernie Steinberg’s leadership, Harvard Hillel has become one of the largest, most active, and most visible student organizations at Harvard University. It is known for the scope and depth of its programs, as a model pluralistic community, as a voice for Israel, and as a leader in interfaith work. In addition to leading Harvard Hillel, Bernie is a master teacher and designer of educational programs, and he has lectured and taught throughout the world on a wide range of topics.

“I see pluralism as a value rooted in Jewish ideas,” he writes. “Every person is unique in an absolute and precious sense, as testimony to God’s greatness. Every person experienced the revelation of Torah in his or her own way. Every Jewish movement and individual is part of a truth whose totality is beyond our grasp.”

After beginning graduate work at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, Bernie moved to Jerusalem, where he lived for thirteen years. During that time, he was a founding Fellow of the Shalom Hartman Institute, one of the founders of the Pardes Institute, and the Director of the Wesleyan University Israel Program. He also taught at the Hebrew University. Because he considers Israel to be among the richest political, cultural, and spiritual landscapes in which to cultivate Jewish values and citizenship in a global world, Bernie created Netivot (Pathways), an intensive, year-long program—nationally recognized for its educational excellence—that takes undergraduates from Harvard, Yale, and New York University to Israel.

Before moving to Cambridge, Bernie also lived in Cleveland, Ohio, where he taught at the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies and Case Western Reserve University and founded the department of Jewish Education at the Jewish Community Centers of Cleveland. He holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University, an M.A. from Brandeis University, and a Ph.D. in Jewish Philosophy from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Bernie was a recipient of the Benjamin J. Shevach Award for Distinguished Leadership in Jewish Education, conferred by the Boston Hebrew College, and serves with the White House Conference on Interfaith Service in Higher Education. He and his wife Roz have two children, Adena and Avi.

“Struggling with critical life decisions, university students must choose whether and how they might help shape a turbulent, rapidly expanding world that cries out for creative possibilities and hope. How our young people link their deepest questions of identity with their passions, talents, energy, and idealism will determine the future of our planet.”