Main content
Jewish Free University Records
Notifications
Held at: Temple University Libraries: Special Collections Research Center [Contact Us]
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Temple University Libraries: Special Collections Research Center. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
The Jewish Free University, an informal forum for Jewish learning, operated between 1970 and 1975 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Modeled after the Free University movement of the 1960s, the Jewish Free University was a project spearheaded by the American Jewish Committee (AJC) to reach out to Jewish students in the Philadelphia area who would not otherwise have been involved with the Jewish community. The goal of the Jewish Free University was to organize and make freely available collegiate level, unstructured seminars led by qualified volunteer faculty who shaped a course of study around the needs of participating students. This grass roots approach to Jewish learning enabled students to engage in critical inquiry of Judaism in a nontraditional way. Enrollees in the Jewish Free University included students from Temple University, University of Pennsylvania, and Drexel University as well as nonaffiliated students and gentiles. Faculty members were typically instructors at Philadelphia area universities, although not exclusively. The administration of Jewish Free University, overseen by Murray Friedman, Director of the Philadelphia Chapter of the AJC, was initially led by the Academic Consultant to the AJC, Stephen R. Goldstein. Goldstein was succeeded by Norman T. Adler in June 1970, who served as CoChairman of the University for the duration of its operation. Adler worked with other local organizations such as the Philadelphia Union of Jewish Students to advertise courses and recruit students. Classes were held at locations around Philadelphia including area campuses, Hillel foundations, and, at times, in the homes of faculty members. Initially, funding for administrative costs and public relations were provided by foundation grants and the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia. In the spring of 1975, Jewish Free University became a constituent agency of the Jewish Campus Activities Board resulting in a change in financial support, but also a redirection of services that only included university affiliated students. Reduced funding and declining enrollment eventually led to the close of Jewish Free University at the end of the fall 1975 semester.
The Jewish Free University Records document the creation of this free educational institution from initial proposal to its ultimate dissolution. The records reflect all aspects of University operations including course offerings, student demographics, marketing, student and faculty satisfaction, and funding. Materials in the collection include correspondence, course catalogs, mailing lists, progress reports, questionnaires, and newspaper clippings.
The records are arranged in eight series, two of which have been further arranged in subseries. The series and subseries arrangement is as follows:
- Series 1: Correspondence, 1970-1975
- Series 2: Course Catalogs, 1970-1975
- Series 3: Enrollment Records, 1970-1975
- Subseries 3.1: Registration Forms, 1970
- Subseries 3.2: Class Lists, 1970-1975
- Series 4: Financial Records, 1969-1975
- Series 5: Mailing Lists, 1970-1975
- Series 6: Subject Files, 1969-1976
- Series 7: Public Relations, 1970-1975
- Subseries 7.1: Notices, 1970-1975
- Subseries 7.2: Publicity, 1970-1975
- Series 8: Questionnaires (PORTIONS RESTRICTED), 1970-1976
Donated by the American Jewish Committee via Murray Freidman, Director of the Philadelphia Chapter of the AJC, in 1979 and Joram Borenstein in 1994.
Collection processed and finding aid prepared in 1980 by Harold J. Kravitz. Finding aid revised according to contemporary archival standards in 2012 by Jessica Lydon, Project Archivist.
The following work was removed from the collection and cataloged separately: Borenstein, Joram. "Philadelphia Jewish Free University, 1970-1976: a Case Study Analysis of Education Reform, Campus Activism & American Jewish life." Senior honors thesis, University of Pennsylvania, 1994.
People
Subject
- Publisher
- Temple University Libraries: Special Collections Research Center
- Finding Aid Author
- Machine-readable finding aid created by: Rajkumar Natarajan, Sky Global Services India (P) Ltd.
- Finding Aid Date
- July 2024
- Access Restrictions
-
Collection is open for research. Access to files containing personal identifying information on individual students at Jewish Free University is restricted for 75 years from latest date of the materials in those files. Restrictions, where applicable, are noted at the file level.
Collection Inventory
Series 1 is arranged chronologically and consists primarily of correspondence among the members of the administrative body of Jewish Free University. Correspondents include Stephen R. Goldstein, organizing member of the subcommittee to establish the Jewish Free University; Co-Chairman of JFU, Norman T. Adler; and Faculty Advisor, Richard L. Coren.
Series 2 is comprised of manuscripts of the course catalogs including handwritten notations and edits as well as the finished course catalog printings.
Series 3 is divided into two subseries.
Subseries 3.1 consists of registration forms, arranged alphabetically, for the first academic year beginning in the fall of 1970.
Subseries 3.2 is comprised of lists, arranged chronologically, containing the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of individuals attending each class offered. There is some overlap of these lists with those found in Series V.
Series 4 is arranged chronologically and consists primarily of correspondence regarding the procurement of funds for administrative costs from the American Jewish Committee, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia and the Jewish Campus Activities Board.
Series 5 is arranged chronologically and consists solely of lists of names and organizations with addresses and related contact information for the purposes of mailing notices, course catalogs and other communications. There is some overlap of these lists with those found in Series III.
Series 6 consists of two folders of assorted brochures, pamphlets and article clippings related to free and Jewish educational programs and institutions.
Subseries 7.1 includes communications from the Jewish Free University administration to students, faculty and interested parties regarding course offerings, registration, and promotion of the University.
Subseries 7.2 consists of press releases and newspaper clippings about programming offered.
Series 8 is arranged chronologically and is comprised of questionnaires issued to both students and faculty soliciting their opinions and perceptions regarding the success of the University and the courses offered. This series also contains progress reports written by the administrative body based on statistical data culled from the questionnaires.