Earl Warren Institute of Ethics and Human Relations, Academic Departments and Schools, American Jewish University Archives (Institutional Records), 1961-1985 inclusive

Collection context

Summary

Creators:
American Jewish University; University of Judaism; Brandeis-Bardin Institute (Brandeis, Simi Valley, Calif.)
Abstract:
The records in this series contain materials related to the Earl Warren Institute of Ethics and Human Relations. Subseries include the Radio-Television Department, Public Lectures and Events, and the Earl Warren Chair in Law and Ethics.
Extent:
9 Folders (Box 15)
Language:
Materials are in English and Hebrew

Background

Scope and content:

The records in this series contain materials related to the Earl Warren Institute of Ethics and Human Relations. Subseries include the Radio-Television Department, Public Lectures and Events, and the Earl Warren Chair in Law and Ethics.

The American Jewish University Archive is a collection of documents, pamphlets, recordings, letters, publications, photographs, scrapbooks, and ephemera that document the history of the University of Judaism and the Brandeis-Bardin Institute which merged to become American Jewish University in 2007, depicting people, places and events at both campuses.

Biographical / historical:

The American Jewish University, with its Familian campus in Bel Air, California and Brandeis-Bardin campus in Simi Valley, California, is the outcome of the 2007 union of Brandeis-Bardin Institute (BBI) and the University of Judaism (UJ).

In 1947, the University of Judaism was founded in Los Angeles, the vision of Dr. Mordecai Kaplan, the author of Judaism as a Civilization, who advocated the creation of an educational institution incorporating diverse elements of Jewish civilization and culture under one roof. To carry out his dream, he received the support of the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York and the Bureau of Jewish Education of Los Angeles.

Six years earlier, BCI was founded by Dr. Shlomo Bardin to safeguard against assimilation of young American Jews by making “the great ethical heritage of Judaism” relevant to them. Brandeis Camp Institute was named to honor our nation’s first Jewish Supreme Court Justice, Louis D. Brandeis, who was instrumental as the visionary and primary funder of Dr. Bardin’s initial programmatic endeavor. BBI was located for brief periods of time in Amherst, NH, Winterdale, PA and Hendersonville, NC before finding its home in 1947 in Simi Valley.

For more information, please see our history page at the following link: http://aboutus.aju.edu/default.aspx?id=4742.

The Ostrow Library, is designed to meet the needs of the University's faculty and students, as well as scholars conducting research in all fields of Jewish culture and civilization. Members of the general public are also invited to use the Library’s materials for personal enrichment and enjoyment. With approximately 110,000 print volumes, the library's collections have grown consistently through endowments, gifts of major private collections and an ongoing acquisition program.

The Burton Sperber Jewish Community Library at American Jewish University now serves as the official Jewish Community Library of Los Angeles. This new library succeeds the original Peter M. Kahn Jewish Community Library that was formerly housed at the Los Angeles Jewish Federation. Dedicated by his family in memory of noted Los Angeles philanthropist and landscape developer Burton Sperber, this library welcomes the entire Los Angeles Jewish community to enjoy its state-of-the-art facility including regularly scheduled programs for children and families as well as author and other literary encounters.

The Lowy-Winkler Family Rare Book Center, a gift of Peter and Janine Lowy, is home to the Maslan Bible Collection. This unusual assemblage of exceptional volumes includes approximately 4,000 Bibles, some dating back almost to the inception of the printing press. This collection also features bible translations representing most of the written languages of the world, as well as the Kalman-Friedman Collection of Italian Judaica.

The University Archives of the American Jewish University is a collection of documents, pamphlets, recordings, letters, publications, photographs, scrapbooks, and ephemera that document the history of the University of Judaism and the Brandeis-Bardin Institute which merged to become American Jewish University in 2007, depicting people, places and events at both campuses.

Photograph and Digital Archive:
  • The American Jewish University Digital Archive includes photographs, scrapbooks, and ephemera that document the history of the University of Judaism and the Brandeis-Bardin Institute which merged to become American Jewish University in 2007, depicting people, places and events at both campuses. These photographs include great Jewish thinkers who founded AJU and were involved with its growth over the years. The creation of both institutions was made possible by philanthropists to whom we owe the building of University of Judaism and the Brandeis-Bardin Institute.
Audio-Visual Archive:
  • The American Jewish University Audio-Visual Archive is a collection of audio-visual records of lectures, shows, and events taking place at or produced by the American Jewish University (formerly University of Judaism and Brandeis-Bardin Institute) over the years.
Louis Shub Documentation Center:
  • The Louis Shub Documentation Center at the American Jewish University is a collection of thousands of articles from various newspapers and periodicals covering a range of subjects. Gathered by Dr. Shub, the former library director of the University of Judaism, the collection was used by students to research subjects such as Israeli and Jewish figures, Foreign Policy, Global Jewish Communities, Israel, the Middle East and many other issues and subjects. The importance of this collection is the juxtaposing of articles from major papers with those of small local papers both covering the same event. The finding aid to the collection can be viewed at: http://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c85h7jcf/
Acquisition information:
Collected by various members of the American Jewish University.
Arrangement:

The collection is part of Series 5: Academic Departments and Schools. It is organized in 3 sub-series.

  • V. Academic Departments and Schools: 1947-2014
    • 6. Earl Warren Institute of Ethics and Human Relations 1961-1985
      • Subseries 1. Radio-Television Department
      • Subseries 2. Public Lectures and Events
      • Subseries 3. The Earl Warren Chair in Law and Ethics
Physical location:
Physical files are housed at the Ostrow Library of the American Jewish University.
Rules or conventions:
Collection guide prepared acoording to DACS- Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Indexed terms

Subjects:
Judaism.
Zionism and Judaism.
Israel.
Education.
College presidents.
Jewish college presidents
Rabbis.
Philanthropists
Scholars.
Art.
Patrons of education
Board of directors--United States.
College administrators
Libraries.
Jewish artists
Jewish college teachers
Authors.
Faculty, University
Women.
Musicians
College campuses.
Names:
American Jewish University
Brandeis-Bardin Institute (Brandeis, Simi Valley, Calif.)
University of Judaism
Camp Ramah.
Women's League for Conservative Judaism
United Synagogue of America.
Jewish Theological Seminary of America.
National Women's League
University Women of the University of Judaism
Sinai Temple (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Shub, Louis
Lieber, David L.
Greenberg, Simon, 1901-
Wexler, Robert
Turner, Justin G.
Fligelman, Julius, 1895-1980
Heschel, Abraham Joshua, 1907-1972
Kohn, Jacob, 1881-1968
Swig, Benjamin Harrison, 1893-1980
Pressman, Jacob;
Kaplan, Mordecai Menahem, 1881-1983
Finkelstein, Louis, 1895-1991
Levine, Sid
Wise, Aaron M.
Vorspan, Max
Zemach, Benjamin
Helfman, Max
Warren, Earl, 1891-1974
Eisenshtat, Sidney, 1914-2005
Gindi, Elie M.
Bergman, Martin
Jospe, Erwin
Alexander, Hanan A., 1953-
Bradley, Tom, 1917-1998
Dorff, Elliot N.
Cohen, Gerson D. (Gerson David), 1924-
Dortort, David
Goodhill, Victor, 1911-
Gordis, David M.
Schulweis, Harold M.
Glass, Judith
Ray, Eric
Krems, Nathan
Ackerman, Walter I.
Kahn, Peter M., 1878- [from old catalog]
Gordis, Robert, 1908-
Wolfson, Ron
Cohen, Aryeh
Oppenheim, Lois Hecht
Schary, Dore
Zevit, Ziony
Familian, Isadore
Seewack, Benjamin
Ostrow, Jack
Ostrow, Bel
Easton, Harold

Access and use

Location of this collection:
Bel and Jack M. Ostrow Library,
15600 Mulholland Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90077, US
Contact:
(310) 440-1238