newsletter - University of Haifa

University of Haifa
NEWSLETTER
3 -10
March 2010
Dear Friends
Our Chairman of the
Board of Governors, Mr.
Leon H. Charney, has
taken ill and is currently
hospitalized in New York.
I send him wishes for a
speedy recovery.
We can proudly say that
the first term of this
academic year reflected the
comprehensive growth and
academic advancement that the University of
Haifa consistently upholds. Despite the existing
financial challenges in today’s difficult economic
climate, our students and study programs,
research and physical development continue to
thrive and excel.
This year we welcomed sixteen outstanding
scientists from abroad to our academic ranks.
The infusion of exciting minds on the verge
of great discoveries not only advances the
University’s academic standing; it also enables
world-renowned scientists to live and work in
Israel. One of our chief goals today is to continue
drawing exceptional researchers from abroad to
our institution, increasing academic excellence
at all levels, especially in the sciences.
We have recently established new state-of-theart labs that are already being used by our new
and veteran scientists (in the fields of psychology,
communication sciences and disorders, learning
disabilities, and marine sciences, to name just a
few) and look forward to realizing our plans to
establish a new Science Center and a complex of
unique Social Welfare and Health laboratories.
The University’s merit is determined by its
research standards and its ability to prevail in
the competitive academic arena. Therefore, we
must dedicate considerable human and financial
resources to setting up cutting-edge facilities for
our scientists and faculty to carry out their work.
We urge you to become partners in our efforts to
make this a reality.
I wish you all a happy Passover.
Prof. Aaron Ben-Ze’ev, President
Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences
The Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences is in full
thrust and opened its Department of Marine Biology this
year. The School proudly welcomed its new head, Dr. Dan
Tchernov.
Dr. Tchernov, an expert on the effect of climate change
on tropical coral reefs, participated in the 2nd University
of Haifa Symposium in Copenhagen, “Climatic Changes
- Consequences and Solutions”, where he discussed his
field of expertise and gave the audience a fascinating
presentation of the Leon H. Charney School of Marine
Chairman of the Board
of Governors, Mr. Leon Sciences and its goals. Other speakers at the symposium
included Danish scientists alongside University of Haifa
H. Charney
experts Prof. Haim Kutiel, Head of the
Laboratory of Climatology, and Prof. Mordechai Shechter of
the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental
Management. This bilateral Israeli-Danish symposium
project is orchestrated by the Danish Friends of the
University of Haifa chaired by Malgorzata H. Hansen.
The meeting was concluded with discussions with Danish
water solutions companies toward creating financial and
research cooperation with the University of Haifa.
Dr. Dan Tchernov
A new “Legacy”
Soraya Nazarian, wife of
businessman Younes Nazarian, donated a sculpture that she herself designed and created to the
University of Haifa. The
marble sculpture, entitled
“Legacy”, depicts a ship
with sails made of books,
expressing the story of the
Jews who landed in Israel
on the illegal immigration
ships (the “Ma’apilim”). It
represents the vulnerability of the Jewish people
alongside bravery and
Prof. Aaron Ben-Ze’ev, Soraya and Younes Nazarian,
strength, knowledge, cul- L-R:
daughter Sharon Baradaran, businessman Izzy Borovitch,
ture and history.
Navy Commander Eliezer Marom
President of the University of Haifa Prof. Aaron Ben-Ze’ev warmly
thanked Mrs. Nazarian for her unique and
moving donation. “It is so wonderful for me
that my wife brings me such honor,” Mr.
Nazarian said with much emotion at the unveiling ceremony. Attending the ceremony
were Commander of the Israeli Navy Eliezer
Marom; CEO of Beth Hatefutsoth (Museum
of the Jewish Diaspora) Avinoam Armoni;
family members; leaders of the US Iranian
Jewish community; and others.
“Legacy”
3 -10
NEWSLETTER
University of Haifa
International resource development: Full speed ahead
Dr. Maya Talmon-Chvaicer
has been appointed Executive Director of International
Resource Development at
the University’s Division for
External Relations and Resource Development.
Dr. Talmon-Chvaicer, a graduate of the University, joins the
Division of External Relations
and Resource Development
with impressive leadership
credentials and broad experience in the world of fundraising. In her new position, she
will expand and strengthen
resource development efforts, as well as focus on supporting affiliate offices world-wide, cultivating relationships with lay leaders and forging new ties.
cessfully managed a wide range of activities for one of the world’s
leading Federations, the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto. She has
extensive experience in the field of philanthropy, including designing and implementing strategic plans, developing new initiatives,
launching projects and generating community support.
Before that she was the Program Director for the Center for the
Study of the United States at the University of Haifa. During this
period she was also a member of the academic faculty of the
Department of Multi-Disciplinary Studies. Dr. Talmon-Chvaicer has
represented the Jewish Agency in Brazil and England promoting
Israeli higher education programs.
Dr. Talmon-Chvaicer has also been active in the non-formal education system, as director of various educational programs for youth.
Vice President for External Relations and Resource Development at
the University Amos Gaver welcomed her on board: “I warmly congratulate Dr. Talmon-Chvaicer upon joining the University staff and
wish her great success in her new position. Open, intense and posiUntil recently, Dr. Talmon-Chvaicer was the Israel Emissary (shlicha) of tive communication between all our Friends organizations around
Keren Hayesod-United Israel Appeal in Toronto, Canada, where she suc- the globe and with Israel is key to a successful campaign,” he said.
New leadership for ASUH
Bahat Prize 2009
After serving as a Member of the Board
of the American Society of the University
of Haifa (ASUH) for just over one year,
Mr. Arthur K. Wachtel has been appointed
Chair of ASUH’s Board of Directors.
In nominating Mr. Wachtel at ASUH’s
recent board meeting, immediate past
Chair Dr. Lorne Buchman remarked that
he feels “great about passing the gavel
to a skilled leader with impeccable credentials, experience and dedication . . .
who will move this organization forward
ASUH’s new Chair, Mr. Arthur K. Wa- at a rapid pace.” Arthur K. Wachtel is a
chtel (right) and Dr. Lorne Buchman, practicing attorney in the San Francisco
President of ASUH
Bay Area. Since 2007, when he participated in the March of the Living with the
Los Angeles Adult Delegation, Mr. Wachtel has been an active supporter of that
organization. He has been a volunteer in various Jewish activities, including a
six-month project to catalog all oral histories in the custody of the Holocaust
Center of Northern California. He has also been a volunteer for the Pan-American Maccabi games. In accepting the nomination, Arthur remarked on his good
fortune for having learned from Lorne Buchman and his “enthusiasm for this
opportunity to work on behalf of Israel and the Jewish people.”
Mr. Wachtel is an experienced director, and has participated in numerous board
activities. He has extensive experience in guiding academic institutions, including as Chair of the board for four years of a San Francisco graduate school of
psychology. “I consider Arthur Wachtel a new friend of mine, and I am proud to
have such a skilled and motivated person on board. The faculty of the University
is desperate for new sources of funding for our innovative research and I am
confident that with Mr. Wachtel’s leadership we will be able to achieve this
goal,” said VP for External Relations and Resource Development Amos Gaver.
L-R: Prof. Aaron Ben-Ze’ev, President of University of Haifa; Prof.
Daphna Erdinast-Vulcan, Editor-in-Chief of University of Haifa Press; Prof.
Eli Yassif; Dr. Yehuda Goodman; Dr. Dana Olmert; Ehud Olmert
The distinguished Bahat Prize, the highest in Israel for a reference manuscript, was awarded at a festive ceremony to Prof. Eli
Yassif, Dr. Dana Olmert and Dr. Yehuda Goodman.
The prize, named after the late Prof. Yaakov Bahat, one of the
founding faculty members of the Department of Comparative
Hebrew Literature at the University of Haifa, has been awarded
annually since 1998 for quality, original, non-fiction manuscripts
in Hebrew. This is the first year in which the prize for a senior
academic faculty member is 100,000 NIS and 40,000 NIS for
young scholars. The amounts were enlarged thanks to a grant
from the Bahat and Yuval families and former students of Prof.
Bahat who wished to honor his memory.
NEWSLETTER
University of Haifa
3 -10
Scholarships in memory of fallen soldiers
the Younes and Soraya Nazarian family, a leading family in the Los
Angeles Jewish community.
This is the unique memorial project’s third year since the University
of Haifa initiated it with the aim of adopting all of the bereaved families of the Second Lebanon War. The scholarship students’ primary
obligation has been to form a personal connection with the family in
whose son’s name the scholarship was received. The son whose life
was cut short is memorialized through the student’s academic studies. Over the past two years since this project began, the students
have grown close to the bereaved families. Some have become like
members of the family; some have memorialized the fallen soldier
by organizing exhibitions, publishing poetry, and the like.
Avraham and Rivka Mashiach (left), parents of the late Sgt. Maj. Ron
Mashiach, and third-year student Avichai Shendelman present Soraya and
Younes Nazarian with a painting of the University by handicapped artists.
The University of Haifa awarded 121 scholarships as part of a unique and moving project in memory of each of the 121 fallen soldiers of the Second Lebanon
War. The scholarships were donated by the Ima Foundation, established by
“The University of Haifa, the University of the north, will not forget
the thousands of rockets that targeted the north and the University
itself, and will not forget the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for
tranquility in the region. The 121 bereaved families have become
part of our University life and the lives of those students who have
been given the honor of memorializing fallen soldiers through their
studies,” said Prof. Aaron Ben-Ze’ev, President of the University of
Haifa.
UK events
Professor Lord
Robert Winston
people a chance to improve their lives. He related
to the importance of Israeli student participation in
international programs as ambassadors able to represent the better side of Israel around the world.
Prof. Aaron Ben-Ze’ev, President of the University
of Haifa, echoed these themes, assuring that the
University “stimulates pragmatic scientific research
and discovery - and ensures that the University
maintains a strategic contribution to Israel’s present
and future.”
A reception hosted by His Excellency Mr. Ron
Prosor, Ambassador of the State of Israel in the
UK, for the British Friends of Haifa University
sealed his commitment to honoring academic
excellence. The guest speaker was Prof. Lord
Prominent guests at the reception included Michael
Winston, Professor of Science and Society, famed L-R: Prof. Aaron Ben-Ze’ev, Prof. Lord Winston,
Ambassador Ron Prosor
Crystal, Chairman of the Trustees of the British
for his dedication to the advancement of fertility
Friends of Haifa University, and his wife Licia; Hana
treatment, and for his BBC documentary series
Smouha, a trustee of the British Friends, with husband Brian; VP for Exbringing the wonders of nature to the public. Lord Winston addressed
ternal Relations at the University, Amos Gaver; longtime supporters of the
the impressive crowd of community leaders, friends and donors on the
University Sir Maurice & Lady Hatter; Ernst & Thilde Fraenkel; and many
role of higher education in general and the University of Haifa in particunew friends.
lar in advancing underprivileged groups in society and in giving young
The Israeli Business Club in London
Some fifty prominent members of the Israeli Business Club in London were guests at a
unique lecture given by Prof. Sheizaf Rafaeli, Head of the Graduate School of Management and Director of the newly established Sagi Center for the Study of the Internet at
the University of Haifa. Prof. Rafaeli spoke on “The Information Revolution in an Online
Environment: What Happens When Products are Distributed for Free,” discussing conclusions from the dot-com bubble burst, how the Internet has changed the basic models
of economy and how it creates a new economy in Israel and abroad. The event was
organized and hosted by IBC committee member Mrs. Leora Torn-Hibler in association
with British Friends of the University of Haifa. Tali Sayar, Director of British Friends of
the University of Haifa opened the event with a presentation about the University and
announcing the new International Alumni Organization. Among those attending the
event were Shmuel Ben-Tovim, Economic Minister at the Embassy of Israel, and Gil
Erez, Commerce Minister at the Embassy and a University of Haifa alumnus.
L-R: Prof. Sheizaf Rafaeli; Israeli Business Club committee
members Dubi Bergman, Malka Liom, Leora Torn-Hibler, and
Moti Besser; Director of British Friends of the University of
Haifa, Tali Sayar
3 -10
NEWSLETTER
University of Haifa
Research: Kibbutz transformation continues
Israel’s kibbutz movement continues to shift from the “collective” model to differential wages
to that; and the “renewing kibbutz” (kibbutz
mithadesh) where the member’s budget is entirely comprised of his individual income from
work and sometimes includes income from
other sources as well.
Over the course of 2009, five more kibbutzim converted to the “renewing kibbutz”
model (paying its members differential
wages) bringing the percentage of such
kibbutzim up to 72% of all the kibbutzim in
Israel. “It is highly probable that by the end
of 2012 the number of kibbutzim shifting to
alternative models will be higher than the
number of the kibbutzim that did so over
2009,” says Dr. Shlomo Getz, Head of the
Institute for the Research of the Kibbutz and
the Cooperative Idea at the University of
Haifa who carried out the survey.
Surveys examining kibbutz compensation
models were begun in 1996, when it was observed that four kibbutzim had begun compensating members by the new kibbutz system
and another six were using the mixed model
budgeting system.
The kibbutzim can be classified by three methods of compensation: The
“collective kibbutz” (kibbutz shitufi), where members are compensated
equally regardless of what work each member does; the “ mixed model
kibbutz” (kibbutz meshulav), where each member is given a small percentage of his salary alongside a basic component that is given equally
to all members of the kibbutz, and sometimes a seniority factor is added
Feb 24
Reception featuring Prof. Martin Golumbic: “Cutting Edge Computer Science and How It Impacts
our World”. American Society of the University of
Haifa, New York, USA.
March 3
Plenary session: Dr. Ati Citron, founder and director
of the Medical Clowning Program at the University
of Haifa, and clowns Noam Rubinstein and Yolana
Zimmerman, graduates of the program, discuss
their work and the development of the University
of Haifa’s ground-breaking Medical Clowning degree program. Canadian Friends of Haifa University,
Toronto, CANADA.
March 7
Reception featuring Prof. Sammy Smooha: “To be
a Palestinian Arab Citizen of the Jewish State”.
American Society of the University of Haifa, New
York, USA.
March 23
Power Breakfast with keynote speaker Yuval
Diskin, Director of the Israel Security Agency (Shin
Bet) and an alumnus of the University of Haifa.
Israel Friends of the University of Haifa’s Business
Leaders Forum, ISRAEL.
April 27
“Beyond the Bicentennial”: Power Breakfast with
keynote speaker Dr. Roberto Lavagna, past Minister
of Economy of Argentina. Asociacion Amigos Argentinos de la Universidad de Haifa, ARGENTINA.
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Visiting faculty in the lecture hall
Taking an active role in contributing to the academic curricula at the University this spring semester is Dr. Alfred
Tauber of Boston, Massachusetts, a prominent supporter
of the University who grants scholarships to advanced
degree students of the University’s Department of Community Mental Health. Dr. Tauber will be giving a course
on “The Philosophy of Psychoanalysis” in the Department of Philosophy. Dr. Tauber is Professor of Philosophy
at Boston University and Director of the Boston University Center for Philosophy and History of Science.
Dr. Alfred Tauber
Australia fundraiser
The Haifa University Ethiopian Women’s
Scholarship Fund, a project of the
National Council of Jewish Women of
Australia, held a unique function to raise
the profile of the project and raise the
funds required for the annual allocation
to the project. To this end, Project Chair
Vivien Brass hosted a luncheon for about
seventy women.
The Haifa University Ethiopian Women’s
Scholarship Fund assists women of At the home of Vivien and Philip Brass, Australia:
Ethiopian descent at the University with Standing: Fay Swart; seated L-R: Susie Bach, Jenny
academic counseling, private tutoring, Downing, Mary Adler, Sandra Abrahams
special courses, transportation costs,
books, and equipment and ancillary expenses incurred outside their tuition fees. It provides
the opportunity for these students to achieve excellence in their studies alongside personal
advancement and to make a contribution to community and society. haifauniversity
Join us on
Contact: Office of the Vice President for External Relations
University Of Haifa – Official Group
Tel: +972-4-8240093
Email: vice-president@univ.haifa.ac.il
Produced by the Division of Communications and Media Relations www.haifa.ac.il
Upcoming events
By the end of 2009, 188 kibbutzim had become
“renewing kibbutzim”, while 9 kibbutzim (3%)
were “mixed model kibbutzim” and 65 (25%) maintained the original and
familiar model, where each member contributes according to his or her
ability and is given according to his or her needs. According to Dr. Getz,
another 4 kibbutzim shifted over to the new model on the first day of 2010,
while 15 more were deliberating the possibility of adopting the differential
wages system.