$12 million gift for Jewish studies

The San Francisco-based Jim Joseph Foundation has awarded $12 million to Stanford's School of Education to create a concentration in education and Jewish studies focused exclusively on preparing doctoral scholars and researchers. The gift, which is the largest in the education school's history, provides funding to endow a new faculty chair, support fellowships for graduate students and underwrite seminars and conferences on questions at the intersection of education, religion and civil society. This area of scholarship is not new to Stanford. From 1992 to 2002, the university offered a similar concentration, graduating 10 doctoral and two master's degree students. By renewing its commitment to the field through the gift from the foundation, Stanford now joins New York University as the only research universities in the country to provide doctoral training in education and Jewish studies. "More children across the globe are educated in religious institutions than secular ones," said Sam Wineburg, the professor of education who led Stanford's effort to renew the concentration. "However, we don't yet know, and have not yet begun to properly study, what ramifications this may have for future generations.