Fingerhut Professor of Education
President, Synagogue 3000
Washington University, B.A. (Religious Studies). 1970, M.A. (Education) 1971, Ph.D. (Education) 1974), University of Judaism, M.A. (Jewish Studies), 1976
Dr. Ron Wolfson came to the UJ in 1974 as a student. In 1975, he began teaching here as well.
Even after earning his Ph.D. in Education, he promised his mentor he would continue with Jewish Studies. True to his word, he earned his M.A. in Jewish Studies in 1976 and immediately started working as an acting professor back when the UJ was still at its original Sunset Boulevard location. He has been teaching here ever since. The opportunity to evolve from a student of Dr. David Lieber (in the same class as Dr. Robert Wexler, now UJ president) to his colleague has been personally and professionally rewarding. Coming full circle, he equally enjoys watching his former students from the Fingerhut School of Education become colleagues.
Dr. Wolfson’s series of books on the Art of Jewish Living have sold over 100,000 copies. Beginning with The Shabbat Seder in 1985, he has authored eight books, most recently God’s To- Do List (Jewish Lights Publishing.)
Promoted to the Director of the Education Department, Dr. Wolfson pioneered programs in Jewish education, creating the Educational Resource Center (ERC). The combination of teaching and researching was perfect—and productive. Along with Dr. Wexler, Dr. Wolfson founded the first Summer Institute for Jewish Educators, with Dr. Wexler coordinating Jewish Studies and Dr. Wolfson organizing the Education program.
Then, in 1989, he helped create the Whizin Center for the Jewish Future, a think tank dedicated to envisioning the future of Jewish life. The first institute of the Whizin Center focused on Jewish family life. The second institute evolved into Synagogue 2000 (now 3000), headed by Dr. Wolfson, to advance the Synagogue in 21st century America..
Over his 30-plus year career at the UJ, he has served as director of the Education department, founding Director of the Whizin Center for the Jewish Future, director of the Ramah Academy, Dean of the Fingerhut School of Education, Special Assistant to the President, and Vice President of the University of Judaism. Currently, he serves as Fingerhut Professor of Education.
Dr. Wolfson continues to bring his creativity to the development of new ideas and programs for the education department’s curriculum. He developed both the Working Professionals and the Experiential Education tracks in the Masters in Education program.
His latest exciting creation is a graduate seminar in Experiential Education. He and his students have been developing a set of principles describing the components of excellent “experiences” by immersing themselves in the experiences themselves. Their field work has included experiences at Starbucks, Curves, The Home Depot, TreePeople, Saddleback Church, Zimmer Children’s Museum, American Girl Place, Nordstroms and a Dodgers baseball game. By deconstructing the experiences, Dr. Wolfson and his students are developing a research report detailing how these principles of “experiential learning” can be applied to Jewish schools, camps, youth groups, community centers and synagogues. Dr. Wolfson said, “We hope to bring a different understanding of what it means to create a powerful and effective Jewish experience.”
Author:
Shabbat: The Family Guide to Preparing for and Celebrating the Sabbath
Passover: The Family Guide to Spiritual Celebration
Hanukkah: The Family Guide to Spiritual Celebration
A Time to Mourn, A Time to Comfort: A Guide to Jewish Bereavement and Comfort
What You Will See Inside a Synagogue (with Lawrence Hoffman)
First Fruit: A Whizin Anthology of Jewish Family Education (editor, with Adrianne Bank)
The Spirituality of Welcoming: How to Transform Your Congregation into a Sacred Community
God's To-Do List: 103 Ways to Be an Angel and Do God's Work on Earth
Courses:
The Sociology of American Jewish Education
Graduate Seminar in Experiential Education
How A Community Works:
An Insider's Look at the Organizational Dynamics of Jewish Communal Life
Seminar in Jewish Education and Synagogue Transformation
