The UC Irvine School of Humanities and History Department are fully committed to supporting Jewish Studies. We are thus delighted to announce a major expansion of the program with the appointment of two new tenure-track faculty. And given strong student interest, the History Department will offer History 18A (Jewish Texts) in the winter or spring quarter of 2025.
The History Department has offered History 18A since 2007; since that time it has been taught ten times, and by five different faculty and lecturers. Since 2007, it has always been taught every second or third year (aside from 2022-23, when it was offered out of the typical schedule). The previous Teller Family Chair in Jewish History and former Director of the Center for Jewish Studies specifically recommended that History 18A be taught every second year for the Minor, and the department has adopted that recommendation, which aligns with our practices for service courses. Not offering History 18A in Fall 2024 is not a change in policy, and we are certainly not eliminating the course.
The School of Humanities conducted a rigorous international search for these two new faculty members that followed all UC processes. An independent committee appointed by the dean reviewed all applications, interviewed a long list, agreed on a list of four for on-campus interviews and recommended two final candidates. The entire faculty in both the History and Comparative Literature Departments approved these lists and recommendations. As is typically the case in academic hiring situations, department chairs do not make hiring decisions.
The History and Comparative Literature Departments will seek to expand the Minor with the appointment of these two new faculty, who will offer History 18A as well as introduce a full array of exciting new courses in the Departments of History and Comparative Literature. There is no separate department of Jewish Studies at UCI; the Center for Jewish Studies coordinates among affiliated faculty members and administers a Minor in Jewish Studies from courses offered in a range of departments. We hope that students will take advantage of these new opportunities to delve deeply into Jewish history and culture and to pursue the Minor.