(Courtesy of Touro College) Naomi Klapper of Teaneck was one of six Touro College faculty members selected for this year’s Presidential Excellence Awards. The awards recognize superior teaching, research and scholarship, and service. Professor Klapper, who won the award for outstanding teaching, has served as a full-time faculty member at Touro’s Lander College for Women—The Anna Ruth and Mark Hasten School—for three decades and currently chairs the psychology department.
“Teaching, research and scholarship, and service are the core values of our institution,” stated Dr. Alan Kadish, president of the Touro College and University System. “These awards allow us to acknowledge the exemplary achievements of our faculty.”
In addition to teaching, Professor Klapper guides her students in the process of choosing their careers in the field of psychology and social work, and in all aspects of the graduate school application process. She implemented an extensive psychology internship program through which she arranges clinical and research internships and serves as the faculty supervisor and mentor for the students during their internships. She also works with students to present posters from their research internships at numerous professional conferences.
Many of Klapper’s students continue on to pursue graduate degrees and careers in psychology; her department currently has a 100 percent acceptance rate of students in doctoral and master’s-level psychology programs.
“My father was a pulpit rabbi and a chaplain in the Navy,” said Professor Klapper. “I was raised in a very idealistic culture where you gave back to the community, to your country, and thought about other people. We were trained to think about things greater than ourselves. My husband and I raised our four children with similar ideals, to be greatly involved with causes that are important to them and to think about the emotional needs of others. My children joke that even people who come to the house to fix something, like the plumber or the gardener, end up talking to me about their personal life problems. I have that training; I grew up spending my summers on Navy bases while my father was on active duty. We knew that his role was helping people through difficult times. Many of those he worked with had undiagnosed PTSD and up until recently he worked at the VA hospitals. That was our role model, and I try to instill those values in my students as well—this ideal of helping people and looking outside of our own needs.”
Professor Klapper is a licensed mental health counselor who has lectured extensively on the topics of parenting, relationships, marriage and wellness. She is a sought-after scholar-in-residence at many educational retreats, psychology programs and synagogues and maintains a private practice on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Klapper received both a Master of Arts in mental health counseling and her M.A. in social-organizational psychology from Columbia University, and has received several other teaching awards, including the student-nominated Teacher of the Year award at Touro’s Lander College and the prestigious America’s Top Teachers award.
