Seven outstanding high school graduates from across the nation were selected to receive the prestigious Sarah Rivkah and Dr. Bernard Lander Scholarship given jointly by Touro College and NCSY, the international youth program of the Orthodox Union. The recipients are: Emma O’Quin of Tacoma, WA; Caitlyn Franks of Baltimore; Jamie Epstein of Memphis; Mariah Barber of Eugene, OR; Nicki Feerst of Long Beach, NY; Sara Lederer of Bergenfield, NJ, and Natasha Zucker of Minneapolis, MN.
Touro College, which has long enjoyed a close working relationship with the Orthodox Union, offers scholarships to outstanding NCSY graduates who choose to attend one of Touro’s Lander Colleges in New York City – Lander College for Men in Queens, Lander College for Women/The Anna Ruth and Mark Hasten School in Manhattan, and Lander College of Arts and Sciences in Flatbush.
The scholarships, in memory of Touro’s Founding President Dr. Bernard Lander, zt”l, and his wife Sarah Rivkah, were announced by Touro President and CEO Dr. Alan Kadish and Orthodox Union President Martin Nachimson.
“Dr. Lander always insisted that Touro offer scholarship opportunities to outstanding NCSY leaders,” Dr. Kadish said. “We have presented over $2 million in such scholarships over the years, and it is only appropriate that these scholarships bear Dr. Lander’s name and the name of his beloved wife, Sarah Rivkah.”
Mr. Nachimson added, “These scholarships represent yet another significant link between the Orthodox Union and Touro College,” noting that NCSY also offers scholarship assistance that enables these exceptional future leaders to attend school in Israel prior to enrolling in one of the Lander Colleges.
Marion Stoltz-Loike, Dean of LCW/The Anna Ruth and Mark Hasten School, commented on the meaningful bond that exists between OU’s NCSY and Touro College. “Year after year, it is hardly a surprise that a large portion of our student leadership comes from the ranks of NCSY. This well reflects the unmatched emphasis that NCSY places on empowering and inspiring the next generation of Jewish communal leadership.”
NCSY International Director Rabbi Micah Greenland said that each scholarship recipient’s “commitment to continued personal growth and pursuit of academic excellence is reflected in her welcome decision to attend Touro’s Lander College for Women.”
Dr. Bernard Lander served as president of Touro for almost 40 years, until his passing on February 8, 2010 at the age of 94. He built Touro from a fledgling institution with only 35 students in 1971 to an educational powerhouse with more than 18,000 undergraduate and graduate students across the United States, Israel, Germany, France, and Russia, making Touro the largest not-for-profit independent institution of higher and professional education under Jewish auspices. Touro and its affiliates offer superior yeshiva and other Torah educational opportunities, along with a myriad of undergraduate, graduate, and professional degree programs for the general population.
