Yeshiva University is proud to launch The Mordecai D. and Monique C. Katz School of Graduate and Professional Studies, which will offer students of all ages the opportunity to further their education, careers and intellectual aspirations. The Katz School was named in recognition of a $25 million commitment from Drs. Mordecai and Monique Katz.

“If we have a core principle about philanthropy, it is this: Invest in people. And the best investment you can make in people is through education,” said Mordecai Katz, a former aerospace executive and a current vice chairman of the Yeshiva University Board of Trustees. Monique Katz, a retired radiologist and graduate of YU-affiliated Albert Einstein College of Medicine, serves as vice chairman of the Stern College for Women Board of Overseers.

“The Katz School of Graduate and Professional Studies will bring the intellectual resources of Yeshiva University to a broad constituency of students,” said Yeshiva University President Richard M. Joel. “We’re deeply grateful to the Katzes for helping YU extend its critical role in today’s complex world where decisions in every profession need to be informed by responsible values and principles.”

Dr. Selma Botman, provost and vice president of academic affairs, added, “Students pursuing one of our associate’s or master’s degrees in a range of fields will gain hands-on, experiential expertise in their area of study and important professional connections. It is a values-driven education that is truly one of a kind.”

The Katz School will offer a range of degrees in fields that run the gamut from marketing, allied health and community education to data science and cybersecurity. Programs will include both face-to-face and online learning options. The focus will be on helping students build their professional network and a portfolio of work that will prepare them to succeed in their careers long after graduation, according to the school’s new dean, Dr. Paul Russo.

“Our curricula will be informed by industry, making them relevant, contemporary and forward-looking. Our faculty delivers practical knowledge as well as the science behind the skills—we teach not just how but why,” said Russo. He also stressed The Katz School’s commitment to project-based learning, in addition to the traditional textbook-and-test approach. “We’ll work closely with YU’s Career Center and alumni network to build bridges, and establish connections for our graduates. Yeshiva is an academic powerhouse where students get a world-class education with individualized support.”

The first initiative of the Katz School will be supporting a new online master’s degree program offered through the Sy Syms School of Business. Beginning in Fall 2016, the one-year, 30-credit program will feature a special emphasis on digital and social media marketing, as well as a uniquely collaborative course structure that will offer students a multi-faceted approach to real-world marketing challenges. Sy Syms is accredited by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, the hallmark of excellence in business education.

“The marketing field has transformed tremendously over the past 10 years, becoming increasingly grounded in science, technology and data,” said Russo. “Whether you’re an executive, entrepreneur, brand manager or a professional in any field looking to build your business, a master’s in marketing can accelerate your career.”

“The program offers comprehensive training in everything from search engine optimization and leveraging social media to the nuts-and-bolts of consumer behavior, data analytics and advertising strategy,” said Dr. Tamar Avnet, associate professor and chair of the marketing department at Sy Syms.

Dr. Maria Blekher will serve as director of the MS in Marketing. Courses in the program will be led by accomplished YU faculty and seasoned practitioners, including Dr. Avi Giloni, associate dean and chair of the Information and Decisions Sciences Department at Sy Syms, who will co-teach Data Mining for Business Analytics; Avnet, who will teach two courses, Research Methods and Advertising and Social Media; Dr. Steve Chan, assistant professor of marketing at Sy Syms, who will teach Applied Social Media and Marketing Management and Dr. Jesse Itzkowitz, assistant professor of marketing at Sy Syms, who will teach Consumers’ Choice and Behaviors, Brand Management and the program’s Marketing Capstone course. Each course will ask students to apply the skills they learn to a distinct aspect of several case-based studies that will be analyzed in every class, forming a shared framework for them to examine and experiment with problems in marketing as they would in the workplace.

“Our energetic marketing faculty have put together a course of study which is relevant, practical and grounded in state-of-the-art thinking,” said Dr. Moses Pava, dean of Sy Syms and the Alvin Einbender Professor of Business Ethics. “The Katz School team brings excitement and years of experience in online education to Yeshiva University.”

Russo comes to YU after a distinguished career in executive positions in higher education, most recently as assistant vice president for instructional innovation and professor of technology strategy at Long Island University, and as both associate dean of professional studies and as director of online programs at the City University of New York. Sofia Binioris also joins the Katz School as program director.

To learn more about The Katz School, visit yu.edu/katz.