Confusion Amid Changes in Registration Department

Six weeks after University Registrar Rabbi Melvin Davis resigned, the Yeshiva University registrars office has once again undergone radical change. Lea Honigwachs, the recently hired Assistant Registrar at Stern College for Women, has been moved Uptown to the University’s main registrar’s office, with Pinchas Friedenberg, former University Registrar, temporarily filling the void left at the Stern College office.

Director of Enrollment Management, John B. Fisher is responsible for these most recent personnel changes. According to Mr. Fisher, the nature of Dr. Honigwachs’ job and responsibilities will change dramatically as she is now filling the office left vacant by Carol Roth this summer.

While at Stern, Honigwachs learned the Banner System and administered all duties of the undergraduate registrar. With her move uptown, Honigwachs’ work will primarily center around the university’s graduate schools, the review of doctoral theses and the conferring of degrees. However, Honigwachs expects her workload to change slightly in the absence of a university registrar, as current Registrar Davis is expected to leave Yeshiva within the week.

According to Fisher, Pinchas Friedenberg was appointed to fill Honigwachs’ position at Stern for the duration of the academic year. Friedenberg, the former University Registrar, left under unclear circumstances over five years ago. Fisher asserts that Friedenberg was hired only as a consultant to assist the Stern College Registrars Office until a permanent replacement can be found. According to Fisher, Friedenberg has not been given an official title to accompany his work.

The conditions under which Honigwachs was moved uptown and Friedenberg was slipped into the Stern position are also unclear at this time. Fisher said, "I offered her [Honigwachs] the job, and she accepted."

According to administrators close to the situation, however, the terms of her acceptance were not so kind. At a standard registrars meeting uptown, Honigwachs was reportedly informed that she was being transferred to Carol Roth’s former office. "Since this doubles her travel time from her home in Brooklyn, she [Honigwachs] said she would not accept a transfer," said one administrator. "But after some consideration of the benefits of a transfer versus unemployment, Lea decided to accept the offer and move Uptown." Dr. Honigwachs declined to comment on the conditions of her appointment and subsequent transfer.

Fisher asserted that the Registrars office will continue to undergo institutional changes over the next three months and there will be no void in office leadership.

The one concern that remains prevalent in most minds throughout the university, is the inability of the university to fill any of the vacant offices in the registration department. According to Fisher’s office, the University has placed a number of advertisements soliciting applicants for associate, assistant, and university registrar positions. Currently, no suitable candidates have submitted resumes for consideration. "We are suffering from an extremely good economy right now," said Fisher, commenting on Yeshiva’s inability to fill administrative vacancies. Fisher went on to explain that hiring good people from other universities would require engaging in bidding wars for professionals’ services - something that Yeshiva is not prepared to do.

Despite all the maneuvers and positional voids within the registrar’s office, many feel that undergraduate spring registration has been thus far glitch free. The course catalogues accompanied with student transcripts and registration forms were all prepared and distributed in advance, with only minor changes being made to the catalogue. "Mel has taken care of us this time around, and all the students should thank him, I am afraid we won’t be so lucky in the spring," cautioned a University employee.