Volume 67, Issue 3

Lack of Kippahs Raise Important Questions
by Jamie S. Hirsch

Josh* is a 21-year-old Yeshiva College junior majoring in economics.  Like many undergraduates, he is enrolled in a morning Judaic program, attends five afternoon classes, and just “chills out” at night watching TV between study stints.  Though dressed more casually than many students – he is partial to comfortable jeans – Josh is hardly conspicuous in Judaic classes.  But for all his blending in, Josh, and students like him, is currently the subject of conversations amongst many students, faculty, and administrators.

From Political Science to Politics: Yeshiva Alum Runs For Congress
by Joe Greene

Known for its high acceptance rates to prestigious graduate schools in medicine and law, many students attend Yeshiva in order to join the rank and file of the prototypical Jewish workforce. Rarely, however, do we find a Yeshiva graduate in the political arena.  Opposing the norm, Joe Glass, a 1998 graduate of Yeshiva College as well as an alumnus of The Marsha Stern Talmudical Academy Yeshiva University High School for Boys, is running for United States Congress in the upcoming November elections.

Yeshiva Grads in Grad Schools
by Eli Isak 

In keeping up with Yeshiva College trends, most 2002 graduates who did not go into computers, business, or the Rabbinate opted to attend either law school or medical school. Although the majority of students who applied were admitted to at least one school, last year marked a noticeable decline in Yeshiva’s acceptance rates in the top schools, especially medical schools.

Pop-Up Bookstore Leaves Campus, to Dismay of Students
by Mitch Appleson

If you have yet to purchase your books for classes, you’ll have to find a venue other than Yeshiva’s bookstore to buy them.  With the closure of the pop-up bookstore, you’ll have to wait until January to make on-campus purchases for both school supplies and Yeshiva apparel.

Academic Trends on Campus: Wilf Campus Population Explosion Seen as Definite Challenge  
by Hillel Broder

With the burgeoning student body and dearth of space on the Wilf Campus, the heads of the six undergraduate schools on campus are scurrying more than ever before to better accommodate the growing population. Because of the lack of on-campus space, however, the deans have already begun to acknowledge that increase in enrollment is currently impossible.

Poll of Wilf Campus Students

As Yeshiva finds itself in the depths of a presidential search, The Commentator set out to ascertain the opinions Wilf Campus constituents’ opinions regarding the matter.  The staff of the Commentator chose to emphasize the following issues as being integral to the search process:  Presidential criteria, the possibility of splitting the presidency into two roles, and student sentiment on the candidacy of Dr. David Schnall.  The following poll is a statistical representation of the entire campus.

R. Rosensweig – Speech on September 11, 2002, Lamport Auditorium

“Vateytze esh milifnei hashem vatochal osam vayamusu lifnei hashem” (Vayikra 10:2) The Torah tells us with respect to the calamitous death of the sons of Aharon that esh, that fire, went out from the Ribbono Shel Olam and consumed them, they died in the presence of God. The response of their father, their beloved father: “vayidom aharon” (10:3), and Aharon was silent. And of course, the paradigm for deafening silence. Even a whole year later, the combination of grief and pain, of anger and of horror, at the vicious attack that destroyed thousands of lives, that assaulted the very foundations of civilization, of decency, simply leave us dumbstruck...

Resident Advisor Appeals for Additional Funds; Looks to Enhance Dorm Life
by Jonathan Mazurek 

In the hope of creating a sense of “dorm life” and floor camaraderie at Yeshiva, Amitai Blickstein is on a one-man crusade.  Amitai, the Resident Advisor (RA) for the 7th floor of the Morgenstern Residence Hall, has recently developed an agenda that would increase the funding allocated to the RAs for floor functions.  The necessity, he claims, is due to the basic lack of friendship and togetherness that should normally be felt among the members of a floor.  “A floor should be like a bunk… not a Holiday Inn,” Blickstein says. 

Reflections on Yoni Jesner, Friend and Martyr
By Yechiel Robinson

 Around 1:00 PM on Thursday, September 19, in downtown Tel Aviv, an Arab terrorist stepped on a bus and blew himself up, murdering six people.  My friends Yoni Jesner and his cousin Gideon Black, two nineteen-year-old British students, were riding that bus.  Yoni suffered severe brain damage and died the next morning, Erev Sukkos, at about 10:30 AM

Picking a President:  Not As Easy As It Looks
By Ariel Brandwein

Five hundred eighty-four days ago, Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm announced his decision to the Yeshiva Board of Trustees to resign from his position as President of Yeshiva University.  Since the day of that heartfelt declaration, the Board has attempted, for only the third time in University history, to find a proper replacement for Rabbi Lamm, a task that has proven lengthy and arduous. 

MSDCS: Bringing the Flavor of Yeshiva to North America
by Jeremy Mazurek

With the arrival of Cheshvan, this year’s exhaustive, yet uplifting holiday season comes to an end.  From the Yamim Noraim through Sukkos, we have been davening, eating, rejoicing, and eating some more.  But the conclusion of this holiday marathon also marks the successful launch and return of the largest Simchas Torah Blanche Schreiber Torah Tours to date.  The Torah Tours program, sponsored by the Schreiber Foundation, is run by the Max Stern Division of Communal Services, under the guidance of Rabbi Ari Rockoff, Coordinator of Youth and Outreach Services.  Over the past several years, MSDCS has become an increasingly vital institution not only on this campus but for Jews across North America as well.

Har Etzion Alumni at Yeshiva Remember a Dear Friend
by Zev Nagel

His parents named him after Yoni Netanyahu, killed leading the successful Entebbe rescue on July 4, 1976, that saved the lives of 104 hijacked hostages.  Netanyahu died a national hero, immortalized a legend for his commitment to the Jewish people.  Like his namesake, Yoni Jesner, killed on September 20th, 2002 in a terrorist bombing in Tel Aviv, will be remembered for the remarkable impression he made on everyone who knew him and his dedication to the land and the people of Israel.

Karduner Captivates Campus
by Jeremy Mazurek 

This past Monday night, October 7th, the Yeshiva Student Union drew nearly 400 students from the Wilf and Midtown Campuses to Weissberg Commons for a school-wide Yosef Karduner concert aimed at supporting Israel and providing musical entertainment at the same time.  Karduner, the immensely popular guitarist and singer – and a Breslover Chassid – performed in front of a crowd eager to dance and to demonstrate solidarity with Israel.  Despite short notice, quick planning, and resistance from the Office of Facilities Management, all in attendance deemed the night a huge success.

IHP: Independent Housing Problem
by Yonatan Miller

  With student enrollment at an all-time high, the three Wilf Campus dormitories – Morgenstern, Muss, and Rubin – are filled to capacity.  Students now worry not about which dorm they will be placed in but whether they will be placed in the dorms at all. With more residents than ever before, the Independent Housing Program (IHP), continues to isolate and frustrate a significant number of Yeshiva College and Sy Syms undergraduates.

Department in Focus: CHEMISTRY
by Yoel Preminger 

Amid the labyrinth of convoluted glass tubing and Bunsen burners, the Yeshiva College Chemistry Department continues to draw hundreds of students to its classes. The 2002-2003 academic year marks a milestone in the department with several significant changes that the chemistry faculty hopes will interest both science majors and non-science majors alike.

Experimentation with Chemistry
by Dr. Bruce Hrnjez 

Everyone can relate to the idea that one’s surroundings can have a profound affect on one’s behavior and, inevitably, on the course of one’s life.  So it is also with molecules.  A molecule’s surroundings, the medium in which it is dissolved, can exert subtle, or not so subtle, effects on the way the molecule vibrates, rotates, or interacts with light, and the way its chemical bonds break or form in a chemical reaction.  Generally speaking, we refer to these phenomena as “solvent effects,” and their study is among the most pressing concerns of those who want to understand how molecules behave.

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