June 2016

Dear Friends,

Global is the operative subject of this newsletter — we focus here on the special time of the year when our friends from around the globe join their Israeli counterparts on campus for productive, enlightening and enjoyable deliberations and events at the Board of Trustees. Globetrotting doesn’t just relate to visits to our campus in Israel — and in the summer spirit of “kicking back” and presenting things a bit less formally, I am taking the liberty of introducing you to another good “friend” I recently made while hosted by the Chinese government in Shanghai soon after our Board meetings.

After this small digression, I am pleased that our July online newsletter encapsulates some of the Board’s key highlights: the conferment of honorary doctorates to a stellar array of personalities; the Gala Dinner presenting Presidential and Alumni Awards to dedicated BIU leaders and graduates; the election of a new BOT chairman, Michael Jesselson, who will take over the reins from Dr. Mordecai D. Katz, and the tribute luncheon celebrating Mordy’s 12 years of leadership and election as Honorary Chairman. Over the course of the preceding and Board week, enriching lectures from BIU’s 2016 honorary doctors were given in auditoriums and lecture halls all over campus. We “flew” to Mars and back with NASA; held a dialogue with G-d and renewed our national resilience; were treated to a master class in music by a master; were elevated to a new understanding of quantum physics; and learned of Israel-Diaspora dilemmas from a world expert.

“Moving Forward at the Speed of Light”, the theme of this year’s BOT, gives expression to the university’s impressive achievements and aspirations. Perhaps most exciting of all is the excitement generated by the fact that at long last, BIU’s capacity to house students will increase by 1,000 new beds, through the Build-Operate-Transfer-Develop program, tender for which was approved and is now “on the way” to fruition. This project will be transformational for Bar-Ilan University, and will allow for a new era of growth and development.

Wishing you all a very pleasant summer,