Redefining Good Education

TAU epitomizes Judaism’s and Israel’s highest values—education and democracy.

Redefining Success in Education

Change-makers Dr. Kathy Fields and Dr. Garry Rayant spoke with TAU Review about their Jewish values and passion for education and Israel

By Julie Steigerwald-Levi

Dr. Kathy Fields and Dr. Garry Rayant, entrepreneurs, philanthropists and TAU Governors from the San Francisco Bay Area, were instrumental in launching the University’s Center for Combating Pandemics and are core supporters of Minducate, a Learning Innovation Research Center at the Sagol School of Neuroscience. Both are TAU Global Campaign Cabinet members and recently established the Fields-Rayant Scholarship Fund in honor of Campaign Chair Dr. Anita Friedman. The fund provides scholarships to students from Israel’s periphery. What drives your philanthropy?

Garry: Hillel said it best, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?” And as Kathy likes to say, we’re on the now plan. Health and education are among the central tenets of who we are, from which our philanthropy follows.

Kathy: It feels tremendous to make a difference, to matter, particularly at a time where many feel they are losing agency. Garry and I try to be part of the force actively involved in finding solutions to problems facing the Jewish people and the world. What role do Judaism and Israel play in your lives?

Garry: I grew up in London, the son of a refugee from the Holocaust. My father evaded arrest by the Gestapo in Vienna and fled to England where he joined the British army. The other part of his family escaped to Palestine—now Israel. Because of that, I have a large family in Israel and have been visiting for years. It’s home. I can’t overstate the impact of that background and the good fortune I have to live the dream that past generations did not. My parents never forgot who they were, their history and the fact that their values and morality came from their Jewish heritage.

Kathy and I were married at midnight in the Billy Rose Sculpture Garden atop the Israel Museum, the last event of the UJA Young Leadership Cabinet retreat that year. Not a dry eye in the house, me included! Israel is a central part of being Jewish for us. Thank G-d we have a land of our own; it’s central to our security.

Kathy: I grew up in a small Jewish community in Waukegan, Illinois. When we were singled out as Jews at school, my parents decided we’d better own our identity. My siblings and I were the first bnei mitzvah in our

Conservative shul. I became cognizant of issues facing Israel with my first AIPAC meeting at age 26. I gave them my entire monthly paycheck that day! I learned I had a voice and could make a difference. When Garry and I met, we found that our mutual interests and backgrounds propelled us to do more. How does your support for TAU fit into your philanthropic vision?

Garry: Our feeling is that TAU epitomizes Judaism’s and Israel’s highest values—education and democracy. And the University has something for everyone, young and not so young—like us.

When we first got involved, it was through a fundraiser for the dental school. As we progressed, we were introduced to the “Minducate” program. It was a perfect fit, aligning with our goal of improving education through practical applications.

Furthermore, we like the democratic aspect of TAU. Of the 30,000 students, a significant proportion are from minority populations—Arab-Israeli, Palestinian, Druze, Ethiopian, and international students—who have vast potential to benefit their communities and society. If ever there is to be peace, it will come through education.

Was there a defining moment that inspired your passion for educational reform?

Garry: We have two wonderful, bright sons with very different learning profiles; neither of their needs were being met educationally [at school]. They were loaded with so much homework, were not sleeping enough, and experienced stress about getting [good] grades. I have a master’s degree in behavioral science and was floored by how much of the teaching wasn’t based on scientific methods for effective learning or optimal growth, both physical and emotional. We found the problems were endemic, particularly in high school, due to the singular focus on academic achievement and college prep.

So, we started lobbying to change the system from K-12 through college. We began with Challenge Success, a Stanford University-based non-profit that provides families and schools with the practical, research-based tools they need to create more balanced and academically fulfilling lives. Our involvement in education has grown to include political advocacy and lobbying, in our state and nationally, for healthy research-based change.

Where do you want higher education to go from here?

Kathy: We got involved at the college level to address mental health. Too many students on college campuses today suffer from anxiety, depression, and drug and alcohol use—and tragically this too often ends in suicide. For us, the ultimate marker of success in global education is healthy, creative, curious, collaborative adults who are prepared for real-world tasks and to make the world a better place. We’re putting our efforts into universities in the US and Israel to address these important issues. What advice do you have for emerging innovators?

Kathy: Find the problem you want to fix and maintain the clarity and conviction to stay strong in your purpose. Money cannot be the primary motivator. Create a team through your trusted leadership and vision. Always do the right thing when faced with choices. Inventors may not succeed because they don’t practice these founding pillars. Judaism has taught me resilience to overcome adversity along with responsibility and the joy of collaboration.

Garry: I always find myself going back to our tradition:

“If you see what needs to be repaired and how to repair it, then you have found a piece of the world that G-d has left for you to complete.” - Lubavitcher Rebbe

To which we would add one thing— stay curious; there is so much in this wonderful world to learn.

Dr. Kathy Fields is a Stanford-trained dermatologist and the co-founder of the popular skincare lines Proactiv Solution and Rodan & Fields. Dr. Garry Rayant is a University of Pennsylvania-trained periodontist and co-founder of Dear Doctor Magazine Inc. and the newly created Center for Integrative Global Oral Health at UPenn.

Kantor Center’s Chair Adv. Arie Zuckerman (left) and Head Prof. Uriya Shavit (right), with President Isaac Herzog.

TAU Releases Report on Positive Trends in the War on Antisemitism

By Sveta Raskin

Amid growing concern among Jewish communities and national governments about the rise of antisemitism in the world, TAU’s Kantor Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry has launched a novel publication highlighting positive global changes.

Entitled ”For a Righteous Cause: Positive Trends in Fighting Antisemitism and Radicalization,” the report showcases the year’s most important developments in the battle against antisemitism: overtures toward Jewry in Eastern Europe and the Arab World, along with legal and civic measures taken by governments, NGOs and even sports teams. The report also offers policy recommendations for enhancing these measures’ impact, thus creating new models for global dialogue and positive change.

TAU Prof. Uriya Shavit, head of the Kantor Center, presented the report to Israel’s President Isaac Herzog on International Holocaust Remembrance Day (January 27) at his official residence in Jerusalem.

“As antisemitism rises across the world, the international fight against it is also intensifying. We are witnessing many global initiatives for combating antisemitism, and we must encourage and foster these positive trends,” said President Herzog, a TAU alumnus, at the ceremony. “Strengthening the light is just as important as fighting the darkness. I thank the Kantor Center for its dedicated research and faithful work in monitoring antisemitism worldwide.”

Strengthening the light is just as important as fighting the darkness.

Shifting the Discourse

For over a decade, the Kantor Center team at TAU has published a wellknown annual report on antisemitic incidents in the world. This is the first year the Center has published a report on positive trends; it will now become a yearly publication.

“Discourse on antisemitism and radicalization usually focuses on troubling trends. We decided that a positive report about encouraging developments and activities should also be published,” says Shavit of the Entin Faculty of Humanities. He underlines three main reasons for the publication: expressing appreciation

Ahmed Obeid Al Mansoori, founder of the Crossroads of Civilizations Museum in Dubai, at the Museum’s groundbreaking Holocaust exhibit

for those leading the trends; impelling more governments and organizations worldwide to follow suit; and promoting dialogue about improving existing programs. Models for Change

The report presents several surprising and promising paradigm shifts around the world and across public discourse arenas.

In Eastern Europe, specifically in Poland, Ukraine and Slovakia, a growing number of non-Jewish grassroots initiatives are working to restore Jewish cemeteries and preserve the memory of the multiethnic society that existed in the region before the Second World War.

In the Arab world, the UAE and Bahrain are leading the way in making Jewish life, culture and history more visible in society. The first Holocaust exhibit in the region opened recently at the Crossroads of Civilizations Museum in Dubai, while synagogues and Jewish cultural centers are being restored and opened to the public.

Several national courts in Europe and North America set a series of

A Jewish cemetery in Kalush, Ukraine. Organizations such as Rohatyn Jewish Heritage are working to conserve sites like this throughout Eastern Europe. encouraging precedents in fighting antisemitism in 2021, restraining the sofar almost unrestricted dissemination of misinformation. One important example was the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights against a Bulgarian member of parliament who had continuously used antisemitic rhetoric in his books.

In major sports organizations, popular international teams have stepped forward to combat antisemitism among fans and players alike. Encouraging actions are being conducted at all levels—from the EU and national associations through the teams, all the way to the fans themselves. European soccer teams made a particularly strong effort, with top-league British, Austrian, German and Dutch clubs launching educational initiatives among players and the public to encourage zerotolerance for antisemitic slurs.

Governments and NGOs in many countries also launched action plans to promote education and improve legal enforcement.

The Kantor Center report and its promising findings are being presented to leading policymakers and activists around the world.

The full report can be found on the Kantor Center website: https://kantorcenter.tau.ac.il/

TAU Campus Comes Back to Life

The 2021-2022 academic year started off with a flurry of activity and excitement as our students returned to campus for a full in-person semester for the first time since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Needless to say, students, faculty and staff alike enjoyed the restoration of frenetic energy levels to the TAU campus. Though the winter Omicron wave brought new challenges and restrictions, the 2022 spring semester commenced with full frontal learning. Here’s wishing the entire

TAU community a healthy and fruitful semester.

After a long absence, students filled our libraries, classrooms, labs and outdoor spaces. Top: A splint competition among Dr. Yafi Levanon’s students, Department of Occupational Therapy, Steyer School of

Health Professions.