- Part Of
- Canadian Jewish Congress, Ontario Region fonds
- General office subject and correspondence files series
- Level
- File
- Fonds
- 17
- Series
- 2
- File
- 720
- Material Format
- textual record
- Date
- 1974
- Physical Description
- 1 folder of textual records
- Scope and Content
- File consists of correspondence regarding Midrasha L'Morim, the Jewish Teacher's Seminary Committee, including a copy of the Central Region Senior Officers' meeting minutes for October 10, 1973 which discussed the committee.
- Access Restriction
- Records in off-site storage; advance notice required to view.
- Accession Number
- 2005-2-2
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Board of Jewish Education fonds
- Midrasha L'Morim series
- Level
- Series
- Fonds
- 48
- Series
- 8
- Material Format
- textual record
- Date
- 1953-1999
- Physical Description
- 2.1 m of textual records
- Admin History/Bio
- The Toronto Midrasha L'Morim (Toronto Jewish Teachers' Seminary) was founded in 1953, a joint effort of the Bureau of Jewish Education and the Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC) Central Region. The Midrasha provided interested day school graduates with the opportunity to pursue a career in Jewish education without having to leave Toronto for training. It also provided those already in the field with the opportunity to improve their qualifications. The Midrasha was created to meet the anticipated shortage of teachers in the late 1950s, as enrollment in Toronto's Jewish schools increased.
- J. Irving Oelbaum, chair of the CJC Central Region in the early 1950s and a well-known advocate for Jewish education, was named the founder of the Midrasha. The Midrasha was governed by a board of governors, appointed jointly by CJC-Central Region and the UJWF. The BJE Executive Director served as dean of the seminary, and the position of registrar was held by the BJE senior school consultant, Dr. S.B Ullman, until the late 1960s, when this responsibility was transferred to the BJE Associate Director. Funding of the Midrasha was shared by the BJE and CJC Central Region until the late 1970s, when the teachers seminary became solely the responsibility of the BJE and its parent organization, the Toronto Jewish Congress (TJC). During the 1950s and early 1960s, however, the bulk of the funding for the Midrasha came from the CJC, with the BJE responsible for the seminary's daily operations and administration.
- The Midrasha opened on 3 October 1953, with classes held at Community House, 44 St. George Street, Toronto, which was owned by the National Council of Jewish Women. Initial enrollment was 23 students divided into 2 classes by age group. The first class, aged 16-18, was enrolled in a four year program; the second class, aged 18-23, was in a two year program. Six teachers were employed, teaching courses in Hebrew literature, Torah, prophets, post-Biblical texts, Yiddish, and educational methodology & psychology. Subsequently, the four-year program became standard for the Midrasha. Locations for classes varied over the years, typically making use of classrooms in the Jewish day schools after school hours. The first class graduated in 1955 and was composed mainly of Toronto-born, female students. In the late fifties and early sixties, an increasing percentage of the students were recent immigrants from Israel. Graduates of the program helped to relieve the shortage of Hebrew teachers at day and supplementary schools in Toronto and across Ontario. The four-year program of study was extended to five years in 1970, divided into a two-year preparatory program and a three-year teacher training course.
- In 1967, the CJC Central Region conducted a review of the Midrasha L'Morim which led to the introduction of post-graduate and part-time programs. This study was soon followed by the UJWF Study on Jewish Education, one section of which dealt with the Midrasha and teacher training. In the 1975 report, the Study Committee on Jewish Education recommended the development of a degree-granting program in Jewish teacher education at York University, and this was established soon after. The Midrasha continued to operate alongside the York program, providing supplementary and specialized training. As of 2006, the Midrasha L'Morim continues to operate, offering teacher certification upon completion of the program. It includes evening, Sunday, and summer courses, conducted primarily in Hebrew, on a variety of Judaic subjects
- Scope and Content
- The series documents the work of the Midrasha board of governors and staff in guiding the operation of the Midrasha and responding to enquiries and reports from Midrasha study committees. The series also documents the work of the Midrasha registrar -- the BJE Associate Director -- in assisting students and organizing the Midrasha curriculum. The series consists of minutes of board meetings, reports and minutes of Midrahsa study committees, course outlines and course calendars, and records relating to the faculty, teacher seminars, student enrollment, graduation exercises and Midrasha budgets.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dr. Alexander Brown fonds
- Board of Jewish Education series
- Level
- File
- Fonds
- 95
- Series
- 1
- File
- 7
- Material Format
- textual record
- Date
- 1967-1982
- Physical Description
- 1 folder of textual records
- Scope and Content
- File consists of textual records documenting Dr. Brown's involvement with the Midrasha L'Morim (Toronto Jewish Teacher's Seminary). Included is a report on upgrading the Midrasha and creating a college of Jewish studies, enrolment statistics, a budget, graduation programmes and invitations, correspondence, a news release, a flyer, an admission application, and a list of contacts.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Accession Number
- 2006-2-7
- Source
- Archival Accessions
- Accession Number
- 2006-2-7
- Material Format
- graphic material
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 19 x 34 cm
- Date
- 4 Oct. 1953
- Scope and Content
- Accession consists of a photograph of first convocation of graduates of the Bureau of Jewish Education's Midrasha L'morim (Jewish Teachers' Seminary), in the auditorium of Harbord Collegiate Institute
- Descriptive Notes
- Board of Jewish Education.
- Name Access
- Board of Jewish Education.
- Source
- Archival Accessions
- Part Of
- Canadian Jewish Congress, Ontario Region fonds
- Committee meeting agendas, minutes, reports and correspondence series
- Level
- Series
- Fonds
- 17
- Series
- 1
- Material Format
- textual record
- graphic material
- text
- Date
- 1942-1998
- Physical Description
- ca. 3.3 metres of textual records
- 14 photographs
- 1 book
- Scope and Content
- Series consists of the correspondence, minutes, agendas, and reports of a wide variety of committees of the Canadian Jewish Congress. The bulk of the material relates to the CJC National and Ontario region executive committees, officers' committees, and plenary arrangements committees. Additional records relate to committees concerned with such topics as, small Jewish communities, culture, Holocaust remembrance, student campus services, education, finance and fundraising, kashruth, and Israel.
- Notes
- Files created by the United Jewish Relief Agencies have been removed and may now be found within Fonds 17, Series 4.
- Files created by the Committee for Soviet Jewry have been removed and may now be found within Fonds 17, Series 3
- Files created by the Joint Community Relations Committee have been removed and may now be found within fonds 17, Series 5.
- Access Restriction
- Partially closed. Some records are closed for conservation reasons.
- Records in off-site storage; advance notice required to view.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Canadian Jewish Congress, Ontario Region fonds
- Committee for Soviet Jewry series
- Committee meeting agendas and minutes sub-series
- Level
- Sub-series
- Fonds
- 17
- Series
- 3-1
- Material Format
- textual record
- Date
- 1970-1988
- Physical Description
- 6 cm of textual records
- Scope and Content
- Sub-series consists of agendas and minutes of meetings of 1), the Toronto Committee for Soviet Jewry (its best-known name) and its predecessors 2), The Steering Committee for Soviet Jewry, 3), the Committee for Soviet Jewry and 4), the Action Committee for Soviet Jewry. Each file title reflects the name of the creator committee at that time. With the exception of 1984, there are agendas and minutes for each year of committee activity until 1988, after which time the activities of the committee were considerably reduced. 1989 and 1990 committee meeting minutes were either not created or never transferred.
- Related Material
- Committee correspondence may be found at Fonds 17, Series 3, Sub-series 3-2
- Arrangement
- Files have been arranged in chronological order and by committee name.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Level
- Item
- ID
-
Item 3752
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Level
- Item
- Item
- 3752
- Material Format
- graphic material
- Date
- 1957
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 20 x 26 cm
- Notes
- Item is a photograph of the first graduating class from the Midrasha L'Morim. Pictured is:
- Back row, left to right: [unidentified], [unidentified], Avi Rosen, Mrs. Schpindal, Mr. Deutsch, Ms. Trumpeldor, [Shami?] Ogden, David Newman, [unidentifed], David Arzem, Mr. [Megori?], Mr. Schmuk, Mr. Boimal.
- Front row, left to right: Rabbi M. Jelniker, Rabbi Stuart Rosenberg (speaker), [Sam Simchovitch?], Dr. Joseph Diamond, Dr. Ullman, Rabbi Dov Schochet, Mr. Menachovsky, Dr. I. Rabinovich, A. Schkop.
- Repro Restriction
- Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.
- Places
- Toronto (Ont.)
- Accession Number
- 1985-5-13
- Source
- Archival Descriptions