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News Release

Last modified: Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Reuben gift boosts Holocaust study scholarships in IU Jewish Studies Program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 17, 2012

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- A $175,000 gift to the Robert A. and Sandra S. Borns Jewish Studies Program at Indiana University Bloomington will enable more students to conduct research and engage in other academic initiatives related to the Holocaust.

The gift from the estate of Sara I. Reuben provides additional support for the Sara and Albert Reuben Scholarships to Support the Study of the Holocaust, first endowed in 1999. Sara Reuben died in January 2010, and her husband, Albert G. Reuben, died in December 2002; the gift was made possible by their son, Larry Reuben, an IU alumnus and Indianapolis attorney.

"Through their generosity, the Reuben family has had a transformative impact on Jewish life in Indiana," said Jeffrey Veidlinger, director of the Borns Jewish Studies and the Alvin H. Rosenfeld Chair in Jewish Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. "Sara's and Albert's longtime commitment to Holocaust commemoration and Larry's dedication to the pursuit of social justice come together in this scholarship which will help support students who seek to understand and fight hatred and prejudice."

Sara Reuben was born in Belarus, but both she and Albert grew up and met in Omaha, Neb. They later moved to Ohio before settling in Indianapolis in 1948. They supported the Jewish Studies Program from its outset, and throughout their lives they were dedicated to the preservation and advancement of Jewish culture, education and history. The family has given more than $340,000 to the Jewish Studies Program over the years.

The latest gift was part of an $8 million bequest that was divided among 13 nonprofit organizations and institutions in the Indianapolis area. Larry Reuben selected the recipients in partnership with the Central Indiana Community Foundation. They represent a cross-section of community needs and issues that were important to Sara and Albert Reuben, including elder care, education, homelessness, mental health, civil rights and justice, women's health and reproductive rights, early childhood development, immigrant acculturation, human and animal rights, and Jewish heritage.

Twenty-two IU graduate and undergraduate students have received Reuben Scholarships since 1999. Thanks to the 2011 gift, beginning in 2012-13, two students each year will share in up to $13,000 for academic projects related to the Holocaust.

The 2012-13 scholarships are open to IU Bloomington undergraduate and graduate students from any department or college. Applicants must be enrolled in the spring 2012 semester, must have a minimum GPA of 3.4 and must continue as enrolled students during the semester or year when the funding is awarded.

The application deadline is March 1, 2012, for undergraduates and March 8 for graduate students. For more information, including application procedures, visit www.indiana.edu/~jsp/undergraduates/funding.shtml.

About the Robert A. and Sandra S. Borns Jewish Studies Program

Since its founding as the first Jewish studies program at a public university in 1973, the Borns Jewish Studies Program has been a national leader in promoting understanding of Judaism and literacy in Jewish studies to students of all backgrounds. It awards more degrees in Jewish studies than any other nondenominational university in the U.S.

The program, in the College of Arts and Sciences at IU Bloomington, advances the frontiers of research, promotes student achievement, fosters engagement and maintains an international presence in the scholarly community through innovative inquiry and research partnerships. It provides leadership and service to the wider community within and beyond the university on issues of relevance to Jewish Studies through sponsorship of public events and educational outreach.

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