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Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning
Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning or Dropsie University was a Jewish institution of higher learning in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was America's first degree-granting institution for post-doctoral Jewish studies. Funded by the will of Moses Aaron Dropsie (1821–1905), it was chartered in 1907 and its first building was completed in 1912. It ceased to grant degrees in 1986.
The Dropsie University Complex's buildings were placed on Philadelphia's roster of historic buildings as of November 30, 1971. The Dropsie University Complex was named a national historic landmark (NRHP) on January 17, 1975.
After a brief period as the Annenberg Research Institute (1986–1993), Dropsie ceased to be an independent organization and became part of the University of Pennsylvania. Its name changed several times and it was relocated, becoming the Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies.
Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning was founded in 1907. Its main benefactor was Moses Aaron Dropsie (1821–1905), a wealthy man whose father was Jewish and mother was Christian but who self-identified as Jewish from the age of 14. In 1905, Dropsie left his entire fortune for the establishment of a Jewish college along broad lines, offering instruction "in the Hebrew and cognate languages and their respective literatures, and in the rabbinical learning and literature." Estimated at $800,000, approximately $29,224,0901 in 2025 dollars, the amount of this bequest was the largest sum that had been made available for the promotion of Jewish studies.
Dropsie College may have been designed by Lewis Pilcher or by Abraham Levy. It was built at Broad and York Streets. It was near the historic Spanish and Portuguese Congregation Mikveh Israel, Philadelphia's first Jewish congregation, then at 2321 N Broad Street. The first three presidents of Dropsie (Mayer Sulzberger, Cyrus Adler and Abraham A. Neuman) were worshipers there. They were instrumental in establishing the college and its library. Dropsie College sought to be grounded in the values, history, and "Science of Judaism."
On November 9, 1981, a fire ravaged the school's building at Broad and York Streets. In December 1983, the school moved to Temple Adath Israel of the Main Line in Merion where it was welcomed rent-free.
Dropsie granted more than 200 Ph.D.s between its inception and its closing as a degree-granting institution in 1986. Dropsie was also the publisher of the Jewish Quarterly Review, which was at the time the most respected journal on the subject.
The faculty at Dropsie included scholars from outside the United States, including Benzion Netanyahu, who came from Jerusalem with his young sons, Yonatan (Yoni) and Benjamin (Bibi), who there had their first true exposures to American culture, which would become a touchstone for later interactions with the American public for Bibi.
Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning
Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning or Dropsie University was a Jewish institution of higher learning in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was America's first degree-granting institution for post-doctoral Jewish studies. Funded by the will of Moses Aaron Dropsie (1821–1905), it was chartered in 1907 and its first building was completed in 1912. It ceased to grant degrees in 1986.
The Dropsie University Complex's buildings were placed on Philadelphia's roster of historic buildings as of November 30, 1971. The Dropsie University Complex was named a national historic landmark (NRHP) on January 17, 1975.
After a brief period as the Annenberg Research Institute (1986–1993), Dropsie ceased to be an independent organization and became part of the University of Pennsylvania. Its name changed several times and it was relocated, becoming the Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies.
Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate Learning was founded in 1907. Its main benefactor was Moses Aaron Dropsie (1821–1905), a wealthy man whose father was Jewish and mother was Christian but who self-identified as Jewish from the age of 14. In 1905, Dropsie left his entire fortune for the establishment of a Jewish college along broad lines, offering instruction "in the Hebrew and cognate languages and their respective literatures, and in the rabbinical learning and literature." Estimated at $800,000, approximately $29,224,0901 in 2025 dollars, the amount of this bequest was the largest sum that had been made available for the promotion of Jewish studies.
Dropsie College may have been designed by Lewis Pilcher or by Abraham Levy. It was built at Broad and York Streets. It was near the historic Spanish and Portuguese Congregation Mikveh Israel, Philadelphia's first Jewish congregation, then at 2321 N Broad Street. The first three presidents of Dropsie (Mayer Sulzberger, Cyrus Adler and Abraham A. Neuman) were worshipers there. They were instrumental in establishing the college and its library. Dropsie College sought to be grounded in the values, history, and "Science of Judaism."
On November 9, 1981, a fire ravaged the school's building at Broad and York Streets. In December 1983, the school moved to Temple Adath Israel of the Main Line in Merion where it was welcomed rent-free.
Dropsie granted more than 200 Ph.D.s between its inception and its closing as a degree-granting institution in 1986. Dropsie was also the publisher of the Jewish Quarterly Review, which was at the time the most respected journal on the subject.
The faculty at Dropsie included scholars from outside the United States, including Benzion Netanyahu, who came from Jerusalem with his young sons, Yonatan (Yoni) and Benjamin (Bibi), who there had their first true exposures to American culture, which would become a touchstone for later interactions with the American public for Bibi.
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