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Academic Engagement Network (AEN)

Website:

academicengagement.org
Location:

Washington, DC
Type:

Pro-Israel Academic Network
Formation:

2015
Executive Director:

Miriam Elman

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The Academic Engagement Network (AEN) is a pro-Israel network of university educators and administrators focused on fighting antisemitism and advocating for Judaism and Israel on university campuses. It offers its members training on countering antisemitism and engaging in pro-Jewish advocacy, networking opportunities, advocacy support, and microgrants to fund campus-specific programs and research. 1 2 3

AEN is fiscally sponsored by the Israel on Campus Coalition (ICC), 4 a pro-Israel umbrella organization which is funded by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, Harold Grinspoon Foundation, and Hillel International. 5

Background

Academic Engagement Network (AEN) is a pro-Israel network of university educators and administrators. 6 It has more than 1,000 members on 322 campuses across the United States. 7

AEN was formed in 2015 by Mark Yudof, president emeritus of the University of California system, and Kenneth Waltzer, former director of Jewish studies at Michigan State University, to fight antisemitism and support Israel on university campuses. 8

Professors and administrators at universities and colleges can become AEN members and receive support and education on addressing antisemitism and advocating for Judaism and Israel. Members can receive grants of up to $3,000 to support campus programs or research. 9

Programs and Work Areas

Academic Engagement Network offers a regional member boot camp on antisemitism and pro-Jewish advocacy for those committed to “taking action on their campuses and in their professional associations.” 10

Convenings are one-day events specific to a campus or city where local members and AEN leadership engage to discuss events on a particular campus and “galvanize members to action.” 11

The Improving the Campus Climate Initiative (ICCI) was launched in 2020 to educate, train, and support senior and mid-level campus administrators to respond to campus antisemitism and promote Jewish inclusion. 12 The program offers workshops, tools, and consultation on developing campus-wide Jewish advocacy. 13

AEN provides microgrants to support campus specific programs and member research. The Antisemitism Education Initiative grants are provided to develop educational programs at the campus, regional, and national level. 14 In March 2024, AEN awarded two Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in South Carolina $75,000 to develop training programs for students on Jewish and Black solidarity, covering topics such as the Jewish activists in the NAACP and Black civil rights leaders’ support for Zionism. AEN plans to expand the programs to at least five more HBCUs in South Carolina. 15

Advocacy

Academic Engagement Network described the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel as comprised of “heinous acts.” 16 In the aftermath of the attack, AEN organized statements and petitions signed by nearly 4,000 university faculty against the Hamas attack, in support of Israel’s war against Hamas, and against antisemitic and anti-Israel movements on campus. 17

The AEN Section for Women Faculty condemned the National Women’s Studies Association (NWSA) in a statement dated December 14, 2023, for its lack of support for Israeli women and girls who were attacked by Hamas on October 7, 2023. It claimed that the NWSA did not condemn the attacks or call for the release of hostages, but it released statements condemning Israel’s military response to the Hamas massacre. 18

In March 2024 a University of California, Berkeley, professor and AEN member staged a sit-in protest where he ate, slept, and taught from his office to address campus antisemitism. Following this protest, AEN launched the Faculty Against Antisemitism Movement to “grow a strong faculty movement that will fight for Jewish inclusion” and against antisemitism. Additional AEN sponsored movements have started up in universities across the country including UCLA, Columbia University, University of California, Berkeley, Yale University, Stanford, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 19

Funding

AEN is fiscally sponsored by the Israel on Campus Coalition (ICC), 20 a pro-Israel umbrella organization funded by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, Harold Grinspoon Foundation, Hillel International, donor-advised funds American Endowment Foundation and Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, and other donors. 21 22 23

Leadership

Miriam Elman has been executive director of AEN since 2019. Elman graduated from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem then earned a master’s degree and Ph.D. from Columbia University. From 2009 to 2022 she was an associate professor of political science at Syracuse University. 24 Previously she was a member of the Israel Defense Forces and lived in Israel for over ten years. 25

Naomi Greenspan is director of the Israel on Campus Coalition for AEN. Prior to joining AEN in 2020, she worked for the Anti-Defamation League for over 9 years and the Interfaith Youth Core for 1 year. 26

The AEN advisory board is made up of representatives from the Israel Action Network and 16 universities including Harvard University, George Washington University, University of California, Berkeley, and Stanford University. 27

Mark Yudof is chair of the advisory board. He’s a law professor and senior academic administrator, having been president of the University of California, chancellor of the University of Texas System, and president of the University of Minnesota. He’s on the board of the Lumina Foundation and the Blum Center for Developing Economies and a senior consultant to the Schusterman Family Foundation. 28

References

  1. Melissa Apter. “Top intellectuals mobilize against anti-Israel activity on campus.” The Times of Israel. December 23, 2015. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.timesofisrael.com/top-intellectuals-mobilize-against-anti-israel-activity-on-campus/
  2. “Our Core Programs.” Academic Engagement Network – About Us. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/about-us/
  3. Sara Weissman. “Antisemitism Awareness Program Launched at HBCUs.” Inside Higher Ed. March 22, 2024. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/institutions/minority-serving-institutions/2024/03/22/antisemitism-awareness-program-launched
  4. “Donate.” Academic Engagement Network. Accessed April 18, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/donate/
  5. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer – Israel on Campus Coalition. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/full_text_search?form%5B%5D=IRS990ScheduleI&page=7&q=israel+on+campus&sort=best&submit=Apply&year%5B%5D=2022
  6. “About Us.” Academic Engagement Network. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/about-us/
  7. David Israel. “US Jewish Academics Fight Back with #KeepTheLightOn Campaign. Jewish Press. April 17, 2024. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.jewishpress.com/news/jewish-news/antisemitism-news/us-jewish-academics-fight-back-with-keepthelighton-campaign/2024/04/17/
  8.  Melissa Apter. “Top intellectuals mobilize against anti-Israel activity on campus.” The Times of Israel. December 23, 2015. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.timesofisrael.com/top-intellectuals-mobilize-against-anti-israel-activity-on-campus/
  9. “For Faculty.” Academic Engagement Network. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/for-faculty/#membership
  10. “For Faculty.” Academic Engagement Network. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/for-faculty/#membership
  11. “Our Core Programs.” Academic Engagement Network – About Us. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/about-us/
  12.  “Partnership Announced with Historically Black Universities to Combat Antisemitism.” San Diego Jewish World. March 14, 2024. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.sdjewishworld.com/2024/03/14/partnership-announced-with-historically-black-universities-to-combat-antisemitism/
  13. “For Campus Administrators.” Academic Engagement Network. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/for-campus-administrators/
  14. “Our Core Programs.” Academic Engagement Network – About Us. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/about-us/
  15. Sara Weissman. “Antisemitism Awareness Program Launched at HBCUs.” Inside Higher Ed. March 22, 2024. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/institutions/minority-serving-institutions/2024/03/22/antisemitism-awareness-program-launched
  16. Jack Stripling and Laura Meckler. “At colleges, violence in Israel and Gaza ignites a war of words.” The Washington Post. October 11, 2023. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/10/10/colleges-react-israel-hamas-war/
  17. “October 7 and its Impact on U.S. Campuses and the Academy: Reflections from AEN Faculty Members.” YouTube – Academic Engagement Network. November 9, 2023. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXLqo0G96Aw
  18. AEN Section for Women Faculty Statement to the National Women Studies Association (NWSA). December 14, 2023. https://academicengagement.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/AEN_Section-Statement-on-the-NWSA_12.14.23.pdf Link from LinkedIn – Academic Engagement Network January 2024 post. https://www.linkedin.com/company/academic-engagement-network/posts/?feedView=all
  19. David Israel. “US Jewish Academics Fight Back with #KeepTheLightOn Campaign. Jewish Press. April 17, 2024. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.jewishpress.com/news/jewish-news/antisemitism-news/us-jewish-academics-fight-back-with-keepthelighton-campaign/2024/04/17/
  20. “Donate.” Academic Engagement Network. Accessed April 18, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/donate/
  21. James Bamford. “Israel’s War on American Student Activists.” The Nation. November 17, 2023. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.thenation.com/article/world/israel-spying-american-student-activists/
  22. Josh Nathan-Kazis. “A New Wave of Hardline Anti-BDS Tactics Are Targeting Students, And No One Knows Who’s Behind It.” Forward. August 2, 2018. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://forward.com/news/407127/a-new-wave-of-hardline-anti-bds-tactics-are-targeting-students-and-no-one/
  23. ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer – Israel on Campus Coalition. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/full_text_search?form%5B%5D=IRS990ScheduleI&page=7&q=israel+on+campus&sort=best&submit=Apply&year%5B%5D=2022
  24. “Miriam Elman.” Academic Engagement Network – About Us. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/about-us/#leaderships
  25. William A. Jocobson. “Prof. Miriam Elman appointed Executive Director of Academic Engagement Network.” Legal Insurrection. January 24, 2019. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://legalinsurrection.com/2019/01/prof-miriam-elman-appointed-executive-director-of-academic-engagement-network/
  26. LinkedIn – Naomi (Mayor) Greenspan. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/naomimayor/
  27. “Advisory Board.” Academic Engagement Network – About Us. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/about-us/
  28. “Mark G. Yudof.” Academic Engagement Network – About Us. Accessed April 19, 2024. https://academicengagement.org/about-us/#leaderships
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Academic Engagement Network (AEN)


Washington, DC