Scope and Contents Oral history interview with Arielle Korman, Davidson College class of 2017. Arielle Korman discusses her background growing up Jewish in New York, including her synagogue, music, and education. She contrasts the rich religious community she had to her experience of Jewishness at Davidson College, which was more focused on active education, leadership, and community building. Korman talks from her perspective as a former student leader: the events she held, promotion of Jewish student life,...

Scope and Contents Oral history interview and transcript with with Brian Bokor conducted on March 6, 2019. Brian Bokor recounts his experiences as Jewish student at Davidson and how it aligned with his experiences as a Jewish man living in the American South. He discusses his experiences as a student athlete and member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Davidson College. He talks about his interfaith relationship with his Catholic wife and discusses Jewish identity’s precarious position in current American...

Scope and Contents Oral history interview with Cintra Pollack, Davidson College class of 1999. Pollack recounts her Jewish background and her experience as a Jewish student at Davidson College. She speaks of the isolation she often felt as one of the few Jewish students on campus. Pollack shares experiences ranging from writing an op-ed addressing Davidson’s exclusionary Board of Trustees policy, finding a Jewish community studying abroad in China, inklings of anti-semitism at local bars, and strengthening...

Scope and Contents Oral history interview and transcript with Eleanor Diamant '15 conducted on April 2, 2019. Ellie Diamant recounts what her Jewish background was like before Davidson College and how she came to Davidson, including what she knew about Jewish life and perceptions that those at home had of Davidson College. She talks about her involvement in Jewish student life and tells stories about navigating her Jewish identity and educating others about Jewishness, as a student and a leader. Diamant points...

Scope and Contents Oral history interview and transcript with Frank Goldsmith '67 conducted on March 7, 2019. Frank Goldsmith ’67 reflects on his student years at Davidson, a period of time that preceded his eventual conversion to Judaism. Goldsmith speaks to how conservative a climate Davidson was in the mid-60s, the elimination of mandatory Vesper services, and the way the Religion department fostered critical inquiry about Christianity. A central figure in student activism at Davidson, Goldsmith also...

Scope and Contents Oral history interview with Hannah Joy Sachs, Davidson College class of 2016. Sachs discusses how her relationship with Judaism evolved both prior to and after Davidson College, the presence of Hillel and Interfaith Dinner Club events, building community with other Jewish students and other minority student organizations, the advocacy of Dr. Pegelow-Kaplan, working with local synagogues, experiences as an Asian Jewish student, and the mentorship of faculty and staff involved with her thesis...

Scope and Contents Irving Bienstock was born in Dortmund, Germany in 1926. Mr. Bienstock was persecuted by the Nazis and fled to the United States. At the time of the interview, Mr. Bienstock resided in Charlotte, NC where he volunteered with the Butterfly Project to educate children about the Holocaust. In part one of this interview, Irving Bienstock describes his experience in Nazi Germany and his escape from the Nazi government. Funded by the Justice, Equality, Community Grant, the interview took place...

Scope and Contents This is oral history interview part 2 of 6 with Irving Bienstock. Irving Bienstock was born in Dortmund, Germany in 1926. Mr. Bienstock was persecuted by the Nazis and fled to the United States. At the time of the interview, Mr. Bienstock resided in Charlotte, NC where he volunteered with the Butterfly Project to educate children about the Holocaust. Irving Bienstock speaks on his experiences as a Jewish immigrant in the United States. He discusses his service in the United States Military...

Scope and Contents

Oral history interview with Julia Miller, Davidson College class of 2011. In the interview Miller discusses being invited to participate in the STRIDE orientation program and how prior to that interaction she had not considered herself a minority student, her involvement with the student organization Hillel, the advocacy and support of Dr. Neil Lerner and Rabbi Shields, as well as how her personal understanding of Jewish identity evolved while at Davidson College.

Scope and Contents

Oral history interview and transcript with Karl Plank conducted on April 9, 2019. Dr. Karl Plank recounts the evolution of the Religious Studies department since his hiring in the early 1980s, the types of students who have been attracted to courses that deal explicitly with Judaism, and his experience of being “read” as Jewish because of the courses he teaches.