2008 Woodie Awards
IBC Loophole Abolished by YC Faculty
Eitan Kastner
Issue date: 8/31/05 Section: News
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Dr. Carl Feit, Chairman of the ASC, stresses that this seemingly new policy is not really new at all; rather it is "just a clarification of the existing structure of what it means to be a Yeshiva College graduate." According to Dr. Feit, every student that receives a degree from Yeshiva College should graduate with a major of his choosing and a minor in academic Jewish studies on his transcript, echoing the language of the ruling, which was implemented to "ensure that all YC/SSSB graduates show a concentration in Jewish Studies on their transcripts." "This is integral to what it means to be a YC graduate," he says.
Feit, also head of the Biology department, claims that the practice of program hopping emerged when the administration made the decision to start awarding 32 credits for a year's study in Israel. When Israel returnees came to YC credit in hand, they assumed that only three more years awaited them in YC. But the curriculum was never modified for a three-year stay, so what developed was what Feit called a "pressure cooker." When the pressure to finish in three years built up, students began to look for shortcuts and they discovered the IBC loophole. This allowed them to do in a year what was meant to be done over the course of four, which amounted to a "difference of quality in their Judaic studies education," according to Feit.
The ACS ruling also stipulates that a student who spends six semesters in IBC will be able to graduate after only six semesters even though he would only be graduating with eighteen Jewish studies credits.
The ASC is a body made up of professors, students, and administrators who deliberate on matters of academic concern and integrity at Yeshiva.
Another byproduct of the ruling is that by potentially eliminating students who just want to take the required basic Judaic studies courses from IBC, some IBC professors could now have the leeway to teach a larger variety of more advanced courses.
For his own department, Rabbi Dr. Jeremy Wieder, cluster head of Jewish Studies in YC, says that he will happily implement the ASC ruling. "(T)he culture of cutting corners and beating the system is endemic on the Wilf campus," says Wieder of the MYP students who alleviate Jewish Studies requirements in IBC, "and [i]s a major detriment to serious education and, even more importantly, it is detrimental to the character development of a serious ben-Torah."
Wieder does not view the IBC loophole as the main quandary of the Judaic studies department, however; rather he believes that there is a need for better, more serious courses within his department. "(This) is the main problem which must be addressed, and no bells, whistles or rules will solve the problem," says Wieder. "Nonetheless, commonly exploited loopholes only exacerbate the problem."
Feit, also head of the Biology department, claims that the practice of program hopping emerged when the administration made the decision to start awarding 32 credits for a year's study in Israel. When Israel returnees came to YC credit in hand, they assumed that only three more years awaited them in YC. But the curriculum was never modified for a three-year stay, so what developed was what Feit called a "pressure cooker." When the pressure to finish in three years built up, students began to look for shortcuts and they discovered the IBC loophole. This allowed them to do in a year what was meant to be done over the course of four, which amounted to a "difference of quality in their Judaic studies education," according to Feit.
The ACS ruling also stipulates that a student who spends six semesters in IBC will be able to graduate after only six semesters even though he would only be graduating with eighteen Jewish studies credits.
The ASC is a body made up of professors, students, and administrators who deliberate on matters of academic concern and integrity at Yeshiva.
Another byproduct of the ruling is that by potentially eliminating students who just want to take the required basic Judaic studies courses from IBC, some IBC professors could now have the leeway to teach a larger variety of more advanced courses.
For his own department, Rabbi Dr. Jeremy Wieder, cluster head of Jewish Studies in YC, says that he will happily implement the ASC ruling. "(T)he culture of cutting corners and beating the system is endemic on the Wilf campus," says Wieder of the MYP students who alleviate Jewish Studies requirements in IBC, "and [i]s a major detriment to serious education and, even more importantly, it is detrimental to the character development of a serious ben-Torah."
Wieder does not view the IBC loophole as the main quandary of the Judaic studies department, however; rather he believes that there is a need for better, more serious courses within his department. "(This) is the main problem which must be addressed, and no bells, whistles or rules will solve the problem," says Wieder. "Nonetheless, commonly exploited loopholes only exacerbate the problem."