• Stef Wertheimer, Doctor of Humane Letters, (D.H.L.)
• Prof. Itzhak Zamir, Doctor of Humane Letters, (D.H.L.)

Stef Wertheimer, Doctor of Humane Letters, (D.H.L.)

Prof. Alice Shalvi congratulates honorary degree recipient Stef Wertheimer

Stef Wertheimer, citizen of the Galilee, a man of vision and action, has devoted his life to the development and advancement of the State of Israel - in the fields of industry and export, culture and the arts, security and settlement of the land. The embodiment of practical Zionism, Wertheimer's success at combining pioneering with creative industrial initiative has contributed immeasurably to the growth of the state, and the quality of life of all its citizens, most notably in the Galilee.

Born in Germany in 1926, he came to Israel in 1937 with his parents and siblings after Hitler's rise to power. In 1943, he volunteered for the British Air Force, later joining the Palmach. Arrested by the British, he spent several months in internment camps. Wertheimer, a founder of Israel's clandestine military industries, served as a Technical Officer in the Yiftah Brigade during Israel's War of Independence.

In 1952, after his discharge from the IDF, he established, in the yard of his home in Nahariya, the Iscar plant, which manufactures cutting tools for the metal industry; a "first" in a series of activities calculated to meet the economic, social and security needs of the fledgling nation. When an embargo was imposed on Israel during the Six-Day War, Wertheimer set up Iscar Blades Ltd., which produces aircraft engine blades. Recently, the company established an international partnership with Pratt and Whitney, with factories in Israel and the United States. Additional ventures with Chinese, English, Korean and German manufacturing firms have made the Iscar group the third largest global producer of carbide cutting tools today.

Stef Wertheimer, recipient of an honorary doctorate, speaks with Prof. David Golinkin, SIJS President, and Prof. Ismar Schorsch, Chancellor, JTS, SIJS

In 1977, Wertheimer joined the Democratic Movement for Change and was elected to the Ninth Knesset, where he sought to promote industrial exports as a means of achieving economic independence. In 1981, he initiated and established Kfar Vradim, a model community village that today has a population of 1,250 families, with construction still continuing.

Wertheimer established the Tefen Industrial Park in 1983. This unique enterprise serves as an incubator for fledgling industrialists and combines industry and culture, comprising 30 plants, museums, a sculpture garden and an experimental school. Similar parks were later established at Tel-Hai, Omer and Lavon. Another is under consideration at Dalton. Joint ventures are planned with Turkey and - if peace is indeed established - also with the Palestinians.

Stef Wertheimer established the School for Entrepreneurs at the Tefen Industrial Park in cooperation with Harvard and MIT, and founded the Zur Institute for Industrial Education, offering an interdisciplinary bachelor's degree from the Open University of Israel and an engineering degree from the University of Stuttgart in Germany.

Stef Wertheimer is the recipient of numerous awards including the Kaplan Prize, Rothschild Prize, Yigal Allon Award, Export Prize, International Metallurgy and Robotics Commendation, honorary doctorates from the Technion, Tel Aviv University and Ben-Gurion University and the 1991 Israel Prize for Lifetime Achievement.

For all these achievements, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America is proud to award Stef Wertheimer an honorary doctorate.

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Prof. Itzhak Zamir, Doctor of Humane Letters, (D.H.L.)

Prof. Itzhak Zamir, guest speaker at the graduation

Prof. Itzhak Zamir, a leading figure in Israeli jurisprudence, has dedicated his life to advancing the cause of justice within Israel's legal system. He has educated generations of attorneys to appreciate the values inherent in the rule of law and human rights. Through research, professional publications and judicial decisions, Prof. Zamir has tirelessly worked to ensure fair government and the enlightened development of public law in Israel.

Born in Warsaw in 1931, Zamir came to Israel with his family at the age of three and grew up in Tel Aviv. After concluding his studies at the Faculty of Law of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and receiving his Ph.D. from the London School of Economics and Political Science, he joined the Hebrew University faculty as a lecturer in public administration and labor law. Subsequently, he held various university positions, including Director of the Institute for Legislative Research and Comparative Law and Dean of the Faculty of Law.

In 1978, he was appointed State Attorney General, a position he held during the terms of Prime Ministers Menachem Begin, Itzhak Shamir and Shimon Peres. Resigning from public service in 1986, he went on to help establish the Law School at the University of Haifa, where he served as its founding Dean, introducing a new method of teaching law.

Prof. Ismar Schorsch, Chancellor of JTS in New York and SIJS in Jerusalem, presents Prof. Itzhak Zamir with an honorary doctorate

Appointed a Supreme Court Justice in 1994, Prof. Zamir contributed much towards strengthening the values of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, including government's fair treatment of its citizens, equality before the law, and pluralism and tolerance in society. Some months ago, on his seventieth birthday, he resigned from the bench.

Prof. Zamir has served in many public positions, including President of the Israel Press Association, Chairman of the Administrative Law Courts, founder and chairman of the Association for Public Law, founder and editor of the law review Mishpat Umimshal (Law and Government) and most recently, Chairman of the Judicial Elections Committee.

His academic work includes publication of several law texts in Hebrew and English and numerous articles in Israel, England and the United States. He has served as a visiting professor fellow at various American and European universities.

Prof. Zamir has won several awards for his work and for his achievements, including the Zeltner Prize for Legal Scholarship, the Association for Civil Liberties Prize, the Speaker of the Knesset Prize for Advancement of the Rule of Law and Democratic Values, the Humboldt Research Award for Humanities, and the 1997 Israel Prize.

For the manifold contributions he has made to Israeli society throughout his life - and especially for promotion of the values of an enlightened, egalitarian and tolerant society, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America is proud to award Prof. Zamir an honorary doctorate.

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