SFSU president Les Wong to retire, ending messy relationship with campus Jews By Maya Mirsky Oct 2, 2018 San Francisco State University President Leslie Wong, who has faced criticism of his administration’s response to anti-Semitic incidents at the school over the last years, has announced he is retiring. Wong, president since 2012, was traveling and unavailable to talk to J., but other figures connected to the university offered comments. “It’s been a challenging… Read More
Bay Area As local rules relax, Bay Area congregations return to their sanctuaries The easing of indoor mask rules along with cooler temperatures and earlier sunsets have spurred some Bay Area synagogues to transition back to indoor… By Emma Goss Oct 15, 2021
Bay Area Man threatening S.F.’s Beth Sholom is arrested and released A mentally ill man, Anatoly Smolkin, has been repeatedly and aggressively harassing families and staff at San Francisco’s Congregation Beth Sholom,… By J. Staff Oct 14, 2021
Philanthropy In time of global suffering, Federation sees growth in giving Joy Sisisky built a career around her love of kehillah (Hebrew for Jewish community). But in the early, disquieting days of the Covid pandemic, she… By Dan Pine Oct 14, 2021
Bay Area Bay Area Jews ask: Should our buildings be visibly Jewish? Since 2019, Bay Area Jewish institutions have received close to $2 million in federal security grants to protect their buildings against attacks, but a… By Eliyahu Kamisher Oct 13, 2021
Philanthropy Koret Foundation to give $2M to local arts, cultural orgs The San Francisco-based, Jewish-founded Koret Foundation has committed $2 million in grants to a dozen Bay Area arts organizations. The grants, announced… By J. Staff Oct 12, 2021
Profile Anne Germanacos: unconventional philanthropist Anne Germanacos always aspired to be a writer. She achieved that goal, publishing poetry, short stories and experimental novels. But the fifth-generation… By Liz Harris Oct 7, 2021
Philanthropy Which local Jewish orgs shared the $1.3M Zuckerberg-Chan gift? Mark Zuckerberg “likes” the Bay Area Jewish community. The Facebook CEO, along with his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, have turned their philanthropic eye… By Dan Pine Oct 6, 2021
Profile Before the Mission, Joe Eskenazi raked muck in Jewish S.F. Joe Eskenazi wanted a rare day off for Yom Kippur last month. He fasted and hoped to atone on the holiest day of the year, but then without public notice… By Eliyahu Kamisher Oct 5, 2021