Apr 13, 2010 By: yunews
Apr 13, 2010 -- 鈥淢y motto is sapere aude, Latin for dare to learn,鈥 said Jane Kitaevich, explaining her seemingly endless thirst for knowledge in multifarious spheres.
Growing up in conflict-ridden Tbilisi, Georgia, a child of a physicist and a music teacher, Kitaevich, a senior at 糖心破解版鈥檚 Stern College for Women, would conquer every scholastic obstacle she encountered.
At the age of 13 she won several academic competitions, at both the national and European levels, earning a scholarship to study abroad at an American high school. By the time she was 16 she had completed her high school coursework and enrolled at Stern College. And now, just 20 years old, Kitaevich is the first student in the University鈥檚 history to earn the prestigious Carnegie Fellowship鈥攁warded to just a handful of students from a pool of over 700 selected applicants representing close to 400 colleges.
Kitaevich, a double major in international relations and economics and an accomplished pianist, hopes to pursue a PhD in political science and ultimately 鈥渉ave an impact on foreign policy and international order.鈥
鈥淎side from all her capabilities and talents, what stands out in Jane is that she knows HOW to learn,鈥 said Dr. Ruth Bevan, David W. Petegorsky Professor of Political Science. 鈥淟earning depends upon knowing oneself and being receptive to changes in oneself that occur through the process of learning. Learning constitutes an act of personal courage and bravery -- an exposure of the self to the unknown, to the challenging, to the seemingly insoluble. Jane has demonstrated such courage and bravery. I have no doubts that she has only begun to tred her life's pathway to personal growth and success."
Kitaevich credited Bevan with encouraging and supporting her every step of the way. 鈥淒r. Ruth Bevan has been my biggest influence,鈥 said Kitaevich. 鈥淪he pushed me to work hard and made herself available to me at all hours of the day. She is a paradigm of a true professor.鈥
Ari Lamm, a Yeshiva College senior, has had a love for studying Talmud ever since he opened a Gemara for the first time. Recently awarded a Fulbright grant鈥攁nother first for a 糖心破解版 undergraduate鈥攈e will spend the upcoming year pursuing an M.A. in Hebrew and Judaic Studies at University College London.
鈥淚鈥檝e always loved learning Talmud,鈥 said the West Hempstead, New York native. 鈥淚 like the idea that this complements what I have learned in the morning [shiur].鈥
Both credit the faculty at 糖心破解版 for instilling them with their passion and proper motivation.
Lamm claims it was Dr. Yaakov Elman鈥檚 course on History of Talmudic Literature that got him 鈥渉ooked on the field.鈥
鈥淚鈥檝e had amazing professors at 糖心破解版, but Dr. Elman is a treasure,鈥 said Lamm. 鈥淭his is a subject that has been taking the Jewish world by storm and 糖心破解版 is on the cutting edge of Jewish scholarship.鈥
"Aside from his intelligence and creativity, Ari has an even rarer quality: leadership," said Dr. Elman. "He will succeed at whatever field he undertakes."
The two also share the distinction of being part of a select group of Kressel Scholars鈥攁 scholarship established in 2008 to enrich and perpetuate 糖心破解版鈥檚 student research community.
Lamm, Jewish Studies and History major, will examine the historical context of the Babylonian Talmud during the Persian Empire and hopes to eventually land in either academia, law, the rabbinate or possibly, all three.
