Meet the 2025–26 Fellows

THE KATZ CENTER is delighted to announce the incoming fellows for the 2025–26 year devoted to new research into contemporary Jewish life. This international cohort brings a fascinatingly diverse set of projects exploring the many ways that Jewishness is expressed and contested across geographies of the contemporary moment.

Announcing the 2025–26 Katz Center Fellows

Tom Baker | University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
University of Pennsylvania Faculty Fellow

Nancy Berg | Washington University in St. Louis
Joseph Sassoon Fellow

Sara Byala | University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania Faculty Fellow

Peter Decherney | University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania Faculty Fellow

Ayala Fader | Fordham University
Ariel and Joshua Weiner Family Fellow

Marjorie Feld | Babson College
Louis Apfelbaum and Hortense Braunstein Apfelbaum Fellow

Michael Hoberman | Fitchburg State University
Herbert D. Katz Center Fellow

Hannah Mayne | University of Toronto
Ariel and Joshua Weiner Family Fellow

Cynthia Gabbay | Humboldt University of Berlin
Maurice Amado Foundation Fellow

Tamar Hess |  Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Ellie and Herbert D. Katz Distinguished Fellow

Mendel Kranz | University of Pennsylvania
Ivan Ross and Jerry Silk Postdoctoral Fellow

Sarah Leiter | University of New Mexico
Gerald and Robin Silk Fellow

Gal Levy | Open University of Israel
Jody Ellant and Howard Reiter Family Fellow

Lilach Naishtat | Kibbutzim College of Education
Ruth Meltzer Fellow

Yosefa Raz | University of Haifa
Selma Ruben Fellow

Joshua Shanes | College of Charleston
Ruth Meltzer Fellow

Edward Waysband | Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Shalem Academic College
Ivan and Nina Ross Family Fellow

Efrat Yerday | New York University
Thomas and Elissa Ellant Katz Fellow

Orian Zakai | George Washington University
Joseph Sassoon Fellow