The Yiddish Book Center has announced the retirement of Aaron Lansky, the organization’s founder, left, and its new president, the current Executive Director Susan Bronson, in June.
AMHERST, Mass.– The Yiddish Book Center has announced that Aaron Lansky, the organization’s founder and MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant” winner, will retire from his role as president in June 2025. Susan Bronson, the executive director, will assume the position of president. Following his retirement, Lansky will remain at the Center for two years as senior advisor.
Lansky founded the Yiddish Book Center in 1980, when he took what he thought would be a two-year leave of absence from graduate school to recover endangered Yiddish books. The primary, tangible legacy of a thousand years of Jewish life, irreplaceable Yiddish books were being discarded by relatives unable to read the language of their Yiddish-speaking parents and grandparents. When Lansky and his colleagues first set out to save Yiddish books, scholars estimated 70,000 volumes could still be found. With the help of volunteer zamlers (collectors), Lansky recovered that number in the first six months and eventually saved 1.5 million volumes. As new technology emerged, the newly found titles were digitized; they have since been downloaded more than 5 million times.
Through the years, the Yiddish Book Center has evolved into a cultural and educational center, sharing Yiddish language, literature, and culture with new audiences. Noteworthy initiatives include educational programs for learners of all ages, fellowship programs, an oral history project, a publishing imprint, and a textbook that has transformed Yiddish language learning. The Center has received awards and recognitions, including the National Medal for Museum and Library Service.
Bronson joined the Center as executive director in 2010. She expanded the Center’s initiatives to include popular programs such as Yidstock, the annual festival of new Yiddish music; reading groups for public libraries, which engage readers with translated works of Yiddish literature; and the new permanent exhibition Yiddish: A Global Culture, which has attracted thousands of visitors since opening last fall.
Reflecting on his planned retirement, Lansky marvels at his journey of the past 44 years and expresses his gratitude to the friends and colleagues who made it possible. “When all is said and done, I was able to act on my dreams, save a literature, and reclaim a culture, and that, I think, makes me one of the world’s luckiest people,”
