Jewish Studies "On Edge"
Summer School on Jewish Studies
University of Antwerp, July 5-10th, 2026
Being “on edge” or “on the edge” signifies a state of heightened uncertainty and anxiety, but also has connotations of new and exciting possibilities. Scholars beginning their careers in Jewish Studies today are entering the field at a time when academia is in a highly precarious position. Core values like academic freedom are under threat; scholars are divided over how to respond to the current political situation in Israel and the Jewish diaspora, and AI is destabilizing research and teaching. At the same time, the field continues to produce exciting cutting-edge research, coming up with new questions and embracing methodological and technological innovation.
Organized as a week of intensive learning and conversation with leading scholars, this year’s summer school for graduate students in Jewish Studies will explore Jewish Studies “at the edge” in this double-edged sense, struggling under new stresses even as it ventures into new territory. Some presentations will explore Jews or Jewish culture, present or past, in moments of extreme challenge or imminent peril. Other presentations will take students to the cutting edge of the field, introducing them to new or experimental modes of research in the field.
The Faculty includes Prof. Omer Michaelis (Tel Aviv University), Prof. Andrea Schatz (King's College London), Prof. Michael L. Miller (Central European University), Asst. Prof. Itamar Ben Ami (Utrecht University), Prof. Haviva Pedaya (Ben-Gurion University), Prof. Vivian Liska (University of Antwerp), Prof. Steven Weitzman (University of Pennsylvania), Prof. Aaron Segal (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem), and Asst. Prof. Theodor Dunkelgrün (University of Antwerp).
The summer school this year will be hosted by the Institute for Jewish Studies at the University of Antwerp, working in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania and the Hebrew University. As in years past, the week will give participants a chance to meet peers in the field from other parts of the world, to explore various subfields within Jewish Studies beyond their own, and to reflect together on the nature of academia as a career and vocation.
Graduate students at any institution worldwide, in any subfield of Jewish Studies, past or present, are eligible to apply. Your application for the summer school should be submitted before 1 April 2026.