Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership

At its core are graduate degree and certificate programs in which students engage with Jewish ideas in the service of personal growth, community leadership, and professional advancement.

[1] Spertus Institute's academic and professional offerings are complemented by public programs, in an array of onsite and online formats.

Among them were Dr. Fritz Bamberger, who, following his decades teaching philosophy and comparative literature, left academia to run Esquire magazine; and Simon Rawidowicz and Nahum N. Glatzer, who went on to establish the Jewish Studies Department at Brandeis University.

Well-known presenters have included Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,[9] author Jonathan Safran Foer,[10] architect Moshe Safdie,[11] hip-hop artist Y-Love,[12] pianist/actor/playwright Hershey Felder,[13] New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, Psychologist Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar,[14] and statistician Nate Silver.

Designed by Chicago-based Krueck Sexton Partners, the building features interconnected interior spaces and an unusual ten-story faceted window wall that offers views of the Chicago skyline, Grant Park, and Lake Michigan.