Fall Letter from Director Devin Naar
Professor Devin Naar, Director of UW's Sephardic Studies Program, writes about recent and upcoming public programs, digital and library projects, teaching, and graduate student research.
Reflections on the 2026 International Summer Institute on Modern Balkan and Eastern Mediterranean Jewries
In June 2026, Professor Devin Naar led the first-ever International Summer Institute on Modern Balkan and Eastern Mediterranean Jewries in Thessaloniki, Greece.
The Memories of Greek Jewish Left-Wing Activism from Avraam Benaroya to Michael Moissis Bourlas
This article by Graduate Fellow Alexandra Ritsatos examines how Greek Jewish left-wing activists remembered political struggle, resistance, and identity across the twentieth century.
Finding “Sephardic Treasures”…and Finding Myself with Jewish Studies
Grad student Toni Heilman writes about her powerful experience working with the Sephardic Studies Collection, which helped her discover and reclaim parts of her own Jewish identity.
The Nazi Translation Office in Athens — A Reflection on Sources
Nazi-translated documents in a Jerusalem archive reveal how the Rosenberg Task Force looted and repurposed Greek Jewish records during World War II.
Regina Roza and the Forgotten Lives of Radical Sephardic Salonikan Women
Alexandra Ritsatos writes on the activism of Regina Roza, a Sephardic tobacco worker in 1930s Salonika, whose leadership in labor strikes reveals the erased
Native New Yorkers Jack Zaraya and Wendy Sabin create new fund to support the Sephardic Studies Program at the UW
Jack Zaraya and Wendy Sabin, longtime residents of New York City, have created an endowed fund to support Sephardic Studies and honor the memory of Danny and Lily Zaraya.
The building of the UW’s Sephardic Studies Program, from “Safeway archives” to one of the world’s largest Sephardic digital collections and more
In a panel on March 11, 2025, speakers discussed the history of the Sephardic Studies Program at the University of Washington as part of the Stroum Center's 50th anniversary celebration.