BGU&U | SPRING 2026

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Toni Young in conversation with Prof. Amit Schejter and Nicole Krauss at a Board of Governors event on May 13, 2025

future physicians, engineers, and entrepreneurs with intellectual breadth alongside technical mastery. Importantly, the initiative reframes an old debate. “It was more about what does it mean to be human; not ‘the humanities.’ That’s a different question,” Young notes. The distinction is subtle but significant. The School is not simply expanding traditional humanities offerings; it is positioning humanistic thinking as essential infrastructure for leadership in a rapidly changing world. The School will also serve as a hub for public intellectual life at BGU, hosting an annual conference, and campus-wide conversations that bring together leading scholars, writers, and scientists. Success, ultimately, will be measured in integration rather than isolation. “If scientists become interested in the human questions, and humanists become interested in the scientific ones, then we’ll know we’ve

succeeded,” Young says. That convergence, between

inquiry and application, between knowledge and wisdom, lies at the heart of BGU’s evolving vision. As the University advances its Way Forward Campaign and deepens its global partnerships, the launch of the Young Family School signals a powerful commitment: to educate scholars who are also citizens, innovators who are also listeners, and leaders who understand both the promise and the responsibility of progress. In a world of accelerating change, BGU is ensuring that the next generation will not only solve complex problems, but ask the right questions.

“Literature and the humanities teach us how to live with uncertainty, imagination, and empathy.” Nicole Krauss