Alumni Meetings

This year, the Faculty held four particularly moving class reunions, one of which received extensive media coverage. The reason: one of the alumni was President-Elect Reuven (Ruvi) Rivlin, who attended the event just two days after his election. 

-Sapir Dayan-

As part of a project launched this year by Dean Professor Yuval Shany, the Faculty will be holding class reunions every year for alumni marking the round anniversary of their graduation (40 years, 50 years, and so forth). The goal of the project is to renew the connection between the alumni and the university. This year, reunions were held for the classes of 1964, 1974, 1984, and 2004.

The reunion of the class of 1964 was a “star-studded” occasion. In addition to President Reuven Rivlin, participants also included Professor Yaakov Neeman, Hagai Sitton, Matti Golan, Amiram Safran, Micah Yinon, and other prominent public figures and members of the Israeli business community. Although the timing seemed too good to be true, the organizers of the event confirmed that they were as surprised as anyone else to discover that one of the participants would be the tenth president of the State of Israel, and that he would come to the reunion just two days after his election to the position. As Rivlin and his former classmates celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of their graduation, he shared some of his experiences from his student days: “Every year I was awarded a prize, and like a true Jerusalemite I felt a little ashamed about it. But what could I do? I was a bit of a nerd. I took my studies very seriously. But I was certainly involved in extracurricular activities, too.” When asked whether he would have believed that his class would produce a state president, Rivlin replied: “I had lots of friends who I thought could become president.”

Class of 1964
Credit: Bruno Charbit

Professor Yaakov Neeman was asked how he felt when he heard that his classmate had been elected president. Neeman explained that he “felt bad when Rivlin was not elected to the position last time, but I said that it would happen eventually, and thank God it did. We were good friends – not only during our studies, but afterwards too. And now he is president. I can’t declare that I am a friend of the president – it’s more than that. I am moved that a classmate of mine has reached the pinnacle of Israeli democracy.” Neeman recalled that Rivlin was “an excellent student, pleasant, and very friendly. We used to sit in the library together and enjoy the classes and exercises.”

Right: Prof. Neeman, President Reuven (Ruvi) Rivlin and Micha Yinon
Credit: Nery Pinkwasser

The reunion of the class of 1974 was also a very successful event, attended by an impressive collection of alumni, although not by the most famous graduate of that year, former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. The reunion of the class of 1984 was attended by some 40 alumni, including judges, legal experts, and prominent lawyers. Some of the alumni are now the proud parents of students at the Faculty of Law. No fewer than 50 alumni attended the reunion of the class of 2004.

The reunions were held in Beit Maiersdorf on the campus. Each event included a tour of the Mt. Scopus campus, keynote speeches by the Dean of the Faculty and other Faculty members, an informal supper, and plenty of free time to share reminiscences with former classmates. During the tour of the campus, the alumni visited familiar spots from their studies as well as the new campus buildings, which most of them had not seen before. They recalled that in their day the campus was “nothing but pillars and tents,” whereas today’s students enjoy luxurious conditions. The highpoint of each reunion was an open microphone session, when one alumnus after another recalled their student days, “The moment I entered the university gates just now with my wife, I told her that I suddenly feel 30 years older,” one alumnus confessed. “Everything looks different and new. But as we all started to chat about our experiences, I noticed that some of the people talking are in the 20s, and I felt 30 years younger.”

The alumni were very impressed by the various projects initiated by the Faculty, and particularly by the emphasis on social responsibility. Dr. Einat Albin and Dr. Yuval Albashan attended the various reunions and described the unique work of the Legal Clinic, the social power of law, and the desire of today’s Faculty students to be active on social issues, just as in the past. One alumna noted that most of her classmates had chosen the path of public service – not by way of a default, but thanks to the influence of the Faculty, the lecturers, and their friends. No other law faculty in Israel shows this level of public commitment, which is a justifiable source of pride.

Class of 1974
Credit: Mel Brickman

Over the past two years, the Faculty has taken a number of steps to renew its connection with alumni, in response to requests from the former students themselves. Issues of “The Faculty” are sent to alumni, contact lists have been updated, and the new Alumni Club has been established, with the goal of reviving connections with the thousands of members of the legal profession who attended the Faculty. During the preparations for the reunions, one of the hardest tasks was to locate the addresses and the new names of some of the graduates, since the database was seriously outdated. The students who performed this task commented that some of their telephone calls lasted half an hour due to the alumni’s desire to hear what was happening at the Faculty and how today’s students are enjoying their experience. The large majority of the alumni were delighted to renew their connection with the Faculty, and as noted the reunions were a great success.

Class of 1984
Credit: Yonatan Zindel

Dean Professor Yuval Shany, who initiated the project, emphasizes that the connections are important both to the Faculty and to the alumni themselves. “Many alumni are looking for this connection. They understand how important it is that the Faculty continue to serve as an institution of excellence and they are happy to get involved. They follow what we are doing, come to teach at the Faculty, take on students as interns, and offer financial support. The Faculty gave its alumni a strong foundation for their entry into legal activity, and we hope that they will now help us to provide today’s students with a foundation that is at least as strong. Legal education today is a more complex, expensive, and multidisciplinary task. It demands more diverse skills, and we will be delighted for alumni to accompany and support us as we train new generations of students.”

In his speech, the Dean pointed out that the Faculty of Law at the Hebrew University is a brand. “Like any other brand, maintaining its reputation is a valuable goal. The alumni of the university have individual and collective strength. Ten thousand alumni of the Faculty form the backbone of the Israeli legal world and can be found in senior positions throughout Israeli society. They are an asset, and in today’s academic reality the Faculty cannot afford to ignore them. We are very proud that the Faculty has trained outstanding alumni who are making a real contribution to the nation.”