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Mission Statement

Preservation through innovation

Our Mission

We are The California Institute for Yiddish Culture & Language (CIYCL).

We counter the tide that separates most Jews alive today from their own remarkable heritage. We seek to inspire the local and broader Jewish community by illuminating a uniquely creative and influential culture that was shattered in its prime. We challenge the fog of lost memory and ignorance about Yiddish that puts a vast and precious vital legacy at risk of completely expiring. Encountering Yiddish culture is an opportunity to experience an uncommon joy.

Our motto is “preservation through innovation.”
CIYCL is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization since 1999.

CIYCL Boards

Board Of Directors

Cultural Advisory Board

  • Daniel Ajzen
  • Sabell Bender
  • Karen Goodman
  • Terri Hanauer
  • Stephen O. Lesser

  • Arva Rose
  • Henry Slucki
  • Joyce Tamara
  • Silvia Wagensberg
  • Chic Wolk
  • Mae Lee Ziskin

  • Aaron Apelfeld
  • Ed Asner
  • Mike Burstyn
  • Mendy Cahan
  • Dovid Katz , Ph.D.
  • Yitzhok Niborski, Ph.D.