The congregation was founded in 1924 as the Hebrew Institute of
University Heights. Due to changing demographics in
the Bronx, the congregation relocated to Riverdale in 1971, and renamed itself as the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, establishing itself in rented premises in a boiler room of the Whitehall Building off the Henry Hudson Parkway. In 1973, Avi Weiss, who had finished his training at
Yeshiva University a few years earlier, became the synagogue's rabbi. The congregation met at the Whitehall apartment building in the early years, before constructing a permanent building in 1980. The
Jerusalem Post has called the Hebrew Institute "a training ground for young Modern Orthodox rabbis who go on to take over congregations of their own". ==References==