Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership

The institute was founded in 1924 as Chicago's College of Jewish Studies. In 1970, its name changed from College of Jewish Studies to Spertus College to honor donations made by brothers Maurice and . author Jonathan Safran Foer, architect Moshe Safdie, hip-hop artist Y-Love, pianist/actor/playwright Hershey Felder, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, Psychologist Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar, and statistician Nate Silver. Honorary degree recipients from 1949 to 2011 have included Rabbi Mordecai M. Kaplan, former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Abba Eban, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, author and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Elie Wiesel, author and Nobel Literature Laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer, feminist author Betty Friedan, actor Leonard Nimoy, and Hazzan Alberto Mizrahi. ==Architecture of the Spertus Institute building==

In November 2007, Spertus Institute opened a noteworthy new facility at 610 S. Michigan Avenue. Designed by Chicago-based Krueck Sexton Partners, the building features interconnected interior spaces and an unusual ten-story faceted window wall that offers views of the Chicago skyline, Grant Park, and Lake Michigan. This window wall is built from 726 individual pieces of glass in 556 different shapes. The building houses classrooms, offices, a library, a 400-seat theater, and a variety of open event spaces. The Spertus building was the first new construction in the Historic Michigan Boulevard District after the area was designated a Chicago Landmark in 2002. The cost of the Spertus project was approximately $50 million . The building has been recognized with a number of awards, including the Distinguished Building Award and Divine Detail Award from the American Institute of Architects's Chicago Chapter and Best Building of the Year from Interior Design Magazine. ==See also==