Hebrew Union College and the Ohio Attorney General report they've reached an agreement in a dispute over rare books and manuscripts in the school's Klau Library in Cincinnati.
According to the legal agreement filed in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court, the college will:
- provide a list of all texts in the library's Special Collections and Rare Book and Manuscript Collection to the AG's office;
- identify any items that have donor restrictions;
- notify the AG's office at least 45 days in advance before attempting to sell or remove items from the collection;
- and adhere to the American Library Association’s standards for collection management.
The college will be allowed to transfer items within its library system and through inter-library loans. Revenues from the sale of items in the collection may only be used to purchase new items for the collection unless the college's Board of Governors declares an acute financial need via a two-thirds majority vote, and notifies the AG's office in advance.
In a message to the college community, President Andrew Rehfeld says the "agreement upholds our mission to preserve and maintain access to the Klau Library rare books and manuscripts collections in service to the Jewish People, Judaism, and global academic scholarship. It also affirms the library’s educational, religious, and scholarly role within our institution and its service to communities and scholars around the world."
He also restates the college never intended to sell any rare items.
Attorney General Dave Yost got involved in June 2024 after a WCPO I-Team investigation reported representatives from the auction house Sotheby’s visited the Klau Library and assessed the collection. The I-Team also stated it obtained a copy of the now-former director of libraries' letter stating he was resigning over pressure to sell rare books.
The Sotheby's visit prompted rumors on campus that the library might be closed and the staff let go.
Rabbi Gary Zola, executive director emeritas of the American Jewish Archives, doesn't believe the school was simply doing a routine assessment and valuation as the school has said. He was among those who raised concerns leading to Yost's involvement. Zola tells WVXU he's happy about the agreement.
"I see this as a good resolution, I think it protects the rare books for this foreseeable future," Zola says. "And the Attorney General has made it clear that this case is open, and he and or whoever is the attorney general, has ... a way of going back to the court if this is started up again."
The Cincinnati Klau Library encompasses five floors "with thousands of books, periodicals, manuscripts, microfilm reels, images, and recordings."
Hebrew Union College was founded in Cincinnati in 1875 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise. It now has campuses in Los Angeles, New York, and Jerusalem. The Hebrew Union College Board of Governors in New York voted in April 2022 to sunset rabbi ordinations at the college's Cincinnati campus by the end of the 2026 academic year.
Read more:
