A fledgling Jewish seminary founded in the wake of Hebrew Union College's decision to stop ordaining rabbis on its Cincinnati campus is seeking to enter a lawsuit against the college. The College for Contemporary Judaism (CCJ) has filed to join a lawsuit by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
Yost filed suit in April seeking to force HUC to ensure assets on its Cincinnati campus remain in Ohio and aren't transferred to HUC's other campuses, and to prevent the Cincinnati campus from being sold.
In its filing, the CCJ — which doesn't yet have a physical campus — is asking the court to name it as the rightful recipient of HUC's Cincinnati assets "in order to achieve both CCJ and the Attorney General's shared goal — that a rabbinical school will continue to operate in Cincinnati."
That would include HUC's Clifton Avenue campus, the Klau Library, the American Jewish Archives, the Skirball Museum and "many millions of dollars in marketable securities and investments."
Yost's lawsuit alleges HUC is violating Ohio's charitable laws with plans to remove assets paid for by charitable gifts from people who were promised they were donating to a permanent Cincinnati campus. By intervening in the lawsuit, CCJ argues it is providing a "remedy" to the question of what would happen to the assets if Yost's lawsuit prevails.
"The attorney general is working to protect assets intended to support rabbinical education in Cincinnati," says Andrew Berger, CCJ Founding Board Chair. "CCJ exists to fulfill that mission."
The idea for a new rabbinical college was announced in 2024 by former Hebrew Union College Board members. It's being led and staffed by many former HUC faculty, including the founding president, Rabbi Gary Zola, a former professor of the American Jewish Experience at HUC and executive director emeritus of the American Jewish Archives.
"The Attorney General's lawsuit makes clear what we have always believed: that the assets entrusted to Hebrew Union College were given for a sacred and specific purpose — to educate rabbis in Cincinnati," says Zola in a release. "We are building CCJ to fulfill exactly that purpose. We are proud to stand alongside the Ohio Attorney General in asking the court to ensure those assets are protected and put to their intended use."
Hebrew Union College asked for and received a 28-day extension to respond to Yost's lawsuit. It now has until June 11 to file. President Andrew Rehfeld has said the lawsuit is unfounded. In a letter to college stakeholders, Rehfeld says the allegations mischaracterize the college's decision-making, misrepresents its stewardship of donor funds, and ignores its sustained record of transparency and good faith.
Hebrew Union College said it made the 2022 decision to shutter its graduate school and stop ordaining rabbis in Cincinnati because of low enrollment and a large financial deficit. HUC is the country's largest Reform rabbinical seminary, but its made cuts on its other two domestic campuses in New York City and Los Angeles, as well.
Rehfeld says the Cincinnati decision was painful but necessary. He's also adamant that HUC isn't closing the Cincinnati campus and students will still come to Cincinnati to study at the American Jewish Archives, and the Klau Library, which is home to one of the largest collections of Judaic and Hebraic printed material in the world.
This is the second time Yost has taken legal action against Hebrew Union College. In 2024 he filed suit to prevent the sale of certain assets after news reports came out suggesting the school was considering selling off rare books from the Klau Library collections.
That lawsuit ended in a deal in 2025 under which the college agreed to:
- provide a list of all texts in its 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.
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.
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