On the first anniversary of Julian Bond’s passing, we at the Ciesla Foundation remember him fondly for his inspiration to make a film on Julius Rosenwald and his wise words in the film. There is not a day that goes by where his impact is not found in American society. His wisdom and humor are sorely missed.
-Aviva Kempner
In honor of this humble and generous philanthropist’s birthday, the Ciesla Foundation team is happy to announce that the enriched ROSENWALD DVD package will be completed and released in time for Hanukah and Christmas purchases.
Once we started reading through the transcripts the team concluded that the stories of Rosenwald’s generosity, the schools, and the artists the Fund supported were so rich that we wound up editing them into three hours of extras. These extras will constitute a separate disc to accompany the film’s DVD. We also have commissioned Teaching for Change to write the Study Guide that will be provided in the DVD and online.
In order to accomplish this monumental task we are grateful to our numerous funders. We were very excited to receive funding from two prestigious foundations, Ford Foundation and Righteous Persons Foundation, to create the three hours of extras and study guide.
In order to provide free copies of the enriched ROSENWALD DVD to high schools and colleges we are embarking on a final fundraising drive. We welcome all contributions and suggestions of which individuals, foundations or corporations might give for this purpose. All contributions are tax deductible, please see our donations page, here.
We were very pleased that The National Museum of American Jewish History inducted Julius Rosenwald into its Hall of Fame during its Only in America Gala on June 1st. The exhibit helped draw in a crowd during the July 4th holiday weekend where the museum saw over 3,100 visitors setting a new attendance record! Senator Cory A. Booker made a speech at the gala that can be viewed here.
Finally, the Foundation would like to congratulate its founder and director of Rosenwald, Aviva Kempner, on her recent invitation to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences after over three decades of committing herself to film and producing four highly-acclaimed motion pictures that celebrate Jewish lesser known heroes and culture!
Enjoy the end of summer and check the website for venues the film is showing all over the country. Julius Rosenwald’s example of bringing communities together is needed as much now as a hundred years ago.
Thank you for all of your support with the film! Rosenwald and its inspiring message could not have spread this far without all of the generous contributions and word of mouth publicity from our fans.
Sincerely,
The Ciesla Foundation
This month the National Alumni Association for the J. C. Price High School in Salisbury, NC celebrates 30 years! Price High School was built in 1931 through the Rosenwald Fund and is registered in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, thanks to the Alumni Association.
Check out the story by Salisbury Post!
1934 North Carolina State Champion women’s basketball team from J.C. Price High School in Salisbury. Image from Salisbury Post.
Congratulations to George Wolfe (who went to a Rosenwald school) and his new musical, Shuffle Along for their Drama Desk Awards wins on June 5th! The production won awards for “Outstanding Musical”, “Outstanding Choreography” (Savion Glover), “Outstanding Costume Design for a Musical” (Ann Roth), and “Outstanding Wig and Hair Design” (Mia M. Neal)! We wish the production the best as it heads into the Tony Awards next week!
On June 1st, Julius Rosenwald was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A gala was held for the induction at Gotham Hall. Alongside Rosenwald’s induction, the efforts of several “modern-day Rosenwalds” were acknowledged, celebrating Paramount Pictures CEO Sherry Lansing and Harlem Educational Activities Fund founder Daniel Rose being among them. The Rosenwald trailer was also screened at the event.
Read a full report on the event from the Jewish Exponent, here.
A new exhibit entitled, “Invisible Man: Gordon Parks and Ralph Ellison in Harlem”, has opened at the Art Institute in Chicago and will run through August 28th. The exhibit features the project, “Harlem is Nowhere”, which features black and white vignettes photographed by Parks juxtaposed with excerpts of Ellison’s, Invisible Man in order to depict the terrible living conditions of African Americans in 1948’s Harlem.
The Tony Awards will be broadcast on June 12th from the Beacon Theater in New York City. Among those talented people nominated is the Rosenwald film’s very own George Wolfe. Wolfe, who graduated from a Rosenwald school in Kentucky, has been nominated for the categories “Best Book of a Musical” and “Best Direction of a Musical” for his work on the new Broadway show, Shuffle Along, Or The Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed. The show itself has also been nominated for best musical and tells a story of the production of the original 1921 show, Shuffle Along, and it’s effect on Broadway and race relations. The production stars 6-time-Tony-award-winning actress Audra McDonald with Brian Stokes Mitchell and Billy Porter, and has been nominated for a total of ten Tony Awards including “Scenic Design”, “Costume Design”, and “Lighting Design”. The show has previously won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for “Best Musical”. Those wishing to see the show should consider doing so as soon as possible if they wish to see it with Audra McDonald (who should’ve been nominated for “Best Leading Actress”), as she plans to leave the show in August due to a pregnancy.
The Ciesla Foundation wishes good luck to George! You will be able to see more of him in the special features of the upcoming Rosenwald DVD.
Visit the show’s website, here!
WHAT A THRILLING MOMENT FOR THE ROSENWALD FILM!
On May 16th, Chanan Weissman made his first public remarks as the new White House Jewish Liasison before introducing a screening of Rosenwald at the White House to celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month. After the film, he welcomed Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to President Obama, who commented on the film and her ties to the story before introducing a panel discussion with director Aviva Kempner, Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom David Saperstein, and Hilary Shelton, Director to the NAACP’s Washington Bureau and Senior Vice President for Advocacy. The panel was moderated by Samuel Freedman, columnist for The New York Times and a professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
On May 2nd, Aviva attended the Toledo Jewish Film Festival for a special presentation of Rosenwald. The screening was accompanied by a reception with the Jewish Federation of Greater Toledo’s Chief Executive Officer Joel Marcovitch, Mayor of the City of Toledo Paula Hicks-Hudson, and Kay Miller all in attendance.
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