Bramson ORT’s Staff, Trustees, Special Guests, Students, and Alumni would like to congratulate the Graduating Class of 2012. This year’s graduation was especially remarkable as we celebrated Bramson ORT’s 70thAnniversary. With so many students graduating from 19 different degree programs, many with 4.0 grade point averages, Bramson ORT College had many reasons to celebrate on this June 25th, 2012.

Bramson ORT College had the pleasure to participate in the Israel Parade Activities June 3rd, 2012.
In 1964, thousands walked down Riverside Drive in support of the young State of Israel. This impromptu walk evolved into the Salute to Israel Parade on Fifth Avenue. It has become the world’s largest gathering in celebration of Israel attracting worldwide media. The Parade enables the tri-state community to celebrate in a non-partisan, apolitical show of unity with Israel.
Celebrate Israel Parade
In 2011 it was decided to change the name of the Parade in order to focus on celebrating the vibrant and diverse country of Israel. The Parade features over 30,000 marchers representing many organizations. Hundreds of thousands enthusiastic spectators gather to watch American and Israeli community leaders and dignitaries, entertainers, artists, musicians, dancers, celebrities, floats and marching bands.
2012 Creative Theme – Israel Branches Out…
For our Marching Groups and Clusters the Celebrate Israel Parade is a year-long Israel education effort using a creative theme. Each Group or Cluster works with the Parade staff to develop a creative presentation with colorful banners, costumes and props in a show of unity and pageantry.The participants will learn about Israel as it relates to: flowers, blossoming, being fruitful, growing, going out on a limb, branching out into (hi-tech), stem-ming the tide of …., trees, plants, agricultural models, finding our roots, seeds etc. and they will bring a Garden of Delight to Fifth Avenue!
The tutoring Center provides students with a supportive environment in which they can obtain assistance tailored to their learning styles. Tutoring services will be offered for all disciplines such as Accounting, Computer, English and Mathematics. Sherry Deng will be the coordinator in charge of the Tutoring Center.
The Tutoring Center is located on the Main Campus in Room 4 and the schedule is as follows:
Students who need tutoring are welcome to walk in or may arrange a time that suits their schedule. If you have any questions please contact Sherry at 718-261-5800 Ext: 165.
A massive new building in New York is a sign of Bramson ORT College's commitment to attract more Charedi students as well serve its traditional clients in the Russian Jewish and general immigrant communities.
The impressive eight-storey, 24,000 square-foot (2,670 square-metre) building in Bensonhurst was opened amid fanfare - including a proclamation by the President of the Borough of Brooklyn making it an official day of celebration - to help Bramson ORT accommodate record student rolls as well as provide space for further growth. In addition, the college's main campus in the Forest Hills neighbourhood has been recently extended
Fully owned by Bramson ORT, the newly-constructed building features state-of-the-art classrooms, computer and medical laboratory facilities, and cutting edge technology, designed to prepare students to meet the demands of today's job market.
The location is perfect," said the College's Director, Dr Ephraim Buhks. "We are in the heart of the Brooklyn Jewish community, it's close to major transport hubs and to the commercial centre where we can attract students."
The area is also host to many medical offices which can provide opportunities for internships for Bramson ORT students for whom work experience is an integral part of their vocational programmes.
Our enrolment is increasing - particularly in the health care services so we need more lab space," said Dr Buhks, who is also Director of ORT Operations USA, which manages Bramson ORT as well as Los Angeles ORT Technical Institute, Zarem/Golde ORT Technical Institute in Chicago, and the Hermelin ORT Resource Centre in Detroit.
We foresee that there will be a major need for medical professionals as the population ages so we provide the appropriate training for thousands of graduates who enjoy a job placement rate of more than 85 per cent."
This year it started a new associate degree programme for pharmacy technicians with which graduates can find well-paid employment in pharmacies. And for those who want to continue their studies to become a licensed pharmacist, credits from the two-year programme can be transferred to the relevant five-year programme.
Established in 1942 to serve refugees and immigrants during the war, Bramson ORT became a college in 1977 to provide quality technical post-secondary education for the New York community.
Its English as a Second Language (ESL) courses and practical, career-oriented programmes made it popular with the many Russian Jews coming to the United States. Now, Bramson ORT wants to maintain its links to the community by providing that immigrant generation's children with associate degrees and other qualifications in accounting, business management, computer information systems, electronics technology, medical assistant and office technology.
But a significant development, one which could have ramifications in major Jewish communities worldwide, is Bramson ORT's astonishing success in attracting Charedi students.
Thanks to a close collaboration with Chabad-Lubavitch, Bramson ORT's two-year vocational programme, which features mornings spent in traditional Yeshiva-style learning and afternoons immersed in secular studies, is seeing its enrolment increasing exponentially.
Graduates of the programme acquire an associate degree in business management and high school equivalency which enables them to pursue full degree courses or work in a wide range of fields, including computers, electronics, web design and health care.
"More than 10 per cent of the student body is now Orthodox," said the head of Chabad's Jewish Technical Vocational School (JTVS), Rabbi Levi Kaplan, who spoke at the opening of the new building. "By reaching out to Chabad, ORT has bridged the gap with the Orthodox community. Now they come to the college and see Orthodox students in the building wearing a kippa and that really allows things to develop."
One of the most successful incentives for Orthodox youth, Rabbi Kaplan said, was the provision of one-on-one tutoring to enable those without a background in secular studies to get up to speed.
"There has always been a large percentage of the [Charedi] community going out to work," Rabbi Kaplan said. "But now it's more challenging to do that without qualifications."
Dr Buhks added that Bramson ORT wanted to capitalize on being a highly respected name in the Orthodox community by not only attracting more young men but also by providing programmes tailored to meet the vocational and religious needs of Orthodox women.
The Chair of US ORT Operations, Roz Vermut, was excited by the programme's success.
"I am sure it could serve as a model for working with Charedi communities in other countries as well as for our other colleges in this country," Ms Vermut said. "This is absolutely true to the ORT mission: we're giving our students the education and tools to equip them to go out to be productive members of the communities they live in."
However, the college continues to reflect the cultural diversity of the area. Its recognition by the Department of Education and strong ESL tutoring means that it attracts many foreign students, particularly from China, as well as new immigrants.
"It's so multicultural, it's like a mini-UN," said Lynne Leeb, the Secretary of the college's Board of Trustees. "It's so exciting to walk through the building and see all the cultures intermingling."
World ORT Director General and CEO Robert Singer congratulated Bramson ORT College on its expansion.
"The success of Bramson ORT which has necessitated this new site is a source of joy and pride to all of us in the ORT family. Credit must go to Ephraim Buhks for his superb leadership," Mr Singer said. "Bramson ORT takes pride of place among our international network of opportunities for post-high school study - from a highly rated university in Uruguay and colleges in Argentina, France and Moscow to Kadima Mada programmes in Israel."
Read More
View Ribbon Cutting Photo Gallery
Original Article posted on World ORT
For Immediate Release
Bramson ORT College Opens New Brooklyn Facility
On Friday, November 5th , Bramson ORT College, a leading career oriented two year college in the metropolitan New York area, will host a special Ribbon Cutting Ceremony to celebrate the grand opening of the College's exciting, new, eight story, Extension Center at 8109 Bay Parkway in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn.
Well known for its multicultural and multigenerational student body and job placement rate of 85%, the college's new campus offers a unique opportunity for a broad range of Brooklyn residents to enjoy a higher education. It offers associate's degrees, certificate programs and diploma programs.
The building, owned by Bramson ORT, has been newly constructed, featuring state of the art classrooms, computer and medical laboratory facilities, and cutting edge technology, designed to prepare students to meet the demands of today's job market in careers including Accounting, Business Management, Computer Information Systems, Medical Assistant, Electronics Technology, HVAC and Office Technology. Two of Bramson's newest programs, Game Design and Programming and Renewable Energy, will be available at the new Extension Center.
Bramson's new Brooklyn location is conveniently located, accessible to the F and D train, and will offer students a complete program of Student Services, including Admissions, Financial Aid, Academic and Career Advisement, and on the spot testing and registration.
Bramson ORT College has also expanded its Forest Hills location this Fall. For more information please stop by at either the new Brooklyn location 718.259.5300 or the Forest Hills location at 69-30 Austin Street 718.261.5800 or visit Bramson online at www.bramsonort.org | Home