Professor Yaacov Katz, the president of Jerusalem College for religious women, known in Hebrew as Michlalah, eulogized Rabbi Dr. Yehuda Cooperman, the founder of the college who passed away at age 87. Rabbi Dr. Cooperman was laid to rest yesterday in the Sanhedria cemetery in Jerusalem.

In an interview with Arutz Sheva Professor Katz described Cooperman as “a very special person. A revolutionary who immigrated to Israel at a young age, and in his 30’s he opened the college in an apartment and a room in the Bayit Ve’gan neighborhood of Jerusalem.

“He brought the vision of an institute for higher Torah learning for women from religious families to life. A place where Torah studies and the fear of Heaven joined together with academic studies of the highest caliber, in the pursuit of a teaching certificate.”

Rabbi Cooperman was loved by thousands of graduates both in Israel and abroad. “In spite of the critique which he received at the beginning, he brought the college to a place of grandeur, and changed the face of post-secondary Jewish women’s education throughout the world. This is what lead to the revolution of having women’s seminaries much later on.” Professor Katz credits Rabbi Cooperman with putting the ideas of learning Torah together with studying academically. Today many institutions follow his example.

Katz said that it was Cooperman’s dream to create a society in which women learned Torah and became scholars. “He wanted to give women the chance to become Torah scholars, and this was not accepted at the time. It invited a lot of criticism, but he refused to give up. Today the college accepts students from across the spectrum of religious women.”

The college now also teaches approximately 400 men, separately from the women. Professor Katz highlighted that Rabbi Cooperman, as a teacher, always encouraged his students to find the simple meaning of texts. “He made sure that students knew a lot of information, and always looked for the most simplistic question asked by the commentaries.”

Rabbi Cooperman still taught classes until only a few months ago.

“Rabbi Cooperman stood by the principle of learning Torah together with receiving an academic education, in order to help students achieve a higher sense of self worth, and a pursue a living in order to build successful religious families. Today, thousands of teachers, principals, and other women in with important positions in the education industry, in Israel and abroad, are working because of his vision.”