David Mirsky Dead at 60

Funeral services were held today at the Young Israel of the West Side in Manhattan for Dr. David Mirsky, Professor of English at Yeshiva University and an authority on American and British literature and Hebraic culture. Burial was scheduled in his native city of Jerusalem where the Mirsky family has lived for seven generations.

Mirsky had been affiliated with Yeshiva University for almost 50 years as a student, teacher, dean and acting vice president. He died yesterday, at age 60 from complications following a recent heart attack.

In 1968 he was named dean of the university’s Stem College for Women, the nation’s first undergraduate school of liberal arts and sciences for women under Jewish auspices. In 1975 he was named acting vice president for academic affairs at the university, holding both positions concurrently.

Mirsky also transmitted his expertise in education and literature to New Yorkers through the creation and development of radio and television series for more than 20 years. He wrote many articles in English and Hebrew for American and Israeli publications:

He had recently assumed the chairmanship of the American Jewish Press Association. Among his many other professional associations, he had been president of the Histadruth Ivrith of America, and co-chairman of American Professors for Peace in the Middle East.