Five students were graduated this evening from Gratz College, the oldest Jewish teachers’ institute in this country.
A feature of the graduation was the presentation of a plaque in memory of William Morris, for many years president of the College and leader of Mikveh Israel Congregation, oldest congregation in this city and one of the oldest in the country. Prior to his death in 1924, Mr. Morris expressed the wish that a memorial devoted to Jewish educational or philanthropic purposes be established by his widow, Hannah Morris.
With this in view, a trusteeship was created, consisting of Mrs. Morris, Dr. Cyrus Adler, Judge Horace Stern, Leon J. Obermayer and D. Hays Solis-Cohen. Mrs. Morris reserved the income from the property during her life and gave to the trustees wide latitude with regard to the eventual disposition of the fund. She died in October, 1931.
After consideration, the trustees elected to make a gift of $5,000 of the principal of the trust to the Hebrew Sunday School Society. The balance of the fund, consisting of real estate and mortgages from which it is hoped ultimately to realize $85,000, was conveyed to the Northern Trust Company in trust, to distribute the income to the Board of Overseers of Gratz College so long as the Board of Trustees of Gratz College and the Hebrew Education Society act together for the support of Gratz College.
It was further provided that if at any time the existing arrangement between the Hebrew Education Society and the trustees of Gratz College should terminate the property should then be divided equally between the Hebrew Education Society as part of its permanent fund and the Board of Trustees of Gratz College as part of its endowment fund.
The Board of Overseers of Gratz College-Hebrew Education Society resolved to erect in Gratz Col-College a tablet suitably inscribed in acknowledgement of this gift and in honor of the donors.
The presentation of the tablet was made by Leon J. Obermayer and accepted by Rabbi Abraham A. Neuman. Brief addresses were delivered by Rabbi Philip Lipis and Abraham P. Piwosky president of the Gratz College Alumni Association.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
