On Sunday, April 25, 2021, friends and family gathered to celebrate Dr. Mordecai Katz, a committed philanthropist whose generosity and leadership have transformed Yeshiva University and the Jewish world. If you attended, feel free to revisit the amazing tributes paid to this wonderful man. If you didn’t attend, take the time to watch the celebration and feel tremendously uplifted in the bargain.  

 

Obituary for Mordecai Katz, March 23, 2021

Yeshiva University mourns the passing of one of our most beloved leaders, Dr. Mordecai D. Katz. Dr. Katz served as a Trustee of Yeshiva University for over twenty-five years, most recently as its co-vice chairman. He also served as a member of the Board of Overseers for the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration as well as Chair of the Board of Overseers of the Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies. Together with his wife, Dr. Monique C. Katz, co-vice-chairman of the Stern College for Women Board of Overseers, the Katzes have long been extraordinary champions for our community. Dr. Katz was a committed philanthropist whose generosity and leadership have transformed Yeshiva University and the Jewish world. The family's most recent major gift launched the Katz School, which created new portals of entry into Yeshiva University for students of our community. The Katzes also endowed the Mordecai D. Katz and Dr. Monique C. Katz Deanship of Undergraduate Faculty of Arts and Sciences, currently held by Dr. Karen Bacon, a position of enduring impact on developing tomorrow's leaders. The scholarships they funded have enabled scores of students to access higher education. Dr. Katz graduated from Talmudical Academy, the earlier name of Yeshiva University High School for Boys, in 1948. He is an alumnus of Polytechnic University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and New York University School of Law. He received a Doctor of Humane Letters from Yeshiva University in 1993 for his life-long commitment to furthering its work. We extend our condolences to Dr. Monique Katz; their children, Dr. Rachel Katz (Dr. Robert Sidlow), Yeshiva University Trustee Michael Katz (Elissa), Gail Katz (Mayer Bick) and Debra Katz (Yechiel Newman); and to the entire family. May they find comfort among all who mourn for Zion and Jerusalem. Yeshiva University Dr. Ari Berman President Moshael J. Straus Chairman of the Board