In Newton, Hebrew College to relocate to Temple Reyim as part of ‘shared campus’

Temple Reyim in Auburndale is expected to become the new home for Hebrew College next year.Courtesy of Temple Reyim Archives

Hebrew College will relocate from its Newton Centre location next year to share space with Temple Reyim in Auburndale as part of a “shared campus” arrangement, according to a statement.

The college will move to the temple in December 2022, and through a capital campaign, will renovate the temple’s current Washington Street building. It also will construct a new two-floor wing that will be dedicated to office and program space, the organizations said in a joint statement released Tuesday.

“The shared campus model will allow Temple Reyim and Hebrew College to maintain their distinctive identities and programs, strengthen their missions and long-term sustainability, and, together, serve the wider Jewish community in Greater Boston and beyond,” the statement said.

In 2018, Hebrew College sold its 7-acre Newton Centre campus for $18 million to an independent school that also owns the neighboring grounds of the former Andover Newton Theological School. The college would be able to remain in the location for several years, officials said at the time.

In Tuesday’s statement, officials for the college and the temple said the vision for the collaboration builds on the strengths of existing relationships with organizations now based at the temple — including Mayyim Hayyim Living Waters Community Mikveh and Education Center, Kesher Newton Jewish Afterschool Program, and Zamir Chorale of Boston. The temple opened in 1951.

The college, which opened in 1921, also will bring along several organizations to the shared campus, including the Jewish Arts Collaborative, the Jewish Women’s Archive, Keshet, the Massachusetts Board of Rabbis, RUACH/Breath Lab, and Camp Yavneh.

Rabbi Sharon Cohen Anisfeld, Hebrew College president, said in the statement that the new campus will “preserve the warmth of the communities” of the college and the temple. It will allow the college to grow, meet evolving needs, and prepare Jewish spiritual and educational leaders to meet people “at many different doorways to Jewish life,” she said.

“At a time of so much division in the world, we are enlivened by this vision of deep partnership and collaboration,” she said.

Rabbi Daniel Berman of Temple Reyim said in the statement that as the temple celebrates its 70th year, it welcomed the college and its new partners to their new home.

“Our vision is to strengthen the present and future of Temple Reyim and welcome organizational partners that share our core mission, which is grounded in a deep love of Jewish life and learning, spiritual openness, and meaningful relationships,” Berman said.