Dr. Doreen Ray Steg is Fondly Remembered by the Judaic Studies Program     11/21/2006
Dr. Rakhmiel Peltz,and Mr. Henri Levit, Chair of the Judaic Studies Advisory Board, dedicate the book cabinet, with the Polk family looking on.	Family, friends, former colleagues, and even a former student who lives and works in Israel, joined with the Judaic Studies Program of Drexel University to honor and remember Dr. Doreen Ray Steg (1928-2002), professor of human behavior at Drexel from 1966 to 1995, and the initiating force behind the establishment of the Judaic Studies Program. The special event on November 17, 2006, drew an audience of close to 75 people to the Judaic Studies Seminar Room in Hagerty Library on Drexel’s campus.
After introductory remarks by Dr. Rakhmiel Peltz, Director of Judaic Studies, the memorial event featured the dedication of a custom-made book cabinet, a new addition to the furnishings of the handsome Stern Judaic Studies Seminar Room. The cabinet was donated by the Steg family (Dr. Leo Steg, Paula Steg Wiley, Leslie Steg, and Audrey Steg Polk) in memory of Doreen Steg. Dr. Edward C. Ray, Dr. Steg’s brother, and his wife Lonnie were on hand for the event, along with Doreen and Leo Steg’s daughters,Paula Wiley and Audrey Polk, along with Audrey’s husband Larry Polk, and their two sons who flew in from Atlanta. Mr. Polk spoke to the group about Doreen, remembering her as a resourceful, strong personality. He recalled her passionate devotion to her research, to her teaching, and to mentoring students. These thoughts were echoed by psychology professors Mary Spiers and Douglas Chute, former colleagues of Dr. Stegs’s who also addressed the group. Drs. Chute and Spiers remembered that Dr. Steg was an enthusiastic and inspiring mentor to them when they were young professors. Cheryl Fox, a former graduate student of Dr. Steg’s, now a consultant to the Philadelphia School District, recounted warm memories of Dr. Steg's guidance.
Dr. Doreen Ray Steg, professor of human behavior at Drexel University from 1966- 1995, received her Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania. She was the founding head of the Department of Human Behavior and Development at Drexel and the founding director of its Early Childhood Center. She was president of the American Cybernetics Association, a member of the Board of the International Society of Cybernetics, and received the Norbert Weiner Medal from the American Cybernetics Association for her work with artificial intelligence. She pioneered the use of computers with children which they called “talking typewriters,” and developed the Computer Aided Education and Training Initiative, which helped teach severely learning disabled children in numerous countries to read and type. In the early 1990s she conceived of the idea of a Judaic Studies Program for Drexel University and spear-headed its initial planning. The Judaic Studies Program was initiated at the University in 1998.	After the event: Dr. Ed Ray, Dr. Rakhmiel Peltz, Dr. Marjorie Rankin, former Dean of the Westphal College of Media Arts and Design, and Audrey Steg Polk.
The event, called the Doreen Ray Steg Memorial Lecture, also featured a talk by Dr. Steg’s former graduate student, Dr. Mazal Menahem, who spoke on “Perspectives on Trauma and Resilience: Israeli Children Coping with Terrorism and War.” Dr. Menahem, Director of the Trauma and Resilience Unit within Psychology Department of the Israel Ministry of Education, described her diagnosis and treatment of Israeli children who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. She spoke about her work with Israeli children exposed to the Intifada, suicide bombs, disengagement, attacks of Hizballa in the recent Lebanese war, as well as the everyday trauma of car accidents, and how, in doing this work, she has coordinated teams of Israeli psychologists, both Jewish and Arab.

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