An excellent example of Drexel`s continuing development is our new Co-op in Israel program, which will welcome its first group of students in the spring term. The program matches students with technology-focused Israeli companies.

The Drexel students going to Israel will gain the international experience necessary to excel in the global economy of the future. Our students can already gain co-op experiences in 11 countries.

Israel`s status as one of the world`s fastest-growing technological centers makes it an ideal location for Drexel students. They will work with major Israel and U.S.-based companies such as IBM, Intel, Kulicke and Soffa, Microsoft, Motorola, RADVision, Teva Pharmaceuticals and Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. Students will also benefit from Drexel`s longstanding relationship with Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa.

The Co-op in Israel program needed an innovative academic program to maximize its effectiveness. That`s why Drexel established the Judaic Studies program, which includes the Louis Stein minor created by a three-year grant from the Louis and Bessie Stein Foundation. Judaic Studies courses will give students the language and cultural skills they can use to excel while working in Israel.

Heading the program is Dr. Rakhmiel Peltz, an internationally known scholar in Jewish communal affairs and former director of Yiddish Studies at Columbia University. Drexel is fortunate to have a scholar of Dr. Peltz`s stature guiding the program.

I would like to thank the many people who have helped make Co-op in Israel a reality, including Daniel Ashbel, the Israel Consul General in Philadelphia, and officials at the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv. I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of Gary Hamme, dean of enrollment and career management, and Sue Strup, director of the Career Management Center, who accompanied me to Israel several months ago to recruit co-op employers for the program.

With the continued support of those listed above, along with the support of students and Israeli co-op employers, Drexel looks forward to a long, successful future for the program.

C.R. "Chuck" Pennoni Interim President