Meet our pets!

Meet our staff’s furry (and fishy!) companions!

Annette Carr: Long Island

(Clockwise from top left):

Teeny is the oldest and wisest of the squat. Her hobbies include napping, eating, and taking tremendous doses of catnip.

Pipsqueak is the baby of the group. She weighs about 6 pounds and brings us gifts every day in the form of dead wildlife.

Lil’ used to be a feral cat who wandered into the house and decided to set up residence. I guess you can say she chose us. She is also deaf.

Bunny is the queen bee of the house. She weighs 20 pounds and has an attitude to match.

Dora Isakova: Forest Hills

Let me introduce you to our smallest family member. His name is Max and he has been with us for over 5 years now. He can be very friendly and loving, but also very protective when there are strangers around. Our Max is very smart and knows tons of commands, his favorites are “jump” and “roll over.” Having Max can sometimes be a lot of work, especially when he steals food off the ground and then gets a tummy ache, but we love him very much and are so happy he’s a part of our family.

Lara Lasner-Frater: Touro Harlem

(Left to right)

Pickle von BunBun is a dachshund who is taken care of by my godchild. Pickle loves attention and giving people baths. She’s an old girl at 14 but still demands attention anytime you come near.

William, a/k/a William the Conqueror. My father passed away in 2016. In 2017 I was adopted by a cat named William which is my father’s middle name. I consider him a gift from my late father, except that I got a mischievous gremlin. William is loving and sweet to balance out his destructive side which is knocking things over,  nipping when his hungry, bothering his sister, and going into places he’s not allowed.

Originally named Uhura after the Star Trek character, she started getting called Miss Kitty because she’s a diva who often sings the song of her people at 1am. Her favorite things are to run around like a maniac and freak out her brother William.

Hoodoo is the senior kitty and in very good health for a 16-year-old cat. He likes to sit on your lap or chest and purr loudly. In his youth, he was fond of opening the fridge and getting into mischief.

Leiba Rimler: Cross-River Campus

The best kind of pet… very well behaved (except for when it comes to posing for photos, they don’t do a great job of that)

(Editor’s note: I think they’re fantastic at posing!)

Carol Shapiro: Cross-River Campus

Toby the dog (as opposed to Toby the Human, which is how we refer to my library colleague).

Kirk Snyder: Cross-River Campus

These are my cats Diane (calico/tortoiseshell) and Cinnamon (orange tabby). We got Diane as a kitten right after our daughter was born (5 years ago), so they’ve grown up together. She is very sweet, gentle, and friendly with everyone. Cinnamon is a couple years older. We developed a bond when she was a kitten, and I am still the only person she likes! She is very affectionate to me only and sleeps with me every night. She is not friendly to other adults but, to her credit, is very tolerant of kids. We got Cinnamon and Diane both through Anjellicle Cat Rescue, for whom we also sometimes volunteer to foster cats until they can be adopted. Most recently we had Jonah and Elijah for a couple months, two little tuxedo cat brothers. 

Kelly Tenny: Long Island

This is Ben Cat! He’s 19 years young, a pillow hog, a foodie, and my favorite reading buddy. You’ll typically find him soaking up the sun as it comes through the window or sleeping on his favorite pillow behind the couch. I adopted him from North Shore Animal League when I was 15 years old and he’s been by my side ever since. It’s been difficult to see him go through different struggles as he ages, but I am eternally grateful for every single day we have and have had, together.

Amanda Wong: Harlem

My cat Phoebe is 2 years old. She was found abandoned on the streets when she was a kitten. Now she lives as a spoiled indoor cat. She loves cheese and playing with ice cubes.

[Post and editing by Emma Larson-Whittaker, Library and Outreach Assistant, Starrett City]

2023 OER Faculty Fellowship Announcement

Touro University Libraries, in collaboration with The Office of the Provost, is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2023 Touro University Open Educational Resources (OER) Faculty Fellowship. This fellowship awards faculty a stipend of $500 to develop OER for use in their courses. At the end of the fellowship, the fellows’ OER projects will be published on Touro Scholar and in public OER repositories. Our 2023 OER fellows are:

Gena Bardwell, MFA
Director, General Education
Chair and Assistant Professor, Speech and Communication
Touro University NY, NYSCAS

David Nussbaum, MA 
Assistant Professor, Speech and Communication 
Touro University NY, NYSCAS 

Michelle Buccinna, OTD, OTR/L 
Director, Long Island Campus, Occupational Therapy MS 
Assistant Professor, Occupational Therapy MS 
Touro University NY, School of Health Sciences 

Regina Burch, AB, MSA, JD  
Interim Assistant Dean for Academic Excellence and Bar Success   
Visiting Professor of Law 
Touro Law Center 

Stephanie Klinesmith, MS  
Instructor of Anatomy and Neuroanatomy 
Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, Middletown 

Jacqueline Randa, PT, DPT, PhD, NCS, OCS 
Assistant Professor, School of Physical Therapy 
Touro University Nevada 

Deborah Ratti, PhD  
Assistant Professor, Sociology 
Touro University NY, NYSCAS 

Tom Rozinski, JD, MA 
Associate Professor and Deputy Chair for Lander College for Men 
Department of Political Science 
Touro University NY 

James Van Rhee, MS, PA-C 
Associate Professor and Chair of Assessment and Remediation  
PA Program 
Touro University  

New Book Arrivals at Lander College for Women!

For starters, we officially have the complete set of Living Emunah! Each of the six volumes guides its readers through life’s struggles and finding happiness and tranquility in everyday life. Based on the teachings of Rabbi David Ashear’s “Daily Emunah”, each volume contains short stories which include lessons from the Gemara and Rabbinical teachings that are used as guidance to strengthen Judaism through Emumah

We also obtained two books from Rav Miller Avigdor—Rav Miller Avigdor on Tefillah and Rav Miller Avigdor on Olam HabahTefillah will help readers find a deeper connection to the words we said while davening and Olam Habah brings forth the significance and meaning of the world to come.

Did you know that there is more than one way to measure a K’zayis? It’s not just a measure of volume, according to Halachos of K’Zayis. A K’zayis is seven animal crackers, specifically the elephant and the horse. It is ten wiggly gummy worms, ¼ of a cup of Cheerios, and three thin slices of salami. Rav Yisroel Pinchos Bodner (with assistance from Rabbi Yosef Sayagh and Moshe Bodner) brings forth a pictural guide of what a K’Zayis is for common foods in order to make a Bracha. This book is not only insightful, but also a fun way to learn about K’Zayis, including ShabbasYom Tov, and Pesach guides. 

Last but not least is Rebbetzin Kanievsky: A Mother to All. It is almost impossible to describe her life’s work in one biography, yet Naftali and Naomi Weinberger (with Nina Indig) did an excellent job of recording her family history, along with inspirational stories, and how she dealt with life’s challenges. In addition, the Appendix includes Rebbetzin Kanievsky’s water challah recipe, Tehillim for pregnancy and childbirth, and a prayer to ward off the ayin hara. This is perfect for those not only looking for inspiration but to learn about an incredible Rebbetzin and her everlasting impact on Judaism.

Please contact library staff at the Lander College for Women for any questions in regard to these new titles at 212-287-3530.

Blog post contributed by Alexandra Weinstein, Librarian at LCW.