An Israeli Merkava tank during a field exercise

The ASL Fellowship

The Program

Overview

ASL Fellows participate in a series of special activities. The activities are arranged and led by the ASL Program Coordinator. The activities generally consist of two events per month; one discussion meeting and one field trip. The field trip often should involve interactions with the Israeli Defense Forces or the Israeli intelligence and security agencies. Examples of the field trips include the following:

Orientation tour involving a discussion of the regional security situation

Visit to an army base at which a combat unit is stationed (with a brief history of the IDF during the ride to base)

Visit to an air force base involving UAV activities

Visit to a navy base

Battlefield walk ("staff ride" learning experience)

Visit to the security fence and a checkpoint to learn operations/procedures

Visit to the northern border area with two officers who fought on the terrain in two different battles

Familiarization training with IDF small arms and a tour of the officer training program

Visit to the Latrun military museum to learn about combined arms operations

Visit to the West Bank to learn about the Palestinian situation and point of view

Meeting with officers and soldiers involved with Israel's equivalent of the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security to discuss internal (non-border) security operations

Each class of Fellows is expected to prepare a report containing text and pictures describing their activities, with particular emphasis on the field work. Each year, the Foundation posts those reports on this website.

View the Annual Student Reports

The Anna Sobol Levy Experience

The ASL Fellowship is packed with once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

ASL Fellows participate in two special meetings each month with the program coordinator. One meeting each month typically involves interaction with the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) or the Israeli intelligence and security agencies. The ASL program coordinator arranges activities, staff rides, briefings, formal facility visits, and other exchanges with Israeli officers.

Toward the end of each academic year, the ASL Fellows are expected to prepare a report detailing their experiences. See the reports for examples of ASL experiences.

A professor teaching a class of students in a tiered lecture hall at Reichman University — Life on the Reichman University campus, Herzliya · Photos: Reichman University

A group of students sitting under eucalyptus trees on the Reichman University lawn with laptops — Life on the Reichman University campus, Herzliya · Photos: Reichman University

Practical Experience That Evolves With the Times

Each year the Foundation sends one of the Directors to meet with the Fellows and with the faculty and staff at the host institution. Direct interaction with the Fellows and with the faculty and staff helps the Foundation to maintain a program that is relevant and enriching as the regional and global security situation evolves over time.

Undergraduate Colleges of Past ASL Fellows

ASL Fellows have graduated from the following colleges and universities:

American University

Brandeis University

Brigham Young University

University of California, San Diego

University of Chicago

The Citadel

Clemson University

University of Colorado Boulder

Columbia University

Davidson College

Drexel University

Duke University

Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University

Emory University

Franklin & Marshall College

Georgetown University

University of Georgia

Harvard University

Harvard Medical School

College of the Holy Cross

University of Idaho

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Indiana University Bloomington

Iowa State University

Kent State University

Long Island University

University of Louisville

Miami University

University of Missouri

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

New Mexico State University

New York University

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

North Greenville University

University of Notre Dame

Oregon State University

Pennsylvania State University

Pepperdine University

Princeton University

University of Rochester

Rutgers University

Stanford University

University at Albany, SUNY

State University of New York at Potsdam

University of Texas at Austin

Texas A&M University

Tulane University

United States Air Force Academy

United States Military Academy

United States Naval Academy

University of Utah

Utah State University

Villanova University

University of Virginia

Virginia Military Institute

West Virginia University

University of Wisconsin–Madison

Yale University

Annual Fellowship Reports

Each year's Fellows prepare a report describing their activities and field work. Browse the annual reports below (PDF).

Reports are not published for 2011–12 and 2013–14.

Never Forget

The five 2000-2001 Anna Sobol Levy Fellows with an IDF Merkava tank and Capt. Levy's handwritten thank-you note — Anna Sobol Levy Fellows, 2000–2001

Matt Lawrence, Darren Duke, Noah Kanter, David Bann and David Holdrook were ASL fellows in 2001 when the events of 9/11 indelibly stained our collective consciousness. In NY, Washington and a field in Pennsylvania, the tragic events of that day shook the world. And while we would all like to forget they happened, we cannot forget the lives lost or deny the new reality that was ushered in that morning. One where issues like security and counter-terrorism are more important than they have ever been. Are you up to the task?

About Our Host University

An outlook rooted in the concepts of “freedom and responsibility.”

Reichman University (opens in a new tab) is a dream realized: an academic institution that changed the face of higher education in Israel and became a successful, pioneering model and a source of inspiration. Founded by renowned Israeli Professor Uriel Reichman in 1994, RU is a non-profit modeled after the Ivy League universities of the United States. In the three decades since its establishment, its success has drawn international recognition and some of the finest lecturers and researchers from around the world.

Students walking a campus path at Reichman University, lined with the flags of many nations — The international flag walk, Reichman University, Herzliya · Photo: Reichman University

Welcome to Reichman University: The Home of the Anna Sobol Levy Fellowship Experience

Professor Uriel Reichman founded the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya in 1994 as Israel's first private university. The institution changed its name to Reichman University (RU) in 2021. It is modeled on Ivy League institutions in the U.S. It is a non-profit corporate entity and does not receive subsidies from the State of Israel. RU is the home of the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) (opens in a new tab) and the Institute for Policy and Strategy (IPS).

The Raphael Recanati International School (RRIS) was established to allow students from around the world to benefit from the excellent academic programs at RU by offering several of those programs in English. The RRIS, in collaboration with the ICT, offers a one-year MA program in government with a specialization in counter-terrorism and intelligence studies. Among its other programs, the RRIS also offers a one-year MA program in government with a specialization in diplomacy and conflict studies and a two-year MSc in machine learning and data science.

Various faculty and staff of RU and the RRIS have served as field-grade officers or general officers in the Israel Defense Forces. They understand and support the Foundation's goals and are committed to making the Fellowship program a success.

The Daphna and Gerald Cramer Dormitories tower at Reichman University, with students walking past — The Daphna and Gerald Cramer Dormitories · Photo: Reichman University