Three years ago, University at Buffalo officials investigated allegations that students were channeling money through a charity to three Judaic Studies instructors, in exchange for higher grades.

Professor Sam Paley of the UB Classics Department said that the investigation, which he conducted with then-Arts and Sciences Dean Uday Sukhatme, found that students in the three instructors’ classes were giving money to Chabad House on North Forest Road. But it did not find evidence that grades were affected, Paley said.

The three instructors—Rabbi Noson Gurary and his sons Avrohom and Moshe—are financially supported by Chabad House, Avrohom Gurary said. The charity, a branch of a nationwide Hasidic institution, was founded by Noson Gurary in 1970.

In an interview two weeks ago, Avrohom Gurary told Generation he was sure none of his students believed the money they donated to Chabad House was given under the condition that it would affect their grade in the course. “I know it as a fact that the grades that they get have nothing to do with any donations,” he said.

Whatever their intentions, students in the Gurarys’ classes still hand them money during class time. Avrohom Gurary confirmed that students actually attach Chabad donation checks to papers they hand in. “Some people do that,” he said. “In their mind, they may think it’s going to make a difference.”

It’s not right for students to attach checks to papers, he said. “We tell the student that they have to send it in directly to Chabad. It’s not acceptable.”

But donations don’t mean a better grade, he asserted. “I don’t believe in my mind that these students believe that their, whatever, $18, $10 donation, in their mind, that’s going to get them a higher grade,” Gurary said. “I mean, logically, if someone wanted to give something substantial, that would be a different story.”

But he, his father, and his brother would never do such a thing, he said.

The Gurarys have been teaching at UB for free, as part of an unusual arrangement also involving a Catholic priest and a Protestant pastor, according to College of Arts and Science Associate Dean Jeri Jaeger.

Student donations simply give additional support to the Chabad House, which financially supports the Gurary brothers, Avrohom Gurary said. But the students don’t make that connection, he asserted. “Generally, students don’t connect that they’re paying us for teaching,” he said. “They’re paying us for Chabad; they’re paying us for the services that Chabad provides. They’re not aware that Chabad sponsors the courses.”

Generation twice contacted Avrohom’s father, Noson, for comment regarding these issues. In a brief telephone conversation, Noson Gurary said that he would call a magazine reporter back, but did not do so.

The Gurarys are part of an international Hasidic Jewish movement based in Brooklyn, New York, known as Chabad-Lubavitch. Noson Gurary came to Buffalo in 1970, where he established his Chabad House. According to Rabbi Rob Morais, Director of Education and Life Long Learning at Temple Israel of West Bloomfield, Michigan, Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbis are given money to start out, and must then find a way to support themselves. “Within two years,” he adds, “they have to be self-supporting.”

Avrohom Gurary said that he, his brother and father are “paid staff, funded by the Chabad House.”

Rabbi Avrohom Gurary is a familiar face in the UB Student Union on weekday afternoons, interacting with students and providing them with “tefillin,” which are two small boxes with straps attached that are wrapped around the arms of Jewish males on weekdays for prayer.

Rabbi Avrohom Gurary told Generation he has been teaching courses in Judaic Studies at UB for free since 1994. “I believe it’s important to offer these courses and make them available to Jewish students, and anyone who’s interested in the Jewish religion,” he explained. “Most students aren’t aware that we do not get paid by the university.”

Professor Paley offered an explanation as to why the three men would dedicate their time to teaching college courses for free. “They feel that education is a part of their ministry,” he said, citing the other religious leaders that volunteer to teach at UB.

According to the MyUB academic website, approximately 160 seats are filled in JDS courses this semester, so the demand for instructors is difficult to ignore. Out of these 160 seats, 156 are in the five Gurary-taught courses.

The Gurarys have been teaching a significant portion of the Judaic Studies department’s offerings for years. After the investigation three years ago, they still do.

Avrohom Gurary said Paley and Sukhatme’s investigation delved into whether “we were taking bribery, or that we were taking donations from students in order to get a better grade.” Gurary acknowledged that his students donated money to Chabad House, which supports him financially. But no grades were changed as a result, he said.

“We interviewed all the rabbis and checked their grades,” said Paley. According to Paley, the Gurarys awarded a variety of grades, none of which were Fs.

Vice Provost Mike Ryan told Generation that if students are giving money to an instructor during class, it automatically creates a bad perception among other students. “What I find troubling on an ethical level is that other students feel they are disadvantaged,” Ryan said. “Students should not have that perception.”

Ryan said the Gurarys must abide by the same standards as all full-time, paid faculty members.

Informed that Avrohom Gurary acknowledged occasionally receiving checks attached to assignments, Ryan said, “That’s not good, he should discourage this practice.” He said this is “a very awkward position to put students in.”

Professor Jeri Jaeger was given the position as the Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences by the university in July 2007, so she was not involved in the investigation. While acknowledging that the current program has not been a healthy one, she offers that the university is completely disbanding the current Judaic Studies Program.

She insists that this move is not related to the Gurarys, or anything they have done, and was not a concentrated effort to remove them from instructing.

For nearly 15 years, members of the UB faculty have worked towards creating an institute for Judaic studies. Due to lack of interest from the community and subsequent lack of funding, however, it was never able to get a substantial grant, nor promise, Jaeger said.

The current JDS program is headed by Professor Sam Paley out of the Classics department, and has operated for almost 30 years with virtually no financial support. The program offers about ten courses every semester, with little variation, most of which are taught by Paley himself, or volunteers such as the Gurary rabbis.

The new institute—which will soon emerge as “The Institute of Jewish Thought, Heritage, and Culture”—is designed to be a leading establishment in the realm of collegiate Jewish studies, promising to attract students beyond those of the faith. Jaeger said that a committee of UB professors and administrators was assembled to work towards developing the institute, garnering donations and support in the local Jewish community, as well as interviewing and selecting potential directors.

Aside from this new director, who has already been offered the job, the institute has been promised five full-time, Ph.D-holding faculty members in the next five years. It will also offer an undergraduate major in Judaic studies within two years, and eventually opportunities for a masters and Ph.D, according to Jaeger.

Jaeger recognizes that the JDS program has suffered due to its lack of funding, and its volunteer staff. “A history of Judaism course taught by one of these rabbis, you could imagine, has a very specific focus that’s not academically sound. We don’t want that anymore. And so we’re going to be hiring people who are established scholars in Judaic studies to come teach these courses.”

She continues, “We can have faculty members who are Ph.Ds in Jewish studies, who are teaching history of Judaism from an academic point of view instead of from the point of view of their own personal take on Judaism, which is how it’s been.”

According to Professor Paley, however, if the new director interviews the Gurarys and deems their knowledge and contribution adequate, they can most certainly be hired back, and could be teaching JDS courses by next fall. Rabbi Avrohom Gurary believes he and his father and brother will continue to teach: “As far as I know, they’re waiting for the new director to officially appoint, and I believe that we will be reappointed.”