The College for Contemporary Judaism, a seminary founded in the aftermath of HUC’s decision to close its historic campus, is asking an Ohio court to transfer the school’s Cincinnati campus and assets to it.
The new college filed a motion to intervene in the lawsuit brought by now former Attorney General Dave Yost against HUC this April. CCJ has asked the court to name them as the recipient of HUC Cincinnati’s assets, including the Klau Library, Skirball Museum, and the American Jewish Archives.
“The Attorney General’s lawsuit makes clear what we have always believed: that the assets entrusted to Hebrew Union College were given for a sacred and specific purpose — to educate rabbis in Cincinnati,” said Rabbi Dr. Gary P. Zola, CCJ’s Founding President.
Yost’s 2026 lawsuit alleged that HUC violated Ohio charitable trust law and its own founding documents when the HUC-JIR Board voted to stop ordaining Rabbis in Cincinnati in 2022. When Hebrew Union College and the Jewish Institute of Religion merged in 1950, the article of incorporation required the school to “permanently maintain” a Cincinnati Rabbinical Campus.
AG Yost also filed lawsuits against HUC-JIR in 2024 regarding the potential sale of items from the Klau Library and the American Jewish Archives.
HUC-JIR held its final ordination ceremony in Cincinnati on May 8, during its 150th year. The school said the decision to shutter the program was driven by low enrollment and financial struggles.
CCJ argues that if Yost’s lawsuit succeeds, it provides the court with a ready answer as to where those assets should go. The filing invokes the legal doctrine of cy pres, which allows a court to redirect charitable assets to a different nonprofit when the original purpose can no longer be fulfilled, provided the new recipient’s mission is sufficiently similar.
“The attorney general is working to protect assets intended to support rabbinical education in Cincinnati,” said Andrew Berger, CCJ’s founding board chair. “CCJ exists to fulfill that mission.”
CCJ was founded in 2022 in direct response to HUC’s announcement of its closure. It has no physical campus yet and has not enrolled any students. Its founding president, Rabbi Gary Zola, previously served as executive director of HUC’s American Jewish Archives for decades.
“We are proud to stand alongside the Ohio Attorney General in asking the court to ensure those assets are protected and put to their intended use,” said Zola.
HUC has pushed back on both the original lawsuit and CCJ’s intervention, arguing Yost’s allegations mischaracterize the school’s decision-making and misrepresent its stewardship of donor funds.
HUC has until June 11 to respond to Yost’s lawsuit, following a 28-day extension.
Yost, who filed the suit in April, announced in May that he is resigning from the attorney general’s office, effective June 7, to take a position with Alliance Defending Freedom. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has named Andy Wilson as his replacement to serve out the remainder of the term.
You can read the full court filing here.