10 research outputs found
Grassroots Projects and Social Inclusion: Using Surplus Food to Facilitate Education, Reduce Deprivation and Achieve Sustainable Development
Using a Co-creation Pedagogy for the Professional Development of Students undertaking BA (Hons) Education Studies
Using an interpretive epistemology to explore the perceived benefits of using co-creation as a pedagogic tool with undergraduate students, this research focuses on a collaborative project between some first year undergraduate Education Studies students, a university Senior Lecturer, and an Education Coordinator from a regional social enterprise organisation. The paper explores how the use of co-creation and creativity enhances the professional development and employability of Graduates. Drawing on data collected from the students, this paper presents a range of perspectives and identifies how ‘meaningful’ problem-solving, co-creation, and collaboration lead to transformative learning and enhanced student engagement. By doing this, we explore how complex challenges create agency for learning and develop critical thinking
An exploration of professional learning, and revised ‘internal careers’ experienced by higher education teaching practitioners undertaking the journey to the Doctorate in Education.
This research explores practitioners’ professional learning, and revised career expectations, as a result of undertaking the EdD. It considers the nature of professionalism, and the institutional conditions that support its development.
A new model for conceptual analysis Ecological Positioning Theory is developed, and used. This hybrid model draws on Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (1979) and Harré and van Langenhove’s Positioning Theory (1999). Ecological Positioning is used to identify the various layers of engagement these EdD students experience in a working context, and articulate the subsequent, and movable, positions within these layers of discourse.
Ecological Positioning was used as a framework to prompt semi-structured narratives relating to the macro/exo/meso, and micro-structures inhabited by the practitioners; to assist practitioners articulate their subsequent positions within them, and identify their emotional responses to this positioning. This qualitative data was then themed against the ecological systems identified by the respondents.
What emerged in the findings was that for some the psychological contract with their employer (in terms of what is given and what is to be received) had changed, and that these changes were perceived to be impacting across the higher education sector. As a result, the terms of employment, subsequent professional identities of practitioners and ‘what it means to be a teacher and learner’ were also changing. Engagement with the EdD could be viewed as a response to what a higher education practitioner ‘should be’.
This research has two main contributions to offer. The first is the presentation, and use, of Ecological Positioning to understand the experiential connections which link the personal, socio-historical and situational contexts in addition to considering the diversity and dynamics of academic life. The second is the time-bound snap shot of the experiences of a specific group of higher education teaching practitioners who, for various reasons, have undertaken an EdD
Twelve tips for using co-creation for value creation and professional development
© 2020 The Authors. Published by Association for Medical Education in Europe. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence.
The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.15694/mep.2020.000194.1A growing body of research advocates the positive benefits of using co-creation projects to add value to existing services and practices and to enhance professional development. We present a practical guide to adopting the democratic principles of co-creation and structuring a project effectively. From identifying the initial focus, we provide advice concerning how to create a Mission Statement, identify objectives, and develop a cohesive learning community. We also outline how using measurable outcomes and an agreed timescale, it is possible to co-create activities that are both democratic and inclusive. Whilst co-creation can take place in face-to-face or virtual settings, we suggest ways that engaging with technology will enhance the creative elements, and how reflective practice underpins the career developments taking place. Finally, we explore the value associated with evaluating the project, and identifying avenues for the dissemination of its achievements.Published onlin
The benefits of using co-creation in higher education
This is an author's accepted manuscript of a chapter published on 18/12/2025 by Routledge in An Introduction to the Study of Education edited by David Matheson, available online at: https://www.routledge.com/An-Introduction-to-the-Study-of-Education/Matheson/p/book/9781032819273?srsltid=AfmBOoo90b5YGFAPd0sl-iHYGu0oRVSKr1W9KV83txSV-XWnTiRuFVgp
The accepted manuscript may differ from the final published version
A History of Jewish Life in Fremont and Surrounding Areas
A document outlining the history of Freemont, Ohio's Jewish community starting from the 1840s. The author is Austin Reid.A History of Jewish Life in Fremont and Surrounding Areas
By Austin Reid
Top: Leaders of the Beth Israel Sisterhood in 1962
Photo courtesy of The Fremont News-Messenger
Bottom left: Dryfoos & Bach Store, photo courtesy of Sandusky County Historical Society
Bottom right: Purim play at Beth Israel, photo gifted by Dennis Newman
Introduction: Fremont’s Earliest Jewish Residents
While the closing of Temple Beth Israel in 1980 marked an end to organized Jewish life
in Fremont, it did not mean that Jews ceased to live in the town. Similarly, Fremont’s Jewish
history does not begin on October 31, 1934, when several families came together at the home of
Arthur and Dora Gilberg to discuss forming a new congregation, Beth Israel.1 Rather, Jews are
known to have lived in Fremont since the 1840s, and there is evidence to suggest that by 1856
Jewish religious services were being organized in town. During this year, The Occident, a Jewish
newspaper published in Philadelphia, indicated that Fremont was among the cities and towns in
Ohio with a Jewish congregation.2 While no other references to this nascent congregation
survive, its members would likely have met in private homes or rented spaces. A local
newspaper, The Fremont Journal, did, however, begin to publish in 1855 periodic notices from
Abraham Gusdorf indicating that his store would be closed on various autumn days to observe
Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.3 Like all Jewish holidays, the dates of Rosh Hashanah, the
Jewish new year, and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, are determined each year through a
lunar calendar. This creates some annual variability in holiday observances when dated by the
Gregorian calendar and likely contributed to the need for public notice about the dates.
Abraham and Helen Gusdorf are the oldest Jewish family known to have lived in
Fremont. Abraham arrived in Fremont in 1848 and he found work as a trader dealing in a variety
of products including grain, hides, textiles, and wool.4 It is not known with certainty, however, if
Abraham was married to Helen before he arrived in Fremont. The couple was wed by 1855, and
by 1860 their growing family was joined by Abraham’s older brother, Moritz. Abraham, Helen,
and Moritz were all natives of Central Europe and they numbered among the over one million
immigrants from German-speaking regions of Europe who emigrated to the United States
between 1848 and 1858.5 This wave of immigration had been sparked by failed political
uprisings and it included among its members tens of thousands of Jews. By 1860, Abraham and
Moritz had established the Gusdorf Brothers Packing Company, which dealt in grain. By 1903,
5 “The Germans in America,” The Library of Congress, April 23, 2014,
https://www.loc.gov/rr/european/imde/germchro.html.
4 Basil Meek, Twentieth Century History of Sandusky County, Ohio Representative Citizens, (Chicago:
Richmond-Arnold Publishing Co, 1909) 928.
3 "Notice," Fremont Journal, September 14, 1855.
2 “Congregations,” Occident (Philadelphia), December 01, 1856.
1 “Jewish Temple is Organized,” Fremont Messenger, June 28, 1935.
1
the company was renamed the American Stock Food Company. The Gusdorf family also grew in
size and its younger members included Carrie, Hattie, Isaac, Moses, Samuel, and Solomon.
In 1850, Isaac and Marcus Dryfoos arrived in Fremont and opened a store which they
named I. and M. Dryfoos & Clothiers.6 Both brothers were immigrants from Central Europe, and
by 1857, Marcus had married Rosetta Schwarzenberg, who was also born in Europe. Simon
Dryfoos joined his older brothers in Fremont during 1866.7 Around the time of Isaac and
Marcus’ arrival, Henry and Lewis Oppenheimer also came to Fremont to begin a business. The
Oppenheimer store sold dry goods and carried medicines among its merchandise.8 The
Oppenheimer family would grow in Fremont and its members would also be among the first to
be buried in the Jewish section of Oakwood Cemetery. While no records survive to indicate
when this section was created for the Jewish community, the first burial took place in 1885 when
Babetha Levy was laid to rest. In 1887, Cora Oppenheimer became the second person buried
here.9
The Civil War and Reconstruction Period: A Time of Growth for Fremont’s Jewish
Community
When the Civil War broke out on April 12, 1861, Fremont’s Jewish community likely
numbered no more than four families. In addition to the families already discussed, it is known
that a man named Feist Emrich worked with the Gusdorf Brothers by 1860. In 1870, Feist
donated to the Jewish Orphan Asylum in Cleveland. This donation, along with Feist’s association
with the Gusdorf family, likely points to him being a Jew. No local Jews are known to have
served in the Civil War. In 1875, however, a man named Mayer Frankel moved to Fremont along
with his wife, Fannie, and their children Amelia, Estella, and Sarah. Mayer was a veteran of the
Union Army and he was active in Fremont’s Grand Army of the Republic chapter.10 Before the
war, Myer lived in Philadelphia, where he settled in 1860 after immigrating from Bavaria. Fannie
was also an immigrant and was born in Austria. After arriving in Fremont, the couple had two
10 Steve Hammond, "Mayer Frankel: A Tale from the National Archives’ Service and Pension Records," The
Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography 135, no. 4 (2011): 569.
9 “Oakwood Cemetery Burial Guide and Survey Form for Non-Eastern-European Cemeteries IAJGC Cemetery
Project,” Toledo Lucas County Public Library Digital Collections, May 07, 2018,
https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p16007coll33/id/105311/rec/5.
8 Fremont Weekly Freeman, June 14, 1851, p 4.
7 Ibid.
6 Basil Meek, Twentieth Century History of Sandusky County, Ohio Representative Citizens, (Chicago:
Richmond-Arnold Publishing Co, 1909) 451.
2
additional children, Ernest, and William. One of these sons, William, would establish a women’s
clothing store named Frankel’s.11 This business would remain open until the mid-1960s.
Amelia and Mayer were only one of several new Jewish residents to arrive in Fremont by
1877. During the war, Jacob Joseph arrived in Fremont with his wife, Esther. While Jacob began
his time in Fremont as a peddler, by 1864 he had obtained enough capital to build his own store,
Joseph’s.12 This shop would grow to encompass three stories and become an institution on the
corner of Garrison and South Front streets until it ultimately closed in 1984.13 Another new
entrepreneur in Fremont was Louis Bach. In 1873, Louis settled in Fremont to take a position
with Dryfoos Clothiers. He eventually became a full partner in the firm and in 1920 its sole
owner.14 In 1882, Louis married Barbara Kahn and the couple had three children. Bach would be
a familiar name in Fremont for over 50 years. By the time Bach Clothing Company was sold in
1927 to the Uhlman Company, it was Fremont’s oldest clothing store. In his obituary, Louis was
described as a “pioneer clothier in northern Ohio.”15 Other, less famed Jewish clothing merchants
in Fremont by 1870 included Henry Munk and Lewis Youngman. Peddlers included Jacob Dach,
Louis Jandorf, and Moses Solomon.
In addition to finding work as clothiers, peddlers, and dry goods merchants, some early
Jewish residents of Fremont were tobacconists. In 1877 Jacob Youngman, the son of Babet and
Lewis Youngman, began working at Charles Barth’s tobacco store on Front Street while in high
school. Seven years later, Jacob purchased the store and renamed the enterprise Youngman's
Cigar and Tobacco.16 The store would remain open for 63 years. Jacob was active in the
community as a member of the local Elks Lodge and a charter member of Rotary. He was also a
trustee of the Birchard Public Library, which was opened in 1874.17 It is possible that Jacob’s
interest in the Birchard Library was inspired by his sister, Bertha, who was a teacher in Fremont
from 1887 until her retirement in 1932. Bertha was also civically engaged as a charter member of
the Fremont Federation of Women and a volunteer with the Women's Board of Memorial
Hospital.18 The Memorial Hospital, which continues to serve patients into the 21st century, was
18 "Retired School Teacher Taken," Fremont News-Messenger, November 27, 1941.
17 Ibid.
16 "Jacob L. Youngman, Veteran Fremont Businessman, Succumbs," Fremont News-Messenger, March 09, 1939.
15 "Louis Bach, 87, Pioneer, Dies in Cleveland," Freemont Messenger, April 22, 1935.
14 Roy Wilhelm, "Dryfoos Clothiers Set the Pace for Fremont, Set Trends Before 1900," Fremont News-Messenger,
May 20, 2015.
13 Ibid.
12 “Joseph’s Department Store Legacy Goes Back 120 Years,” Fremont News-Messenger, November 01, 1984.
11 "Frankel Services Scheduled Monday," Fremont News-Messenger, April 15, 1949.
3
opened in 1918. It is also of note that another Jewish teacher, Samuel Wertheim lived in Fremont
by 1880. Samuel was an immigrant from Germany who taught music. He was married to
Rebecca, and the couple had five children.
In 1898, Jacob wed Tillie Mandelbaum, a native of Cincinnati. The couple had one child,
a daughter named Hortense. Hortense married Rudolph Rosenbush in 1923, and the couple
carried on the Youngman’s after the death of Jacob in 1939. Another Jew who was involved in
the tobacco business was Jake Dach. Jake, who was born in 1878 in Fremont, was the son of
Elizabeth and Simon Dach. His parents, who had both emigrated from Central Europe, were wed
in 1868. Simon was likely the brother of the older, previously referenced Jacob Dach, and
similarly, he was a peddler in Fremont by 1870. Jake would work as a clerk at Youngman’s for
forty years.19
The Closing Years of the 19th Century and the Establishment of the Fremont Hebrew
Congregation
By the early 1880s, the children of Fremont’s earliest Jewish residents were reaching
their mid-20s. Marcus and Rosetta Dryfoos had at least three children, Isaac, Louis, and Elenora.
Isaac would work in the clothing business and go on to serve as a member of Fremont's Health
Board in his later years.20 Louis attended the University of Michigan and later the University of
Zurich. Following his studies, Louis moved to New York City, where he worked as a chemist. He
would invent a process for creating artificial rubber.21 Elenora lived in Fremont throughout her
life, and she is buried in the Jewish section of Oakwood Cemetery. Hattie, Isaac, and Moses
were the only children of Abraham and Helen Gusdorf to remain in Fremont as adults. Hattie
never married and she helped her brother, Isaac manage several investment properties in
Fremont. She was also active with the Memorial Hospital Board, Fremont Federation of Women,
and Cosmopolitan Club, which served a literary purpose.22 Isaac continued to manage the
family’s business, which was known as the Fremont Storage Company by the 1920s, and he was
a member of the Elks, Kiwanis, and Masons.23 Moses attended Cornell University before
23 "I. E. Gusdorf Found Dead in Garage," Fremont Messenger, January 28, 1929.
22 "Miss Gusdorf Death Victim," Fremont Messenger, December 06, 1935.
21 "Dr. Louis Dryfoos Dies at His Home in New York City," Fremont Daily Messenger, December 02, 1920.
20 "Ike Dryfoos New Member of Health Board," Fremont Daily Messenger, January 03, 1924.
19 "Friends Mourn Sudden Death of Jacob Dach," Fremont Messenger, July 13, 1931.
4
returning to Fremont to work at the Gusdorf Brothers Packing Company. He also became
involved with the First National Bank and was elected its vice president in 1895.24
By 1885, there is evidence that Jewish residents of Fremont were organizing to form
what would become known as the Fremont Hebrew Congregation.25 This congregation was
officially incorporated on February 16, 1891, with Leon Jandorf serving as president and Louis
Bach as treasurer.26 Twelve other individuals signed the Articles of Incorporation. Their names
were Jacob Joseph, Isadore Cohn, Jacob Dach, Moses Solomon, Simon Wolf, Henry Munk,
Simon Dach, Mayer Frankel, Samuel Wertheim, Simon Dryfoos, Simon Oppenheimer, and
Henry Hayman. The group rented space inside the Knights of Honor hall located in the Dryfoos
block. In 1893 a Sunday school was organized by the women of the congregation and Rabbi
Emanuel Schreiber of Toledo was hired to visit Fremont once a month to teach and lead religious
services.27 The congregation’s first president, Leon Jandorf was the son of Caroline and Louis.
Caroline’s maiden name was Solomon, and she was likely related to Moses Solomon. By 1931,
Leon would move to Buffalo along with his sister, Cora. Another sister, Bertha, moved to
Buffalo shortly after 1907 following her marriage to Adolph Block.28
Moses and Minnie Solomon were especially active in supporting the Fremont Hebrew
Congregation. Moses would serve for many years as the congregation’s president, and he was
known for his religiosity.29 An additional note is that during Solomon's later life, he helped to
create the A.C.S Jeavons Company, which was incorporated three years after his death in 1940.
This company would become a significant contributor to the local economy and maintain a
presence in Fremont until 1981.30 Other known members of the Fremont Hebrew Congregation
included Moses Gusdorf, Joseph and Ida Harskowitz, and Jacob and Tillie Youngman.
Joseph and Ida Harskowitz are notable for being among the first Jewish immigrants from
Eastern Europe to reside in Fremont. This wave of immigration began after 1880 in response to
violent outbreaks of anti-Jewish persecution in the Russian Empire. By 1924, when the United
30 “A.C.S. JEAVONS, INC, : Ohio (US) : OpenCorporates,” Accessed March 06, 2021,
https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_oh/178229.
29 "Moses Solomon Taken in Death Tuesday Night, Fremont Messenger, June 16, 1937.
28 "Block-Jandorf," Buffalo Enquirer, March 18, 1907.
27 “Congregational,” Reform Advocate (Chicago), December 02, 1893.
26 “Beth Israel Temple Notes its Diamond Anniversary,” Fremont News-Messenger, May 17, 1966.
25 Gloria Ulmer, “Fremont Population Dwindles: Jews in Small-Town Ohio Losing Out,” Cleveland Jewish News,
September 05, 1975.
24 Basil Meek, Twentieth Century History of Sandusky County, Ohio Representative Citizens, (Chicago:
Richmond-Arnold Publishing Co, 1909) 929.
5
States Congress passed The Johnson-Reed Act to significantly limit further immigration, over
two million Jews had immigrated to the United States. Joseph made a living in Fremont as a
scrap metal dealer, and this line of work would be undertaken by several other Jewish families in
Fremont during the early decades of the 20th century. Individuals supported through the scrap
metal trade included Anthony and Rena Wolf, Herman and Joseph Levinger, and Bessie and
Harry Linver. It is possible that the same business sold by the Harskowitz family to Joseph and
Herman Levinger around 1917 was later owned by Harry Linver since he too conducted his
scrap yard on Carbon Street. Several other Jewish residents in Fremont during the 1890s engaged
in entrepreneurial pursuits. These individuals included Hattie and Isadore Cohn, Aaron and Irene
Mahler, and Josephine and Simon Wolf. Isadore worked as a butcher alongside his father,
Samuel. His mother, Maria, also lived with the family. Aaron owned the Empire Notion Store on
South Front Street for many years.31 His two children, Estella, and Jona both moved away from
Fremont as adults. Simon was a pharmacist on Croghan Street until 1899. Following his death in
1900, Josephine and her son, Louis moved to Toledo.32
Jewish Life In and Around Fremont During the Early 20th Century
In addition to religious services, Jews in Fremont also began to organize new social and
service organizations by the early 1900s. These included a sewing circle for women and a youth
group that studied Jewish history and provided choral music for religious services.33 A formal
Ladies Auxiliary for the Fremont Hebrew Congregation also existed by 1907.34 In this same year,
Fremont’s Jewish population was estimated to number approximately 45 people or about half a
percent of the town’s overall population.35 Between 1906 and 1909 Fremont’s Jewish
congregation was a member of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations.36 Sunday school
classes continued to be organized, and in 1903 a class of four graduated. Bertha Youngman and
Hannah Mier were among the teachers.37
37 “Beth Israel Temple Notes its Diamond Anniversary,” Fremont News-Messenger, May 17, 1966.
36 “Membership,” Thirty-Third Annual Report of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, June 17, 1907.
35 Ibid.
34 Henrietta Szold, “Directory of Local Organizations,” The American Jewish Yearbook 5668 (Philadelphia: The
Jewish Publication Society of America, 1907) 361.
33 “Fremont, Ohio,” Hebrew Standard (New York), January 15, 1904.
32 "Will Bury Body of Louis Wolf in Oakwood Cemetery," Fremont Daily Messenger, July 07, 1919.
31 "Aaron Mahler is Claimed in Death," Fremont News-Messenger, October 04, 1939.
6
By the early years of the 20th century, Jewish families living in nearby towns including
Fostoria, Norwalk, and Tiffin are known to have participated in some of the religious services
and other communal activities organized in Fremont. Jewish families outside of Fremont would
also play an important role in the later growth of Temple Beth Israel. In Fostoria there were
Henry Kohn and Louis Preis. Henry, who was an immigrant from Austria, owned a dry goods
store and was married to Isabelle. Louis Preis was also a businessman who had moved to
Fostoria. Before the move, he had lived in Philadelphia with his wife, Pearl. The couple arrived
in Fostoria around 1915 to open the Preis Store, which sold women’s clothing. This store would
remain in Fostoria until at least the late 1960s and would pass to Louis’ relative, Jacob. In
Norwalk lived Henry and Rebecca Pohl, who opened Pohl’s Menswear in 1911.38 This store
would continue on Main Street until 1985. Louis Oppenheimer, the son of Rose Gusdorf and
Simon Oppenheimer, also worked in Norwalk for a time before moving to New York.39 In Tiffin,
there was Bertha and Joseph Gottlieb and their relatives, Cora, and Leon Stricker. Both families
supported themselves through their involvement in the clothing business. The first members of
the Stricker family to live in Tiffin were Leon’s parents, Amelia, and Barney, who arrived around
1852 to open Stricker’s.40 Joseph Gottlieb was related to Leon through his marriage to Bertha,
and he operated a separate clothing store on Washington Street. Another Jewish couple living in
Tiffin by 1909 was Isaac and Sarah Hurwitz. This couple had at least four children, and they too
were supported by Isaac’s work as a clothier.
By the time World War I broke out in 1914, Fremont’s Jewish population had grown to
50.41 While modest in size, members of the Jewish community are recorded as doing their part to
support the war effort after the United States entered the conflict in 1917. Tillie Youngman
volunteered with the local Red Cross chapter and she was active in Liberty Loan Drives.42
Samuel Cohen, a native of Fremont, served abroad, but he may have lived in Dayton by the time
of his enlistment.43 Locals also worked to support refugees from the conflict. Following the war,
two Jewish veterans, Louis Michles and Rudolph Rosenbush moved to Fremont. Louis owned a
retail surplus store and would help his brothers, Joseph and Marcus establish the Michles
43 Obituary of Samuel Cohen, Journal Herald (Dayton), December 03, 1953.
42 "Mrs. J. Youngman Beloved Wife and Mother is Dead," Fremont Daily Messenger, June 01, 1920.
41 Herman Bernstein, “Statistics of Jews,” The American Jewish Yearbook 5675 (Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication
Society of America, 1914), p 372.
40 “Local,” American Israelite, September 24, 1914.
39 Obituary of Rosa [sic] Oppenheimer, Jewish Review and Observer (Cleveland), December 05, 1913.
38 Janet Conway, "Dean of Norwalk Businessman is 85," Norwalk Reflector, September 15, 1972.
7
Company which dealt in scrap metal.44 This business would remain in Fremont until 1988. It is
also of note that Marcus served in the United States Army from 1920 to 1924.45 Rudolph worked
at Youngman's Cigar and Tobacco after his marriage to Hortense in 1923. These men were not
the only Jewish entrepreneurs to become involved in business interests in Fremont during the
1920s and early 1930s. One of the most notable businessmen of the era was Solomon Hyman,
who established Fremont’s S.E. Hyman Company in 1923.46
Solomon was born in Fremont in 1886 and he was the son of Amelia and Henry Hyman,
who were both German immigrants.47 Amelia and Henry both died before Solomon’s thirteenth
birthday leaving him and a housekeeper, Katie Hakelz, to care for his siblings, Henrietta and
Julius.48 Katie would take the last name Hyman before her death. The S.E. Hyman Company
began by crafting clothing pieces but soon shifted its production to creating upholstered
coverings for car seats and other accessories. Linings for winter coats were also made. S.E.
Hyman would be a significant employer in Fremont until the 1980s. At its largest, the company
employed hundreds of people. After Solomon’s death in 1948, his wife, Dorris, took over
management of the company.49 Later the company would pass to Richard and Nannette Newman.
Nannette was the daughter of Solomon and Dorris. In addition to Solomon Hyman, Harry
Krohngold and Samuel Lichtenstein also opened businesses in Fremont during the 1920s.
Kronhgold sold shoes and Lichtenstein clothing.
In 1920, the Ladies Auxiliary of the Fremont Hebrew Congregation was reconstituted as
the Temple Sisterhood. By 1922, the organization numbered twelve members who worked to
support a variety of local and
