The Association for Canadian Jewish Studies is proud to announce that Professor Emeritus Robert Brym, recently retired from his role as SD Clark Professor of Sociology at the University of Toronto, is the recipient of the 2025 Louis Rosenberg Award for outstanding contributions to Canadian Jewish Studies.

From his early work challenging conventional theories of intellectual life in revolutionary Russia to his sustained contributions to the sociological understanding of Jewish identity, Professor Brym has consistently pushed the boundaries of scholarly inquiry. In the 1980s and 1990s, he wrote several journal articles on intermarriage and antisemitism before publishing The Jews in Canada (1993), a foundational text in the discipline co-edited with Bill Shaffir and 2023 Rosenberg Award recipient Morton Weinfeld.

His research reached new heights with the first nationwide survey of Jews in Canada in 2018. That landmark project, and the subsequent publication The Ever-Dying People? Canada’s Jews in Comparative Perspective (2023) with 2024 Rosenberg Award recipient Randy Schnoor, have become essential resources for scholars and community leaders alike. These works offer unprecedented insight into Canadian Jewish life while situating it within both national and international contexts.

Professor Brym’s research is distinguished by its methodological rigor, comparative scope, and deep engagement with contemporary Jewish life. His work continues to shape public discourse and inform communal policy, particularly on issues of identity, intermarriage, antisemitism, and attitudes toward Israel. With new survey projects already underway, his contributions remain as vital as ever.

Please join the ACJS in congratulating Professor Brym on this well-deserved recognition of his extraordinary scholarship and impact, and we’ll look forward to presenting the 2025 Louis Rosenberg Award to him on the evening of May 25, at our annual conference in Ottawa.

Jesse Toufexis
Vice President and Nominations Chair
Association for Canadian Jewish Studies