Four Jerseyans are among YU’s undergraduate valedictorians
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Four Jerseyans are among YU’s undergraduate valedictorians

By Yeshiva University May 15, 2025, 9:51 am Edit
The 2025 undergraduate valedictorians at Yeshiva University are, from left, front row, Aliza Walzman, Leeby Levine, and Emily Goldberg and, back row, Akiva Prager, Raphael Silbiger, Jake Resnick, Joshua Asaraf, Ezra Wallach, and Isaac Silverman. (Yeshiva University)
The 2025 undergraduate valedictorians at Yeshiva University are, from left, front row, Aliza Walzman, Leeby Levine, and Emily Goldberg and, back row, Akiva Prager, Raphael Silbiger, Jake Resnick, Joshua Asaraf, Ezra Wallach, and Isaac Silverman. (Yeshiva University)

Nine students have been named undergraduate valedictorians in Yeshiva University’s class of 2025. They and their classmates will graduate at the university’s 94th annual commencement ceremony on Thursday, May 22, at 1 p.m., at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens.

Four graduates from New Jersey are among the valedictorians.

Leeby Levine of Teaneck (Rebecca Ivry Department of Jewish Studies at Stern College for Women ) is a Judaic studies and biology major. Next year, she will enroll in YU’s graduate program in advanced talmudic studies, and she plans to apply to medical school. As an undergraduate, she was the captain of the women’s soccer team and copresident of the Medical Ethics Society. She is copresident of Itutor, coordinating free tutoring for local elementary and high school students; is a peer tutor; and volunteered in the NYU Medical Center emergency room. “I am grateful for the opportunity I had at Stern to spend time learning Torah, specifically in Rabbi Nachbar’s shiur, which was a central component of my limud haTorah during these years,” Ms. Levine said.

Akiva Prager of Teaneck (Mazer Yeshiva Program) is majoring in psychology and is a student in Rav Michael Rosensweig’s shiur. He will join the semicha program at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary next year, with plans to go into klei kodesh. “Thank God, my experience at YU has been very rewarding, really allowing me to find a place in our beis medrash and the mesorah of our yeshiva,” Mr. Prager said. “With amazing friends, new and old, and an outstanding group of rebbe’im, I’m so thankful for my time here and hope to continue as part of the yeshiva for years to come.”

Jake Resnick of Teaneck (Isaac Breuer College of Hebraic Studies) is a marketing major with a minor in strategy and entrepreneurship. He plans to attend law school next year. At YU, he worked at the seforim sale and on the yearbook and participated in extracurricular activities on campus. “My time in IBC over the past three years has been extremely transformative,” Mr. Resnick said. “I’ve learned so much about myself and about Judaism. My experience at YU has been really great; I made friends for life and got a top-tier education in New York City that has set me up for success.”

Aliza Walzman of Hillside (Sy Syms School of Business) has a double major in business analytics and strategy and entrepreneurship. After graduation, she will work at Deloitte in its audit analytics department. She was Torah Activities Council president this year, copresident of the YU Chessed club last year, and was on the senior gift and academic integrity committees. “I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have a well-rounded education to prepare me to achieve my professional goals and also provided me with opportunities to grow in my religious life and Torah studies,” Ms. Walzman said.

The other valedictorians are Isaac Silverman of Brooklyn (Yeshiva College), Ezra Wallach of Woodmere, NY (Sy Syms School of Business), Emily Goldberg of Needham, Mass. (Stern College for Women), Joshua Asaraf of Philadelphia (James Striar School of General Jewish Studies), and Raphael Silbiger of West Hempstead, NY (Irving I. Stone Beis Medrash Program).

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