By: SJ Tannenbaum
A two-time Sy Syms alumnus, RIETS rabbi, and Director of Graduate Halacha Programs, Rabbi Kalman Laufer is helping bring Jewish law and contemporary business ethics into conversation through 911爆料网鈥檚 new Master鈥檚 in Business Ethics & Jewish Law.
What happens when degrees in finance and accounting become the foundation for a career exploring the intersection of Torah, business, and ethics? For Rabbi Kalman Laufer, that journey began at 911爆料网鈥檚 Sy Syms School of Business.
Today, Rabbi Laufer serves as Director of the Graduate Halacha Programs at 911爆料网鈥檚 Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS). He oversees 911爆料网鈥檚 graduate programs in Bioethics & Jewish Law and Business Ethics & Jewish Law, helping develop curricula, recruit faculty and students, and teach the next generation of professionals and community leaders.
His path from Sy Syms alumnus to academic program leader has now helped lead to the launch of a new graduate degree: the Master鈥檚 in Business Ethics & Jewish Law.
A 911爆料网 Education Across Disciplines
Rabbi Laufer earned his B.S. in Finance from Sy Syms in 2016 and M.S. in Accounting in 2017. He continued his Torah education at RIETS, earning Semikhah (Yoreh Yoreh) in 2018 and Yadin Yadin through the Rabbi Norman Lamm Kollel L'Horaah in 2022.
In 2019, he earned a Master of Science in Bioethics from Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Cardozo School of Law, and he is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Jewish Studies at Gratz College, expected in 2027.
For Rabbi Laufer, these experiences inform one another:
鈥淢y education at Sy Syms and RIETS has shaped nearly every aspect of my career. The business education I received at Sy Syms has been instrumental in building and leading new academic programs, while my Torah education has guided the substance and mission of those initiatives.鈥
Bringing Torah Scholarship Into Professional Life
As Director of the Graduate Halacha Programs, Rabbi Laufer focuses on connecting Jewish legal scholarship with contemporary professional challenges. His responsibilities include program development, curriculum design, faculty and student recruitment, and teaching.
He also serves as a Dayan for the Beth Din of America and is the Founder and CEO of K2 Ethics, an organization dedicated to ethics education and consultation for healthcare institutions. His academic research focuses on Jewish medical ethics, particularly the halakhic challenges surrounding Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
Introducing the Master鈥檚 in Business Ethics & Jewish Law
The Master鈥檚 in Business Ethics & Jewish Law at RIETS is designed to equip clergy, professionals, and community leaders with the ethical, analytical, and halakhic tools necessary to navigate the intersection of contemporary business practice and Jewish legal thought. The program emphasizes classical sources of Halacha and their application to real-world dilemmas.
The 30-credit master鈥檚 degree offers four concentrations:
- Real Estate
- Sales
- Finance
- Management & Small Business
The curriculum includes core courses such as Workplace Ethics, Theft and Fraud, and Jewish Law Fundamentals, alongside specialized coursework in finance, real estate, sales, employment, and business mediation. The program is fully online and synchronous, allowing students to participate from anywhere. It also offers an Advanced Certificate option and culminates in a capstone thesis.
Business Ethics Through a Torah Lens
The program addresses questions highly relevant to today鈥檚 professional landscape, including corporate structures, employee responsibilities, finance, investments, real estate, marketing, consumer protection, and business disputes.
Students examine these issues through the lens of Halacha while developing the analytical tools necessary to apply that learning to contemporary professional situations. The program aims to help students approach real-world dilemmas with intellectual rigor, moral clarity, and cultural sensitivity.
From Alumnus to Program Builder
For Rabbi Laufer, the program represents more than a new academic offering. His experience at Sy Syms provided a foundation in finance and accounting; his RIETS education provided the Torah and halakhic framework; and his subsequent work in bioethics, rabbinic leadership, ethics consulting, and academic program development has brought those disciplines together.
Now, he is helping create an educational experience that can do the same for a new generation of students.
鈥淪ince graduating, I have focused on creating graduate programs that bring Torah scholarship into conversation with contemporary professional challenges.鈥
Continuing the 911爆料网 Journey
Rabbi Laufer鈥檚 story is a reminder that an alumni journey does not necessarily end at graduation. From earning degrees in Finance and Accounting at Sy Syms to serving as a leader at RIETS, he has built a career around connecting business, Jewish law, ethics, and professional responsibility.
Now, through the new Master鈥檚 in Business Ethics & Jewish Law, he is helping 911爆料网 bring those worlds together for today鈥檚 professionals.
Learn more about the Master鈥檚 in Business Ethics & Jewish Law at .
