An aerial view of American Jewish University’s Sunny & Isadore Familian Campus in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles. (Courtesy of Communications Department, AJU)
To read David Suissa’s op-ed, click here.
EF Education First is terminating an agreement to acquire American Jewish University’s Familian Campus in Bel Air after encountering opposition from the surrounding neighborhood, EF officials announced on Wednesday. AJU reached an agreement in September 2022 to sell the Familian Campus to EF, an international degree and language learning school that educates students from around the world.
In a letter from EF to the Los Angeles Planning Commission Wednesday afternoon, EF Vice President Shawna Marino said that the school had determined that the “Casiano neighborhood in Bel Air is not a suitable location for us,” and that the purchase and sale agreement with AJU would be terminated immediately.
“…Despite the hundreds of meetings, phone calls and emails between us and our adjacent neighbors to try to build trust, create consensus and address all concerns, many adjacent neighbors became firmly entrenched in their opposition and communicated in ways that made us increasingly uncomfortable to locate in this Bel-Air neighborhood,” wrote Marino.
“Based on the letters submitted in opposition, it is crystal clear that there are individuals in the neighborhood that do not want international students in their community. This is the first time we have experienced this level of fear and bias – which is, ironically, the very thing that EF’s programs seek to overcome,” Marino continued.
AJU said in a statement on Wednesday that it will continue to search for ways to utilize the Familian Campus.
“EF Education First notified us today that they will be terminating their purchase and sale agreement for the Familian Campus in Bel Air,” said a spokesperson for AJU. “American Jewish University will be exploring all options for the future of this property.”
AJU’s Board of Directors voted in September 2022 to accept an offer to sell the Familian Campus to EF for an undisclosed sum. The proposed EF International Language Campus would have brought together students from more than 75 countries to learn English through a fully accredited program, officials said. EF has similar schools globally and across the U.S., including campuses in Pasadena, San Diego, San Francisco and Santa Barbara.
The proposed project would have added approximately $1 million annually in property tax revenue, according to EF’s letter.
EF officials said that the school had planned to preserve much of the Familian campus, including its name, which honors the Sunny and Isadore Familian family. EF planned to use the campus’ existing classrooms and student dormitory spaces, set aside more than 20 acres of natural resources, increase security presence in the neighborhood and eliminate potential traffic impacts, officials said.
The project received support from prominent local institutions, including Mulholland Design Review Board, the Hillside Federation, Stephen S. Wise Temple and School, the Mulholland Educational Corridor Alliance and the Mountaingate Open Space Maintenance Association.
In late April, EF announced plans to build a designated sports facility on the campus grounds to be utilized by students at the adjacent Stephen S. Wise Temple and School. The project, officials said, would have included no-cost overflow parking for Wise Temple congregants to utilize during special events, including High Holiday celebrations.
AJU President Dr. Jeffrey Herbst said in September that EF’s acquisition of the Familian Campus would allow AJU to better meet the changing needs of the Jewish community. AJU acquired the 35-acre, situated above the Sepulveda Pass in the Santa Monica Mountains, in 1977.
This is a developing story.
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