The Wallerstein Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies joins Drew in fall 2025
July 2025 – Drew Theological School is pleased to welcome Dr. Emily Filler as the Wallerstein Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies. Filler will join the Drew community in fall 2025.
The Wallerstein professorship in Jewish Studies was founded in 1990 by Madeleine and Julian Wallerstein to promote the University-wide study of Jewish wisdom, life, and history at Drew in ways that are broadly ecumenical, contribute to the training of Methodist and other Protestant seminarians, and to increase interreligious understanding and appreciation of Jewish contributions to world cultures.
Filler will be teaching courses at both the College of Liberal Arts (CLA) and the Theological School.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Emily Filler to the Drew Theological School faculty,” said Edwin David Aponte, Dean of the Theological School. “Her deep commitment to interreligious scholarship and demonstrated passion for teaching will enrich our community and inspire our students in profound ways. Dr. Filler’s expertise in modern Jewish thought and ethics aligns beautifully with our mission to form courageous, innovative, and culturally competent leaders for a just and loving world.”
Prior to joining Drew, Filler was the Assistant Professor in the Study of Judaism at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. She also taught at Earlham College, St. Olaf College, and completed a visiting postgraduate fellowship at the University of Cambridge.
“I’m truly excited to join the faculty at Drew, and I can’t wait to meet people across the community!” said Filler. “Drew has a reputation for scholarly rigor and creativity, social action, and institutional diversity, which makes it an ideal place to teach, write, and converse—particularly in a time of political crisis, when we need all the inspiration we can get. I look forward to teaching the Jewish tradition—texts, philosophy, ethics—to students from all backgrounds.”
Filler received her PhD in the Study of Judaism from the University of Virginia’s Department of Religious Studies. She earned her Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School, and a BA in Religion and Philosophy from The George Washington University.
An accomplished scholar, Filler is the co-editor of the newly published volume Jewish Ethics Since 1970, with Jonathan Crane and Mira Wasserman.
She has received numerous fellowships and awards, including the David Baumgardt Memorial Fellowship from the Leo Baeck Institute in New York.
