Joseph Kahan

Joseph Kahan

Joseph Kahan

Joseph Kahan grew up in a northern suburb of London, England. The product of a Jewish Day School, he studied Mathematical Economics at Leicester University and Mathematical Statistics at University College London. After “immigrating” to Israel, and working there for nearly three years, he came to the US to further his studies. He received an MS (1977) and a PhD (1981) in Engineering from Harvard University. He has not yet returned to Israel.

Now retired, Joseph had a career in mathematical modeling, both on the technical and managerial side. It alternated between research for defense contractors and research for property insurance companies, where he was primarily interested in risk associated with fire and natural hazards.

Since the aforesaid retirement, Joseph has been involved with charitable concerns. He currently sits on both the Board of the American Friends of the Rabin Center, as well as the International Board of the Davidoff Comprehensive Center (for the treatment of cancer) in Petah Tikvah, Israel. Locally, he serves on the Foundation Board of the Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA). Recently, he participated in a five-day bike ride in Israel, raising money for Hazon and the Arava Institute.

Joseph has been living in Cambridge from the summer of 1975, where the Orthodox Minyan of Harvard Hillel has been his go-to place of worship. There, he met both his wives (sequentially, by the way). There, his son had a Bar Mitzvah party, and there he had his aufruf.

Joseph is married to Claudia Davidoff. They each have two grown children, and are still living in Cambridge.