Shlomo Kaplansky

His life story

Born in Bialystok he learned in a “heder” then in a public school and continued his studies in gymnasium. During his studies, he was active in Zionist work and studied Hebrew. After completing his studies, he traveled in 1903 to study at the Polytechnic in Vienna, where he lived until 1913. In 1912, he received an engineering degree.

In Vienna, he established in 1907 the Austrian Branch of the party "Poalei Zion (Workers of Zion).In 1906 he was elected Vienna as a branch leader

In March 1907 Kaplansky participated as a party representative at the Second International conference in Vienna, and submitted a request to accept the party in the International Organization of Workers

In 1912 he went to Palestine and here he became a member of Ahdut HaAvoda and attended their third Congress held at Ein Harod in May 1924. Kaplansky was in favor of supporting the following initiative. "We should come to an agreement with the Arabs, and together demand the expansion of the parliament's jurisdiction and ultimate self rule." He proposed two assemblies: one of elected representatives, which would inevitably have an Arab majority; the second would have equal numbers of Jews and Arabs. He called for cooperation with the Arabs without British supervision and for the establishment of settlements all over the country with a vision of a bi-national state.

Ben-Gurion was strongly opposed to these proposals, which he called "Kaplansky's error". He opposed negotiations with Arabs since their leadership was from the "effendi" ruling class and called for the development of ties with an Arab working class. He wanted the separation of the two people, Arab and Jew, under British supervision with Jewish settlements in concentrations as a prelude to a Jewish State. The Congress rejected Kaplanski's proposals. Five years later Ben-Gurion reversed his position on federal institutions and, in 1936, he accepted the idea of negotiations with effendis.

In 1925, Kaplansky was appointed as a  director of the Zionist Organization Settlement Department. 

In 1927, Ben-Gurion called for his resignation as a Representative on the Zionist Executive over the way relief was being distributed to unemployed Jews. The resignation call was rejected, but Kaplansky did resign later in the year, following the Zionist Congress in Basel, September 1927. He was appointed Chairman of the Histadrut economic committee.

During the 1928 discussions and Ahdut HaAvoda that led to the formation of Mapai, he threatened to resign because the manifesto was not socialist enough. In 1929, Kaplansky returned to the Zionist Executive and was a member of the delegation from Palestine to the Jewish Labor Congress held in Berlin, 27 September 1929.

Kaplansky was appointed as the President and Director of The Technion in Haifa in 1931, a position he held until his death in1950. Under Kaplansky's leadership Technion

In his days, the status of the Technion as an academic institution was established, new faculties were open: Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Chemical engineering, and during this period, the Technion grew and took in many scientists who fled from Nazi regime in Germany.

In 1933 thanks to his efforts to train young people Bosmat Technical High school was established.

Shortly after his death, he was awarded Rupin Award for his book "Vision and Fulfillment”. To commemorate him many streets in different cities were named “Kaplanski” in Israel, and especially the Technion Square in Hadar Carmel.