Latest News from Campus

Hillel Rio is welcoming hundreds of Jewish students and young adults to its sukkah throughout Sukkot for meals, learning, holiday rituals, and community gatherings. Students are integral to every part of the Sukkot experience: from helping to build and decorate the sukkah to shaping programming held inside it. “Having a sukkah is especially meaningful because it represents what Hillel is all about: a welcoming home where we celebrate our Jewish identity and feel a sense of belonging,” said student Gabriela Sznajderman. “It’s incredible to have different activities every day during the chag (holiday), bringing us together and strengthening our community.”

As more students return to Israel through Hillel’s Birthright Israel trips, Hillel at the University of Rochester Assistant Director Michael Pollak explores how first-time and returning participants experience the country differently. After staffing multiple trips, Pollak reflects on how students can encounter familiar places, build relationships with Israeli peers, and engage with Israel through new experiences and conversations, including visits to the Nova Festival memorial.

CU Boulder Hillel welcomed more than 100 students and community members for a panel featuring Israeli author and activist Noa Tishby, Lebanese Christian activist Jonathan Elkhoury, and Bahraini Muslim activist Fatema Al Harbi. The speakers discussed identity, Israel, and building relationships across differences as part of their Voices of the Middle East college campus tour. During a Q&A, students raised questions about navigating campus tensions and embracing Jewish pride, with the conversation emphasizing personal connection and dialogue.

University of Arizona fourth-year student Courtney Saxe reflects on how Hillel helped her develop a deeper connection to Sukkot. Through meals, studying, conversations, and time with friends in the Hillel sukkah, Saxe began to see Sukkot as a tradition she could explore and make meaningful in her own life. Through Sukkot and Hillel programming more broadly, Saxe hopes other students find “not a prescribed way to be Jewish, but the space, community, and confidence to discover what being Jewish can mean to them.”

At Rutgers Hillel, students from across the Jewish community come together to celebrate Sukkot through programs like “Sushi in the Sukkah,” a student-led event featuring food, music, and community. Rabbi Josh Lobel, senior director of Jewish life and learning at Rutgers Hillel, draws a connection between the diverse elements of the lulav and the different backgrounds and perspectives students bring to Jewish life on campus. Together, he says these varied experiences create space for students to build relationships and find connection at Hillel.

University of Miami Hillel welcomed more than 150 members of the campus community for Rosh Hashanah celebrations. With Rosh Hashanah and Shabbat coinciding this year, Hillel held services and meals throughout the holiday weekend. Second-year student Mia Martin said, “Being away from home during the holidays can be tough, but Hillel and the campus community made me feel supported and accompanied.”