Latest News from Campus

Brown University Jewish students gathered for Hanukkah on the heels of two tragedies: a shooting on campus that killed two students and injured several others, and the terror attack at a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, Australia. The candle lighting at Brown doubled as a vigil for those who had been murdered only hours earlier. “The message of Hanukkah here is that we should increase the light,” said Rabbi Josh Bolton, Brown RISD Hillel’s executive director. “Even in the midst of this very dark and difficult moment, together as a community, we come together, and we give each other a little bit of light.”

Two Jewish students at DePaul University continue to face threats of violence and doxxing, including “Wanted” posters printed with their names and faces, a year after being physically attacked by masked individuals on campus. While their attacker took a plea deal, the students are pursuing a civil lawsuit against the university for failing to keep them safe.

A multifaith dinner at the University of Houston brought together Jewish, Bahá’í, and Muslim students for shared food, honest conversation, and bridge-building. The program, supported by an Interfaith Outreach Grant from Hillel International, allowed students to have conversations in a relaxed setting to better understand each others’ identities and religious practice.

Following a federal investigation, Pomona College reached a settlement with Hillel International, the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). The agreement includes significant campus reforms, including adopting the IHRA framework for defining antisemitism, prohibiting masked protests, and strengthening time, place, and manner rules for demonstrations.

UC Berkeley and Pomona College have reached settlement agreements with Jewish groups and individuals who filed complaints about how the schools handled incidents of antisemitism stemming from anti-Israel protests in 2023 and 2024. As part of the deal, Berkeley is paying $60,000 to an Israeli professor who says she was not rehired due to her nationality, despite teaching a successful class. The university also issued a formal apology to the professor and said she has been invited back to teach the same class in the future. Separately, Pomona College agreed to hire a Title VI civil rights coordinator and create a task force on Jewish life and antisemitism on campus.

Former hostage Noa Argamani, who was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, 2023 and rescued by Israeli forces after 245 days in Hamas captivity, shared her story of survival and resilience with the University of Texas – Austin (UT Austin) Jewish community. Texas Hillel Executive Director Rabbi Stephanie Max facilitated the conversation with Argamani and shared, “The act of telling them [hostage stories] will remain critically important.”