Latest News from Campus

The University of Southern California hosted its first Jewish American Heritage Month celebration, bringing together students, faculty and community members for remarks, music, and refreshments. Speakers included Provost Andrew Guzman, who celebrated the richness of Jewish campus life, including the vibrant community at Hillel. The program also featured student performances, including an original instrumental piece, and marked the start of an annual campus observance.

Earlier this month, Hillel at Dartmouth brought together 85 student leaders from seven Ivy League institutions for the Ivy League Jewish Leadership Conference, held over four days. Programming included panels, facilitated conversations, and workshops focused on Jewish identity on campus, leadership development, and navigating campus life after October 7th. Students also participated in cohort-building activities designed to encourage collaboration and relationship-building across schools.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, New England Patriots Owner Robert Kraft, and two-time Super Bowl champion Charlie Batch joined Black, Jewish, and Black and Jewish student leaders in Pittsburgh for a Unity Dinner focused on dialogue, leadership, and relationship-building. The event, hosted in partnership by Blue Square Alliance Against Hate, Hillel International, UNCF, the NFL, and the Pittsburgh Steelers, was timed with the NFL draft and included a fireside chat, shared dinner, and facilitated discussions. A follow-up event also gave participants the opportunity to visit the site of the rebuilding of the Tree of Life synagogue, where they reflected on the 2018 attack and its impact on the Pittsburgh Jewish community.

A Black-Jewish unity dinner, hosted by UNCF, Hillel International, and the Blue Square Alliance, at the historic Atlanta synagogue, The Temple, brought together Black, Jewish, and Black and Jewish students, community members and leaders for a discussion on shared challenges and cooperation. The event featured a fireside chat between UNCF President Michael Lomax and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., who spoke about antisemitism, racism, and the need for continued partnership. The dinners are part of a broader effort that has brought together more than 2,000 Black and Jewish college students nationwide for dialogue and relationship-building.

Over 700 students traveled to the University of Maryland Hillel to compete in the 15th Annual National Hillel Basketball Tournament, with over 60 teams from 31 Hillels from across the United States participating. A 30+ member student board organized the event, leading marketing, fundraising, recruitment, logistics, and building a custom app to manage registration and attendance.

Jewish students across North America marked Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day, with their campus Hillels, leading programming that included Israeli food, trivia, block parties, music, and dance. At Texas Hillel, Rabbi Stephanie Max said Hillel “creates space for students to explore what.. [Israel] means for them,” describing it as an integral part of Jewish life and learning.