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George Washington Hillel Students Study Literature with Homeless
March 27, 2001Comments (0) | Add | E-mail this to a friendBy bringing the classroom to an unusual location, George Washington University Hillel students Marina Ioffe and Wendy Rubin are helping college students and the homeless learn more about literature and each other.
Every Tuesday morning, GW professors set up shop in Miriam's Kitchen, a free breakfast program near GW Hillel in Washington, D.C., where they teach international literature to a mixed group of about 30 college students and the homeless. Participants in "Miriam's Dialogue" are given the readings a week in advance so they can prepare for class and for the lively discussion that follows.
"The idea was to give Miriam's Kitchen clientele a chance to swap ideas with students from GWU," says junior Marina Ioffe, who has been a volunteer at Miriam's Kitchen for over a year. "The students and homeless get a point of view that they wouldn't normally think about, and hear different perspectives. People come and tell their own stories. It is such equality."
Marina was inspired to create Miriam's Dialogue by a similar program sponsored by the classics department at Notre Dame University. She joined with Wendy Rubin to organize the class which is scheduled to run through May. They hope to continue the program next fall.
"I like the attention," says David, a Miriam's Kitchen client, who has attended the classes since the February 13 inaugural class. "I wouldn't ordinarily be reading these stories, and I wouldn't have a chance to talk about them with people. It's like being back in school but better."
Ioffe and Rubin are among seven Tzedek Fellows at GW Hillel who are dedicating a year to planning service opportunities for Jewish students in the community. Miriam's Dialogue is an important part of GW Hillel's Tzedek Hillel program. Tzedek Hillel is an international initiative sponsored by Hillel in which Foundations make a special commitment to community service. The program has targeted homelessness, illiteracy, hunger and the environment for its efforts. A total of 17 campuses are currently in the Tzedek Hillel program, with another seven scheduled to join the program in next fall.
"This is an outstanding example of how Hillel students can facilitate positive change in a community outside their own campus," says GWU Hillel Executive Director Simon Amiel. "I'm incredibly proud of our students for expressing the Jewish ideals of community service and social justice through the Miriam's Dialogue program."
Amy Nelson, a graduate student and co-facilitator of the class, in amazed by its success. "This is a place where real conversation can happen," she says. "I leave here so fulfilled everyday. It's all about the people here and the relationships. These people add so much to my life."
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