From the Desk of Adam Lehman: Building Stronger Campuses for Jewish Students and All Students
What we do have at Hillel is unmatched expertise regarding Jewish life on campus, thanks to our 100-plus years of serving Jewish college students.
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Adam Lehman
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From the Desk of Adam Lehman: Increasing Jewish Belonging on Campus and Beyond
As the weather starts to turn toward spring here in Washington D.C, and we look ahead to the cherry blossoms beginning to bloom, a host of meaningful Hillel activities are blooming across our movement. Some of that activity remains dedicated to addressing ongoing antisemitism impacting Jewish college students, through initiatives including our Campus Antisemitism Legal Line (CALL), Campus Climate Initiative, and Campus for All student resource site. That said, since the topic of campus antisemitism is being covered so extensively in the news, I’m focusing this update on the many other aspects of our work that support, inspire, and empower the Jewish students we’re privileged to serve.
From the Desk of Adam Lehman: Building on Record Engagement and Increasing Jewish Belonging on Campus
With the new semester underway, our Hillel teams are building on momentum from the fall term to advance our core work in creating thriving Jewish life on campus, while continuing to forcefully address the issues of antisemitism and hostile campus environments that can undermine the ability of Jewish students to fully express their identities.
Hillel’s Back-to-School Playbook
At Hillel, we celebrated our 100th anniversary during the 2023-2024 academic year. It was a record-setting year for us, during which more college students and young adults participated in Jewish life experiences through Hillel than ever before — more than 180,000 in total. At the same time, it was unfortunately also a record-setting year relative to antisemitism on our college campuses.
Celebrating Beginnings through Shavuot and Commencements: A Note from Adam Lehman
Dear Friends, We will soon be celebrating the holiday of Shavuot. Shavuot represents both a conclusion and a beginning. With the receiving of the Torah, the Israelites concluded a critical phase in their journey toward Jewish peoplehood. Shavuot also concludes the counting of the Omer, 50 days after the start of Passover. At the same time, Shavuot […]
Highlights from Hillel’s Centennial Celebration: A Note from Adam Lehman
Dear Friends, Spring is upon us, which means it is also the season of Passover. Passover is often described as Z’man Heruteinu, the season of freedom, as we recount and celebrate the journey of the Israelites from slavery to liberation during the Seder. However, in light of current circumstances, it is particularly difficult to think […]
Leadership Matters: A Note from Adam Lehman
Dear Friends, Leadership matters. This maxim applies in all contexts, though it’s especially true in times of challenge. Unfortunately, Jewish college students are familiar with such difficult times, as they continue to face extreme conflict and related violence, harassment, intimidation, and threats directed at them on campus. In this context, it was truly inspiring to […]
How to Pick a College During a Surge of Antisemitism on Campus
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Newsweek on February 29, 2024 In just a few weeks, millions of high school seniors and their families will be making choices about where to attend college or university—a decision that will shape their lives for the next four years, and impact them for decades to come. […]
Planting Seeds for Brighter Days Ahead: A Note from Adam Lehman
Dear Friends, With winter break behind us and the spring semester underway on campus, I am feeling renewed by the many opportunities that await us in 2024: the launch of our Hillel International Scholarships, which will award $150,000 to 20 exceptional students; recruitment for Cohort Tet (nine) of our Springboard Fellowship , which we anticipate […]
Building Resilience from a Strong Foundation: A Note from Adam Lehman
Dear Friends, As we reflect on the past year and in particular, the twelve weeks since October 7, there is certainly a lot to make us feel outraged, scared, isolated, and heartbroken. And yet with everything painful and disheartening that we’ve learned from this period, at Hillel we’ve also learned much that we’ll build on […]
