Voting is Very Jewish: Reflections on Civic Education at Hillel
Jewish students across the United States are exercising their right to vote on Election Day today. At Hillel, we believe that civic action and education aren’t only ways to engage students on campus – they are the deepest expressions of our Jewish values.
For generations, Jews in America have embraced the opportunity and responsibility to participate in democratic life. Today, we draw on ancient wisdom to meet the challenges of the present, ensuring that Jewish students are prepared to make a positive difference at their universities, and also to embrace their civic responsibility as voters, impacting their cities, states, and communities.
Hillel’s work to educate students and engage them in the work of citizenship takes several paths. Through our nonpartisan voter initiative, MitzVote, Hillel has helped thousands of students register and show up informed at the polls. Last year, more than 40 campuses hosted a MitzVote Shabbat experience, weaving together the ideas of civic engagement and ritual life.
On the education side, learning about why civic engagement matters as a Jewish value led us to develop Jewish Values and Civic Engagement, a student learning cohort with curriculum created in partnership with the Shalom Hartman Institute. This four-week series, first offered in 2024, offered students a chance to wrestle with complex questions at the intersection of Jewish identity and American democracy.
In the cohorts that gathered in the weeks leading up to the November 2024 election, students came from a wide range of backgrounds — first-years and graduate students, seasoned activists and first-time voters. The conversations were deeply personal and often emotional. Some students brought stories of community organizing; others were still deciding whether they would vote at all. One participant, a survivor of gun violence, was inspired to start a chapter of Students Demand Action on their campus.
Despite differing political views, students found common ground in the shared project of Jewish learning. They explored what it means to be part of a covenantal tradition that values justice, humility, peace, and responsibility. They embodied the rabbinic principle of mahloket l’shem shamayim — disagreement for the sake of heaven — modeling the kind of pluralism that strengthens both Jewish life and democracy.
Nessa Bleill, a student at the University of Wisconsin, enjoyed the civic engagement cohort at Hillel because it opened her eyes to “how Jews differ in their civic opinions and where these beliefs stem from,” saying, “I feel civic conversations are important… in the Hillel space because [they are] essential to connecting fully to your Jewish identity.” The idea that communities can be strengthened through understanding our differences is a crucial element of this cohort learning experience.
In addition to cohort learning, Hillel is uniquely positioned to guide students during a formative time in their journeys where they might be voting for the first time, testing their values in real world contexts, or exploring issues that shape their long-term civic commitments. Ellie Moseman, a student at the University of Wisconsin, shared that participating in civic engagement work at her Hillel made her feel that she was truly making a difference in her community. She said, “It is so important to give students a voice and help them give back.” And Hillel is committed to providing those opportunities for students on every campus.
That commitment to helping students engage with democracy is more and more relevant in our current political climate. For American Jews, particularly Jewish college students, civic participation is more than a right. It’s a mitzvah, a sacred responsibility rooted in our deepest values. As former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor reminded us, “The practice of democracy is not passed down through the gene pool. It must be taught and learned by each new generation.” At Hillel, we’re proud to be doing exactly that.
Civic learning and engagement at Hillel don’t happen in isolation— this work grows out of relationships, community, and Jewish tradition. Hillel’s participation in the American Jewish Civics Seminar, convened over the past year by A More Perfect Union and the Shalom Hartman Institute, helped us to contextualize this work in the landscape of civic initiatives across the Jewish community.
We’re proud of every student voting today, and of every student living their Jewish values through civic engagement.