Springing into 2024
Fall semester was full of challenges at home and abroad, but our staff and student leaders quickly stepped into gear providing increased care, programs, and guidance post-October 7th. Compared to 2022’s fall semester, we saw an 18% increase in students engaging with our services. From our mental health and wellness programming engaging 4x more students than last year to organizing student-led meetings with campus administrators, Hillel is here to support students’ needs across the state.
This spring we are focused on providing students with multiple opportunities to connect with each other, building organic support systems within their peer groups, as well as continuing to work with campus administrations to best serve our students’ needs. Thank you for being a critical part of our Jewish future.
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We're Back on Campus ✌
Our Hillel staff and student boards spent winter break working hard to plan programs and engagements for spring semester. A few quick highlights from our first two weeks are:
Welcome Home Shabbat at UNC Hillel
Attended by Interim Chancellor, Lee Roberts, and UNC Chapel Hill’s Chief Diversity Officer and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, the Tar Heels kicked off the semester strong with meaningful conversations with UNC leadership on issues affecting Jewish life on campus.
Tonight, UNC Hillel is hosting a Tu B’Shevat Inclusion Seder and Shabbat that will welcome members of our Chapel Hill community with developmental disabilities. Stay tuned on our blog for an event recap next week!
Cozy Shabbat at Hillel @ NC State
Last week, 50 students braved the weather to attend “Cozy Sweater Weather Shabbat.” Due to a storm, our building’s power went out but that didn’t stop them from celebrating Shabbat and catching up with each other!
Yesterday, students attended Yerra Sugarman's poetry reading for Holocaust Remembrance Day, hosted by State's Jewish Studies and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies departments.
Tabling for NC Hillel Link
Our Link campuses (App, ECU, UNCA, UNC Charlotte, UNCG, UNCW) focused these past two weeks on tabling at their student group fairs to raise awareness of Hillel on campus. This week, UNCA Hillel also used the holiday of Tu B’Shvat to engage students in a hands-on activity at the table (potting plants, painting pots, etc) and take away information on their campus Hillel’s programming and resources.
Upcoming Statewide Opportunities 📆
We have a few exciting events this winter open to our NC Hillel community:
Comedian Alex Edelman is coming to UNC Chapel Hill to perform stand-up and answer audience questions on January 29th at Memorial Hall. NC Hillel Students have a private dinner with him before the show.
Our annual Shabbaton (weekend retreat) is happening in Greensboro February 2nd-4th. Registration is still active for any college student in NC interested in joining; we currently have 45 students signed up to celebrate Shabbat together and build their statewide community.
A survivor from the October 7th Nova Music Festival will speak with students about his experience on February 6th. A Zoom option will be available for any students not able to join us in person at UNC Chapel Hill. If you know a student who is interested, please have them contact their Hillel professional.
Ongoing Advocacy with University Officials 📬
Our staff remain in consistent conversations with UNC System chancellors, diversity officers, and other administrators to provide safe environments for students at all UNC System schools. In addition to our regular communication and support systems we want to highlight a few updates:
Thank you to the administrations of UNCW and UNC Charlotte for scheduling antisemitism training with Hillel for their Universities this winter.
UNC Chapel Hill Interim Chancellor, Lee Roberts met with our Executive Director to debrief on last semester and update him on the current campus climate at Carolina. He accepted our invitation to attend Shabbat on his first day in office (featured above).