Hillel International Announces Largest Scholarship Awards in its History for Upcoming School Year
Hillel International will award college scholarships to more than 60 Jewish students totaling nearly $350,000 this fall across the U.S. and Canada.
Washington, D.C. – Hillel International, the world’s largest Jewish campus organization, today announced the recipients of its 2025 Student Leadership Scholarships. The organization will award nearly $350,000 to more than 60 students across 12 scholarship categories, representing the largest cohort of scholarship recipients in the program’s history.
Scholarships are merit-based, with factors including academic excellence, community service, Jewish connection, first-generation college enrollment, and family need factoring into the selection process. Past and current scholarship recipients include advocates for rare disease research, data analysts in the Israeli Intelligence Corps, leaders of peer counseling groups, humanitarian aid drivers in Ukraine, and founders of children’s literacy programs.
Hillel International’s scholarship program was founded just five years ago, with four recipients receiving a total of $16,000 in 2020. Since then, Hillel International has dramatically expanded its annual scholarship program for Jewish students by over $300,000 per year, and will disburse more than $1 million in scholarship funds over the next three years. This significant increase in Hillel student scholarships comes at a time of rising participation and engagement in Hillel programs and services — a record-setting 185,000 student participants last school year — and increased antisemitism on college campuses, as well as rising tuition costs.
The majority of Hillel scholarships are renewable annually until the student graduates, and they range from $3,000 to $18,000 annually per scholarship, supporting a wide array of students from incoming college first-years to graduate students.
“We are exceptionally proud to support these Jewish student leaders who are not only excelling academically but are also committed to becoming leaders in their Jewish and campus communities,” said Hillel International President and CEO Adam Lehman. “Their dedication, talent, and resilience give us tremendous hope for the future of Jewish life on campus.“
This scholarship program reinforces the organization’s continued commitment to fostering community for Jewish students on campus and continuing to make college more accessible for those at the forefront of Jewish student leadership. The 2025 recipients attend universities across the country and represent diverse backgrounds and academic pursuits.
The full list of recipients this year is as follows:
Aronson Fussman Excellence Scholarship: $18,000 Renewable
- Alek Golubchik, Los Angeles, California, University of Pennsylvania
- Samantha Rose, Short Hills, New Jersey, Duke University
- Tal Appel, Israel, Columbia University
Louis E. Rabinowitz Scholarship: $5,000 Renewable
- Emma Goldman, Atlanta, Georgia, The Citadel
- David Brandin, Columbia, South Carolina, Clemson University
- Brian Cohn, Norfolk, Virginia, University of South Carolina
Frimer First Generation Student Scholarship: $5,000 Renewable
- Jonathan Adler, Las Vegas, Nevada, Yale University
Ellen B. Fuhr Scholarship: $5,000 Renewable
- Katherine Reshetnikov, Queens, New York, Hunter College
- Leah Tamayev, New York City, New York, Hunter College
- Anna Barteck, New York City, New York, Hunter College
- Laura Elliott, New York, Hunter College (Fall 2024 recipient)
- * Two additional students were awarded this scholarship in Fall 2024
Behrman Campus Leadership Award: $5,000 Renewable
- Daniel Hutman, Silver Spring, Maryland, University of Maryland, College Park
Paulson Leadership Award for Jewish CUNY Students: $4,000 Renewable
- Yuval Vine Molco, Israel, Baruch College
- Samuel Reingold, Brooklyn, New York, Baruch College
- Alice Virovlyansky, New York City, New York, Baruch College
- Aidan Herzlinger, Old Bridge, New Jersey, Baruch College
- Becky Halfon, Brooklyn, New York, Brooklyn College
- Yael Dahan, Los Angeles, California, Brooklyn College
- Nitzan Naim, Rosh Haayin, Israel, Brooklyn College
- Sarah Vidal, Brooklyn, New York, City College of New York
- Benjamin Lesczynski, Manhattan, New York, City College of New York
- Daniel Chernov, Staten Island, New York, College of Staten Island
- Mika Feintuch, Haifa, Israel, Hunter College
- Keira Kepets, Teaneck, New Jersey, John Jay College of Criminal Justice
- Ziv Nachshon, Queens, New York, Queens College
- Maya Harpaz, Kew Gardens, New York, Queens College
- Gavriel Zahler, Long Island, New York, Queens College
- Avishai Aghelian, Queens, New York, Queens College
Jules and Gwen Knapp First Generation Student Scholarship: $3,000 Renewable
- Liane Barak, Boca Raton, Florida, The University of Miami
Jules and Gwen Knapp Campus Leadership Award: $3,000 Renewable
- Ninnette Jalfon, Katy, Texas, The University of Texas at Austin
Lilly E. Reiser Graduate Student Award: $5,000 One-Time
- Rachel Benaim-Abudarham, Boca Raton, Florida, Florida Atlantic University
Jordan and Elise Levin Scholarship for Jewish Enrichment and Education: $5,000 One-Time
- Julia Rose Weiss, Closter, New Jersey, University of Richmond
- Noa Kizhnerman, Queens, New York, Purdue University
- Elias Cohen, Panama, New York University
Jack and Harriet Kudine First-Year Student Scholarship: $5,000 One-Time
- Zoe Lazar, Ocean Township, New Jersey, Virginia Tech University
- Tova Rosenbaum, Pasadena, California, University of California, Los Angeles
- Aviya Madar, Brooklyn, New York, Harvard University
Sandy and Jack Cohen Scholarship: $5,000 One-Time
- Melissa Simplicio Silva, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, New York University
For anyone looking to learn more about contributing to Hillel International’s scholarship efforts, please contact our Senior Director of planned giving Charles M. Miller, JD, AEP® at [email protected] or 202.449.6529.