Times of Israel: Campus Insider: The Resilient Rise of Jewish Campus Leaders
Originally published on April 9, 2025 in The Times of Israel, “Campus Insider: The Resilient Rise of Jewish Campus Leaders,” written by Hillel International’s Vice President for Israel Engagement and Confronting Antisemitism Jon Falk, explores how Jewish student leaders have responded to exclusion and hostility on campus with resilience and a recommitment to Jewish leadership. You can find excerpts from the piece below and read the full essay on Times of Israel.
“Since October 7, 2023, Jewish college students across the U.S. have faced increasing hostility on their campuses. Once active in diverse student organizations, many now find themselves excluded from spaces they used to call home. In response, these students are leaning into Hillel and the Jewish community, emerging as a new generation of resilient leaders.
Students like Sammi and Adam [Jewish student leaders at Lewis & Clark College and Case Western Reserve University, respectively], once integral to campus leadership, are being pushed out of spaces where they used to feel welcome simply because of their Jewish and Israeli identities. Talented and driven, they might have led an a cappella group, the environmental science club, or the legal society. Instead, they are turning to their Hillels — often the only places on campus that fully welcome them — and channeling their leadership into the Jewish community.
Today, Sammi and Adam serve in leadership roles at their campus Hillels and are members of Hillel International’s prestigious Israel Leadership Network (ILN), which connects North America’s top Jewish and Zionist student leaders into a united cohort empowered to lead their generation and future generations in support of Israel and the Jewish community through education, advocacy, and engagement.
Following October 7 and the dramatic increase in antisemitism in the world and on college campuses, Jewish students turned to Hillel as their refuge. Some came for a Shabbat dinner or a social event. But they stayed for the safety and belonging they found.
And then they stepped up. They took on leadership roles. They ran for office. And they became the strongest generation of young Jewish leaders in decades.”