Hillel and the Jewish community at UCLA have been in the national news over the past five days after the New York Times picked up a story we shared with you several weeks ago about a student being asked whether or not the fact that she was Jewish would conflict with her nomination to the Judicial Board. It was the most emailed story on NYT on Friday.

Since then, the major news organizations like the LA Times and The Today Show have also picked up the story.

As always, Hillel at UCLA was there with the students before the fact, when it happened, and we've been working in conjunction with student leaders and the UCLA administration ever since. While we are not at liberty to share the content of numerous positive conversations geared towards action, we are pleased to report that the administration has been, and continues to be, very proactive. 
 
Rabbi Chaim, together with Professor David Myers and former student leadership intern Maia Ferdman, penned an article in today's Daily Bruin which provides an excellent framing of the issue with a proposal for positive action.

While this is a challenging issue, to be sure, we are witness to the strength and determination of our students to counteract bias on campus and create a dynamic Jewish presence at UCLA.

As always, your backing is needed to aid our students as we continue to provide vital resources to develop strong advocates and future leaders. If you'd like to support Hillel at UCLA, please consider donating online today.  Thank you for your friendship.

--Rabbi Aaron Lerner, Incoming Executive Director, July 2015


P.S.  Keep an eye out for a letter to prospective Jewish Bruins (high school students gearing up for their college experience) from our Jewish student leaders at UCLA who have taken it upon themselves to write a powerful and positive message about our campus. Here is just one quote:

"We are writing to you today to explain why you should choose UCLA. We know that you’ve heard a lot about UCLA this year... so we decided to set the record straight about the Jewish student experience at UCLA. For us, the presence of a vibrant on-campus Jewish community was essential in our college decision-making process. A strong Jewish community has played a huge role in shaping who we are religiously, culturally and personally. It provides us with the critical foundations upon which we develop and nurture meaningful Jewish Bruin lives. And you can be a part of this!"