Why We Need This

My Hillel journey began in 2005 when I was first-year student. Like many Jewish students, I was not necessarily interested in getting involved, but I couldn’t turn down free food either. So I found myself at Shabbat dinner, fell in love with Hillel, and never looked back. A simple, welcoming, joyful meal was the perfect entry point to Jewish life for me. Now, 12 years later, I am the Assistant Director of  Queens College Hillel.

QC is ranked the #1 Public University for Jewish college students (The Foward’s College Guide) and is a recipient of Hillel International’s Outstanding Campus Award. Our successes are many. However, with 4,000 Jewish students on campus and one the most diverse Jewish communities in the world, we must constantly challenge norms, innovate, and create new opportunities for students.  So I am proud to share that at QC Hillel, lunch is the Commuter’s Shabbat dinner.

What does this mean?

It means that while on other campuses (mostly large and residential schools) the best time to engage students is over Shabbat, at Queens College (mostly a commuter school) the best time to engage students is actually over lunch.

Why is this?

Because Queens College offers its students a very special time in the day called “Free Hour.” It’s an hour and a half block right around lunch time where no classes are offered. And so, for commuter students, this is the perfect time to engage with Jewish life.

What’s the challenge?

It’s the only time to eat lunch. So Hillel, in an effort to be as accommodating to as many students as possible, regularly provides food (from noshes to tapas to full meals) as a way to ensure that every Jewish student can engage with Jewish life with few barriers. Over the years, countless students have become involved in Jewish life on campus through lunch via our Free Hour offerings (the Jewish Learning Fellowship, CLUE, Choikhona, Persian Luncheon to name a few) that otherwise would have to leave campus to eat or trek far across campus to find kosher food.

The Impact

While we seek lower as many barriers as possible for students to engage with Jewish life, we can’t feed everyone. That’s why we need your help. You can help us meet hundreds of Jewish students over lunch. Here are two ways you can join me in this work:

Join the campaign – use email, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to tell everyone you know! Be my ambassador, help get the word out!

Contributions: Every little bit helps! Whether you pick up 1 $20 lunch or 150 $20 lunch tabs, every contribution makes a difference.

So pick up the tab, lunch is on YOU!