<p>brandeismom, it was a mix. There were obvious schools like Georgetown (which actually has a nice Jewish community but just “felt catholic” to her), Fordham (even though it’s in NYC and how much more Jewish can you get) and Catholic U, but also she refused anything without a strong Jewish presence (except for one school in Atlanta and that’s because the city itself has a large Jewish community).</p>
<p>Really, I never analyzed it before. I just figured if she felt uncomfortable, that was enough to drop the school from consideration.</p>
<p>Brandeismom, I totally agree with you, and I made these very points, all of them, to my D. To her credit, she thought about it, and agreed. As a result, she is a happy Brandeis student. I agree, also, that the “too Jewish” thing is troublesome on many levels, and I’m glad that my D saw that.</p>
<p>i think the tours like to go to sherman to point out that those keeping kosher can eat with their non-kosher friends (kosher plates and utensils are kept on trays and returned to a separate tray return area, but once thru the line, kids can sit where ever they want). which i think again represents the attitude that they are not trying to isolate a community of more observant students, but rather meet their needs as part of the overall population. they are also making more kosher options available in other dining facilities.</p>
<p>when we were on the tour a few of years ago they were still claiming that brandeis was the only school where those keeping kosher could sit with their non-kosher friends which is definitely not true (i don’t know if they still say that or not). the kosher dining at Smith is in a regular dining hall. the kosher dining at Goucher is in a separate room, but at least when we visited, it was served on paper and since it was directly across the hall from a regular dining room, kosher students could get their food and eat with non-kosher friends. those are 2 examples that come to mind. for kosher students this is something to consider – i’ve known kosher kids at schools with kosher dining facilities who’d rather eat vegetarian in the regular dining halls so they can eat with non-kosher friends. on the other hand, some kosher kids like the idea of being in their own dining community – depends on what a kid is looking for.</p>
<p>At least three former presidents of our Temple have s’s who attend/attended W&L. One was a W&L alumni president, too. All were active in building the new Hillel Center there. Given their committment to our Jewish community, I can’t imagine them sending their boys to a school that was not welcoming. I had alwasy thought of W&L as a traditional, Southern college but they have proven me wrong.</p>
<p>W&L is a traditional, Southern college set in a traditional, Southern town. That’s what Lexington is about and that’s what the other college in town is about (VMI). That they have a tradition of serving Jewish students doesn’t change that. I live in Texas, I know several traditional, Southern families that are Jewish. </p>
<p>We were advised that our son would be at an advantadge for the W&L Johnson scholarship that pays tuition/rooom/board because our son is gay and W&L is trying to change their reputation by attracting a more “diverse” student body. My son had no interest in going there and that was a relief to me.</p>
<p>I went to college in Virginia and my inlaws still live there. There’s a lot of good things about Virginia and in Lexington but that doesn’t change what is it as its core; traditional, Southern and proud of it.</p>
<p>i haven’t read the whole thread so sorry if i’m repeating but… </p>
<p>i go to Brown and have been very very impressed by the hillel here. not only is the building spacious and modern, but the individuals who work/participate in it are very engaged and involved. they have events / speakers nearly every weekend and some week nights too, along with several services (even different denominations) and meals too. overall i’d say check plus plus!!</p>
<p>On a related note, would you be concerned about a school with a Jewish population below 5%? I believe Juniata, Susquehanna and Moravian are all about 2%, although good schools.</p>
<p>Re Jewish kids saying a school is too Jewish, many Jewish kids see being in a mostly nonJewish school as a sign of their graduating to the “real world”.</p>
<ol>
<li> Re: Amherst and Smith. I have never heard that Hillel was shared between them. The child of our closest friends was president of Amherst Hillel for a year, and it was quite active (and took up way too much of her time), but there was some tension between more- and less-traditional Jews, with the groups trading ascendancy somewhat. (I think both groups tried to accommodate the other, but some issues are tough.) There were regular Shabbat dinners, with kosher food (otherwise difficult to obtain).</li>
</ol>
<p>Another child of friends (and friend of a child) was active for several years in Hillel at Smith. They, too, had regular Shabbat dinners and Friday-night services.</p>
<p>As far as I know, these two kids, a year apart, who grew up together and know each other well, were rarely if ever in the same room doing Jewish things. The two Hillels may share a director, but they operate independently.</p>
<ol>
<li> My children are/were at the University of Chicago, which has a large Jewish population. Neither has been terribly involved in Jewish organizations there. My son went to High Holiday services there last year. There were both Orthodox and Reform options, but he found the Orthodox service offputting, and the Reform service Hebrew-free and pabulum-like. He is looking for some other option for next week. His impression is that Hillel is basically dominated by and run for the more observant kids, of whom there are plenty.</li>
</ol>
<p>Great thread! D didn’t want to apply to Brandeis - too Jewish! But she visited, loved it, applied ED and in now a first-year. She could not be happier. Like Goldilocks, she did have a little trouble finding Shabbat and Rosh Hashanah services that “fit”. We are Reform, but apparently on the Conservative end of the Reform spectrum, and neither Conservative or Reform services felt right at first.</p>
<p>She loves the diversity. Her hall advisor is Muslim and Ramadan was occurring during move-in and orientation so there was a learning opportunity right there.</p>
<p>Love the Penicillin Club - when D had the flu last week, she was dismayed to hear that a friend with the flu at Tulane received chicken soup from Hillel while at Brandeis, she did not!</p>
<p>Just a minor correction. I believe that Hillel is located in Bond Hall at Swarthmore which is very much in the thick of campus. It adjoins the Lodges and Worth dorm. It’s steps from the campus security building, maybe 100 yards from the largest dorm, and so forth. There is a kosher kitchen in the building.</p>
<p>Like everywhere, I think Swarthmore Hillel struggles to attract both more observant and more secular members, i.e. should it serve more as a religious group or social/cultural group?</p>
<p>I can speak of the UChicago Hillel of 25 years ago and we had a very strong Trad-Egal Minyan at the time. The Orthodox contingent was very small. But, like everything else things change.</p>
<p>D participates in the Jewish Students Group at Bard (not a Hillel), which offers a fairly active Shabbat/holiday program. Definitely not orthodox, though!</p>
<p>This is a good (and timely for us) thread. </p>
<p>Having visited Goucher and Clark with my older daughter a few years ago, I was impressed with how active each of their respective Jewish student communities are. I also recall that, at the time we visited Clark, we noticed a huge sign up in the student center for an upcoming Shabbat dinner.</p>
<p>Regarding Muhlenberg: IIRC, just under a couple of years ago, there was an article that appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer, about how large and active the Jewish student community had become there, and it also profiled the director of Jewish programming, who sounded very dynamic and enthusiastic. Back when that article appeared, I posted a link to it, on the Muhlenberg CC forum.</p>
<p>I visited Pitt with D2 last spring and while we were walking through the lobby of their Towers dorms, one of the group of student organization tables set up was for the Hillel and it was a sign-up for the upcoming Passover seder.</p>
<p>Initially D was somewhat concerned about how welcoming the Brandeis Jewish community would be to a student that wasn’t religiously observant, but seems to be reassured that the students there do indeed cover the spectrum between Orthodox and non-observant, as Brandeismom mentioned.</p>
<p>BTW, If anyone has any information about Jewish life at Oberlin, Emory and U. Rochester, I would really appreciate it.</p>
<p>I think the Hillel national website–probably <a href=“http://www.hillel.org--lists%5B/url%5D”>www.hillel.org–lists</a> activities at every college, which is a start</p>
<p>About 13% of Hopkins’ undergraduates self identify as Jewish. There is also a large and vibrant Jewish community in the Baltimore area (@100,000).</p>
<p>And I agree with Brandeismom that it ironic that some people view Brandeis as “too Jewish.” Brandeis was founded to be a non-sectarian liberal arts university. It does not train people to be rabbis. Contrast this with some of the most sought after universities–which were created for the express purpose of training ministers–such as Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia and Brown.</p>