<p>Grinnell seems like it would be a good fit for my d, but the Hillel site has no info on the number of Jewish kids there; a decent number is one of her criteria.</p>
<p>Can anyone shed light on the number and, equally important, the quality of Jewish life at Grinnell?</p>
<p>There is no nearby Jewish community, so Grinnell is unable to have a Hillel. There are a reasonable number of Jewish students, and an active Chalutzim (sp?) group who hold weekly Shabbat. They went for a while without a rabbi, but recently welcomed a new rabbi on campus who seems really nice.</p>
<p>AndIt, are you a student at Grinnell? If you are, do you have a feel for the quality of community among Jewish students?</p>
<p>D is first year--has only been there a week, but is having a great time with others who like to study but have a good time as well. Jewish thing is not real big with D, but Dad was happy when he met the Chalutzim group at admitted students weekend---a really nice group of students who are very welcoming of everyone regardless of religious affiliation.</p>
<p>My son is a Junior (how can that be!) and has been active in Chalutzim since day 1 at Grinnell. He either cooks, cleans or leads services every Friday night, has made vats of matzoh balls and written sermons. He has a very atypical upbringing from a religious perspective and finds that the group welcomes and learns from the entire spectrum of those of the faith. He is thrilled to have a new Rabbi- last year they had visiting Rabbis for the holidays but the students filled in as needed as well. There is a reasonably large # of Jewish students and I have no idea what % are involved in Chalutzim, but it is definitely a presence...</p>