whats a nice Jewish girl from New York doing at the University of Kentucky?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Kentucky
21

The title of the thread makes it clear she’s from New York.

Not an ideal word choice IMHO, but certainly not uncommon, and a lot of Jewish people use the term. It does suggest that the OP may not realize what it’s like to live somewhere where Jewish people are a small minority because, in those settings, use of the term might suggest something less than benign. Some people find the term “Jew” offensive, believe it or not, because it can be used as a slur. As with a lot of these things, context (and who is using the term) is everything.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/judaism/1688771-word-jewess-offensive.html

22

Colleges in general are accepting of other beliefs, most people around college age are just more accepting people. Even ones that have had a history of racism generally still create a fairly welcoming environment (there are some exceptions).

23

I can’t speak to UK particularly but Louisville, KY has a small (about 8,500) active Jewish community: https://jewishlouisville.org/community/louisvilles-jewish-community/

A preeminent hospital in Louisville is Jewish Hospital. Historically speaking, Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis was from Louisville. Louisville is KY’s largest city and less than an hour away.

Lexington, KY where UK is located is a very nice medium sized city that has upscale culture and amenities (nice restaurants and shopping) due to its location in Horse Country (thoroughbred horse farms surround the city and extremely wealthy horse owners and investors frequent the area). The Kentucky Derby is at Churchill Downs in Louisville. Next year’s Breeders Cup will be at Keeneland in Lexington.

Cincinnati and its suburbs, including some KY suburbs (Cincinnati’s international airport is in KY), are less than an hour away.

24

Funny, I used to know a Jewish guy who was originally from Louisville (he was dating my best friend at the time), and he was the person I was actually thinking of who didn’t like to use the word “Jew” because he thought it had a negative connotation. This was 30 years ago, however! And, yes, there is a significant Jewish population in Cincinnati, as well.

What happened to the OP? @sk0213, are you still reading?

25

I am Jewish, therefore I am a Jew. Anyone who is offended by the term “Jew” ought to spend time at any Shabbat service–the rabbi’s speech will likely be rife with references to “we Jews.” Not negative at all. Signed, A Proud Jew

26

we will visit next month. we are from long island. Thanks

27

@whenhen My daughter self identifies as “jewish” but it is not central to her core or being. She is outgoing and likeable.

@deborahb I am sure she will love the southern charm and will enjoy not being at a university that has several classmates from long island high schools. There will likely be 30 kids from her HS at Bing and 10+ at each of Michigan, OSU, Indiana, Wisconsin and Penn State.

@mom2collegekids we have not visited but are planning one. we did look at their hillel (online) and those stats are what concerned me. although she is social (very social) I don’t see her at Hillel functions as much as at greek life events and basketball games.

@whenhen comment about no jewish greek life resonates. My D definitely is interested in the greek life (I had a very positive greek experience and she loves my letters) and I am concerned that the Jewish girl may not get a bid regardless of how social and pretty she is. I know that is stereotypical and likely mischaracterizes this generation’s attitude towards diversity but its a concern.

@cptofthehouse we did consider UBuffalo - and decided not to apply. The thought process was if she goes SUNY - Bing is the first choice but if she doesn’t get in there Albany is good option. UBuff would only be slighter (if at all) better academically than UA - and its 6 hours further away. If she selected a SUNY school in that academic strata - then UA would likely be the best choice (also her Mom and I went to UA)

Thank you all for your comments!!!

28

@MommaJ - that’s the underlying concern her. I met my wife in college and know many of our friends who met their spouses in college. Its very important to me and her mom that she marries a Jew (@SamRam see below) as its one less challenge in life that you have to deal with your spouse on.

@sally305 - I think your right and she will be better than fine - but I am concerned that some sororities may not be interested because she is Jewish or if it doesn’t come through when she rushes or pledges will she be sinned later? sounds very closed minded I know - and its not a dig at Kentucky or UK - its just a concern about being different. I have comparable concerns about her at Fordham even though its in NYC.

@novafan1225 - thanks for your comments. Transportation will be a challenge and we are considering that.

@samram this is a kosher post and I do not consider the word “Jew” archaic. I do not mean to be argumentative and appreciate you response to my post. Nor do I mean to turn this into a debate about semantics. @LucieTheLakie may have nailed it…I don’t know what it is like to live where people may not be accepting of Jews or any minority - we are from Metro NY - 30 min from Manhattan. Neither does my D and that’s why I posted this to being with. I cant imagine that term being used as a racial slur (unless it had a negative adjective associated with it). Right on @lauriejgs That being said - my take on the word “Jew” is that it is a badge of honor.

“I am a Jew I am a Jew and will be a Jew forever. Even if I should die from hunger, Never will I submit. I will always fight for my people, On my honor. I will never be ashamed of them, I give my word. I am proud of my people, How dignified they are. Even thought I am suppressed, I will always come back to life.” --Franta Bass, 11 year old boy

@LucieTheLakie - yes still reading -

YOU HAVE ALL BE REALLY HELPFUL - THANK YOU. When my D hears from Tulane, Wisconsin, PennState, Virginia Tech, U Texas, Syracuse and Lehigh - I will post more. In the mean time - I really appreciate all the comments. Keep those cards and letters coming

29

@sk0213, I think @samram was concerned with the use of the term “Jewess” not “Jew.” In trying to defend your intent in using the former, I mentioned that I’ve known folks who were sensitive to the use of the latter as a slur. It’s coincidental (although likely not unnoteworthy!) that the fellow (a Jewish guy who dated my roommate) I recalled being sensitive about the word’s use was actually born and raised in Louisville. He later moved to Cincinnati and then the Northeast, but he’d be closer in age to you than your DD. Still, I don’t think UK sounds like the ideal place to spend for four years if you’re hoping she’ll have a nice selection of eligible young Jewish men to date.

Given your desire for your daughter to marry in the faith (not that there are any guarantees), I think Tulane, Wisconsin, Syracuse, and Lehigh are more likely to have a better pool of potential mates!

30

Louisville and Cincinnati are many miles away from Lexington. They really have no bearing on this issue.

31

@rjkofnovi, I disagree. Louisville and Cincinnati are the two closest cities to UK and they both have a lot larger Jewish populations than Lexington, so I think that is relevant information for this particular parent.

32

[QUOTE=""]
I think @samram was concerned with the use of the term "Jewess" not "Jew." In trying to defend your intent in using the former, I mentioned that I've known folks who were sensitive to the use of the latter as a slur.

[/QUOTE]

I am not Jewish, but I was taken aback by the OP’s use of the word, “Jewess.” I thought that was offensive. I would never use that term to describe my female Jewish friends or relatives. But, maybe it’s a regional thing?

33

@mom2collegekids‌ Yea, I thought the word Jewess was somewhat offensive and I’m Jewish. Personally I’ve never heard that word except when reading early 20th century antisemitic editorials.
@sk0213‌ a Jewish girl won’t be barred from joining any non Christian sororities. This isn’t the 1950s anymore. I go to the University of Oklahoma, and a number of my Jewish friends joined non religiously affiliated panhellenic sororities. They did not experience any discrimination in the rushing/ bidding process. Indeed, one of the girl’s GLOs regularly works with my school’s Hillel.

You may want to dig around the thread “Colleges for the Jewish B student” if you’re looking for last minute schools which award merit aid and have a substantial Jewish population. Many of these university’s also have excellent Greek life and big sports. For instance the University of Arizona is a popular destination for SoCal/ Phoenix area Jews, and shares quite a few similarities with UK in terms of the large state school environment.

34

I think, as with a lot of things, context is everything. The OP is Jewish and obviously didn’t mean anything offensive by it. And I have no doubt, in his circles, it’s still used commonly, especially among older folks.

But, yeah, I was a little surprised to see it here on CC as well. And I would NOT recommend a non-Jew use the term.

35

Just to contribute, I’m Jewish and when I was looking at colleges, I didn’t consider it to be a huge factor at all-- as long as they had some sort of Hillel or semblance of Jewish people on campus, I figured it’d be fine. I almost went to Geneseo, which has a small Jewish population but an ‘interfaith center’ or something where they do Jewish stuff sometimes, but ended up going to Binghamton for other reasons. It was easily one of the BEST decisions I ever made. I had no idea how much I’d enjoy having a Jewish community to be welcomed in-- the Chabad at Binghamton is one of my favorite places in the world, they get 300+ people weekly for Shabbat dinner and I made the majority of my friends within the community (as well as my Jewish boyfriend of 3.5 years and counting!). That was just me, but I can’t reiterate enough how nice it was to have something like that on campus; as people around me struggled to find their niche and make friends, it was the easiest thing in the world here. I certainly would have been okay somewhere else, but it was a huuuuge, unanticipated bonus. If you have any questions about Binghamton specifically, let me know!

36

I am a UK graduate and grew up Jewish, in Lexington. I recently finished serving 6 years on the Board of the UK Alumni Association and have represented UK at college fairs in Pennsylvania, where I live now, and helped recruit a lot of students from this area. I have been back on campus every few months and know the current President and most of the top executives at UK personally. It is an AMAZING group of leaders, the best I have seen ever. UK has a female Provost and several female Deans now. It is a very welcoming place for women students, faculty, and leaders.

I went to UK in the 1970s and never had a problem being Jeiwsh, and believe me there were not many of us then. It is a far more multicultural campus now than it was then. The Hillel chapter is not huge but it is active. Sororities do not discriminate, that had been a huge issue in the past at UK but not anymore. (I really didn’t care, I was in the marching band and lived at home so I had no interest in Greek life) Lexington has a small but vibrant Jewish community that welcomes UK students for worship and activities. Jews have played a prominent role in the history of the city and especially its retail, medical, and legal communities. (My father was a prominent doctor and president of the congregation for a time.) There are both Conservative and Reform congregations there. There are a number of Jewish faculty at UK as well. I would have no qualms about sending a Jewish child there. UK is actively recruiting top students from the northeast and financial aid is very generous.

The University is improving academically and physically by leaps and bounds, new dorms are palatial and dining options are great (UK will soon have the country’s first on-campus Panera and also has options for vegetarians.) UK is in the middle of a $1 billion building effort that will include brand new buildings for sciences, business and economics, an expanded and renovated student center, and 9000 new dorm beds (yes that’s right, 9000!) All of this is being done with no funds from the state and without raising tuition, through donations, contributions from the athletics program, and partnerships with private builders.

UK is a typical Southern state U. in that there is definitely a preppy, “bro” culture that is visible, lots of cute blondes running around in short shorts in the warmer months, guys in khakis and ball caps, etc.; but there are plenty of students that are not in this type of crowd and do not feel ostracized or “fish out of water” at all. Basketball is the big sport at UK, including now a top-ranked women’s team that is very exciting and plays right on campus unlike the men’s team. But UK also puts a lot of resources into other women’s sports including volleyball, gymnastics, track and field, rifle, equestrian, softball (first trip to the women’s World Series last year!) And then there is horse racing at Keeneland in the spring and fall, something that is uniquely Lexington and UK students are a big part of the scene there. These are the activities you just don’t find at smaller schools. But if you aren’t into sports, you will find plenty to do and plenty of students to join you.

It pains me that my own kids did not want to go to UK because it didn’t offer the programs they wanted. Also neither of them were really “Big State U” kids. But I continue to recommend UK to parents and students all the time.

37

@rebeccar and @honestmom - both very helpful and thank you.

@honestmom - The booster on UK is helpful and I know its a great campus with a lot to offer. It does raise issues when you note that the Sororities used to discriminate and that was a “huge” issue in the past. Can you give more details on that?

38

Perhaps “huge” was not the right word. I was aware when I was a UK student that some frats and sororities would not rush Jewish students. I wasn’t interested anyway so it wasn’t a big deal to me. There are strong non-discrimination rules now for all the Greeks at UK and have been for many years.

39

" Louisville and Cincinnati are the two closest cities to UK and they both have a lot larger Jewish populations than Lexington, so I think that is relevant information for this particular parent."

Unless the OP plans to visit either of those two cities constantly, which is rather doubtful, then they really have no bearing on day to day life in Lexington. Lexington is not a small city; over 300,000 people live there within the city limits. That is has so few jews relative to its size would be something of a concern for me. Then again, that’s just me…

40

"If there are only 137Jewish members at Hillel and no Jewish fraternities/sororities on campus, at a school with almost 30,000 students, I personally would consider attending elsewhere. "

+1