From Hispanic Heritage Club to Inside out, students have many different avenues to connect with their community and learn about new ones at school. However, Jewish students have not had as many opportunities to celebrate their culture on campus. This year, the newly-formed Jewish Student Union aims to change that. With a goal of exploring the Jewish culture through food, activities and guest speakers, they held their first meeting on Aug. 28, led by counselor Erin Isaacs and club president Rachel Mandell.
“I would like awareness of what our culture is and what it represents. We want a sense of community and belonging as well. Since it’s open to everybody, we can foster that awareness through some cultural things that we do, some of the foods we eat, and some activities we do,” Isaacs said.
The club meets once a month and plans on hosting fundraisers, bringing in different people to share about the culture and participate in different events like Student Government’s door-decorating competition. Additionally, JSU plans to collaborate with other clubs with events like a cook-off, where different clubs will create themed dishes related to their club or cause.
Non-Jewish students are equally encouraged to join. After all, one of the main goals of JSU is to provide a safe space for all students and to teach people about Jewish culture.
“I think it’s really good to be educated on what you’re hearing about in the world. Judaism is all over the world, and most of the time people don’t really know what it is, so it’s really important to learn about it and take it for what it is,” Mandell said.
In Judaism, one of the main tenets is helping the community you come from, so naturally, community service is a main focus of the club. JSU plans on helping with various projects to help those in need. They partnered with Avalanche’s Attic to provide essentials like food and clothes to students who need them.
“We just want to be a safe place for everybody and show that we are a place where people come together and work with others no matter your religion or background,” Isaacs said.
Their next meeting will be held on Sept. 18 in room 7-107, where they plan on organizing future activities and getting to know one another. The club hopes anyone interested will give it a try.
“Everybody should be a part of something. And if this is it for you, we’d love to have you,” Isaacs said.
