Jewish Education Below the Mason-Dixon Line
Education
By Allison Gaudet Yarrow
In the past, many Southern colleges and universities had few, if any, Jewish students roaming their campuses. But recently schools below the Mason-Dixon Line have stepped up their recruitment of Jewish students. They offered scholarships, built centers for Jewish learning and socializing, and engaged the surrounding Jewish communities in their efforts. The Forward interviewed students from four schools across the Southeast to get a read on the changing face of the Southern Jewish college experience in 2010. Here’s what they had to say:
Theodore Samets
Hometown
Charlotte, Vt.
School
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn.
Undergraduate students
6,700
Percent Jewish
15
Percent Jewish a decade ago
3
Year
Junior
Major
History
Other schools considered
Georgetown University, Washington University in St. Louis
Nearest synagogue
Two Reform, one Conservative, one Orthodox synagogue in and around Nashville
Jewish background
I grew up in a Conservative family. My dad was president of the synagogue and I spent a lot of time there. We didn’t keep kosher, but I haven’t eaten meat out since going to college.
On choosing Vanderbilt
Vandy was perfect for me because I wanted a Southern school with great sports and a vibrant Jewish community.
Campus involvement
I’m gearing up to run for vice president of the student body. I’m also the vice president of Hillel, and I am very involved in pro-Israel advocacy on campus.
Would you send your kids to Vanderbilt?
If they can get kosher food on the weekends by then, in an instant.
Have you had a positive Jewish experience so far?
We have such a warm and welcoming community that holiday dinners are some of my favorite Vanderbilt memories. I’ve also gone on two spring break [service] trips with Hillel, one to Uruguay and one to Brazil, that were fantastic!
School’s recruiting effort
In 2002, Vanderbilt erected a Hillel that is home to Nashville’s only kosher restaurant, which is part of the university meal plan, attracting students of all backgrounds.
Laura Langley
hometown
Austin, Texas
School
Hendrix College, Conway, Ark.
Undergraduate students
1,500
Percent Jewish
2
Percent Jewish a decade ago
Less than 1
Year
Senior
Major
Film Studies
Other schools considered
Boston University, Vassar College
Nearest synagogue
30 miles away in Little Rock, Ark.
Jewish background
I grew up in a secular house.*
On choosing Hendrix
They give a lot of scholarships. Other campuses didn’t feel like the students were friendly. At Hendrix everyone was smiling and saying hi, and I assume that’s the Southern friendliness, but it definitely worked because I felt very comfortable.
Hesitations
The size of the school and the remote location worried me. The first year these factors led to me considering a transfer, but I’ve grown to really love both.
On Hendrix Jewish life
I joined our six-person Hillel. We have great turnouts for Shabbat dinner. Most people who come are not Jewish. I’ve had friends ask me to take them to temple even though I never go myself.
Have you had a positive Jewish experience so far?
I never celebrate Shabbat at home with my family and never really wanted to, but now it’s such a nice pause at the end of what is always a frantic school and work week…Hendrix has provided a space that’s allowed me to come into the culture on my own.
Would you send your kids to Hendrix?
I definitely would. I have friends at schools all across the board, and I feel like I’ve gotten a better education. I’ve gotten great help along the way that others might not have access to.
School’s recruiting effort
The Crain-Maling Jewish Cultural Center was created at Hendrix to educate Jews and non-Jews alike. The center will be housed in a new, 80,000-square-foot facility expected to be completed in 2010.
Alex Grodner
hometown
Born in Birmingham, Ala., high school in Basking Ridge, N.J.
School
The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa**
Undergraduate students
23,700
Percent Jewish
2
Percent Jewish a decade ago
Less than 1
Year
Junior
Major
Business
Other schools considered
Virginia Tech, Drexel University
Jewish background
I helped start a BBYO chapter in New Jersey and was extremely active in that in the region and nationally.
Hesitations
I was not happy that there were few Jewish people at the university, but I worked to help recruit more Jewish students.
On Alabama Jewish life
We are a tightly knit group. Even if you’re not in a fraternity or a sorority or involved in Hillel, we all know each other and see each other pretty regularly. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not hard to be a Jew at Alabama. It’s starting to become like other big Jewish schools in the South, like [University of] Georgia and [University of] Florida.
Would you send your kids to Alabama?
Absolutely, I will be taking my kids to games and showing them the ZBT house when I am an alum.
School’s recruiting effort
Land was leased to a local congregation to build its new synagogue on campus. It broke ground early last year.
Jesse Crow
Hometown
Pensacola, Fla.
School
Millsaps College, Jackson, Miss.
Undergraduate Students
1,000
Percent Jewish
3
Percent Jewish a decade ago
Less than 1
Year
Sophomore
Major
Communications, English minor
Other schools considered
University of Texas, Tulane University
Nearest Synagogue
One Reform, in Jackson
Jewish background
I went to temple with my mom and I had a bat mitzvah. I grew up going to Henry S. Jacobs camp and this summer will be my fourth on staff. I was very involved with NFTY [North American Federation of Temple Youth] and local temple youth group.
On choosing Millsaps
[Jewish Life] wasn’t too big a factor in my decision. I knew people in the Jewish community and that there was a strong one. [I wanted] a fresh start.
Campus involvement
Lacrosse, Delta Delta Delta Sorority, Interfaith Campus Ministry team (“We have forums educating people about different religions”), staff writer for the school paper, the Purple and White.
On Millsaps Jewish Life
You can be as involved as you want. We do have a Jewish Cultural Organization, which is our little Hillel. Every year we build a sukkah and we have a big meal and invite people to come and learn about it.
After graduation
I’d like to go back to Israel and spend some time there. I was in Israel on Birthright in 2009. I eventually want to be a journalist.
Have you had a positive Jewish experience so far?
There’s a lot of opportunity for religious dialogue on campus, and I’ve found that explaining Judaism to people who don’t know much about it has furthered my own understanding and has strengthened my beliefs. It’s not the same experience that someone would have at a school with a larger Jewish population, but that doesn’t mean it’s not as fulfilling.
School’s recruiting effort
Millsaps College offered scholarships. The school’s location in Jackson, Miss., houses the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life.
Contact Allison Gaudet Yarrow at yarrow@forward.com.
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Learn Hebrew, the rest is commentary.
Well spoken by all these students. I would never send my grandchildren to one of those Socialist indoctrination camps you call Harvard or Columbia. I was born and raised in Boston, Mass., moved to the South in 1977, I have never regretted one minute of that move. The southern experience is rich and rewarding, regardless of your religous preferences. The Universities in the south provide an education that is every bit as good as anything in the North, while providing the diversity that allows students to grow their mental acuity and freedom of thought. Duke University has a Medical curriculum that is second to none. Auburn University has produced four or five Astronauts. Georgia Tech is one of the best engineering schools in the country, Vanderbilt has an excellent law school.
I agree with both Charlie and Isaac. I would not send my kids to Brandeis, Columbia, or Berkeley. They might end up as the first Jews to blow themselves up in a cafe in Tel Aviv after the intense anti-zionist indoctrination they receive there. There is more zionist spirit at Emory, Vandy, and Texas than there is in many northeastern schools
Nice article-at the beginning of the civil war,elected jewish politicians were dispropotionately from the South including the second in command of the South ,J Benjamin. Read "Jewish Confederates",a great book.
The thriving Chabad House at Vanderbilt was started approximately 2.5 years ago. The Chabad Rabbi is the official University Rabbi for the Chaplaincy Department. Chabad's minyan, classes, social events, kosher food and more has enhanced Jewish life at Vanderbilt. http://www.chabadatvanderbilt.org
As a graduate of both Boston University and Brandeis, I regret that you felt your reader needed to categorize these universities as anti-Zionist. Upon receiving my MA from Brandeis I made aliyah and lived in Israel for 25 years. Now I live in Georgia. Yes, there can be vibrant Jewish life in the south but that does not mean it does not exist in other places.