This summer, UMBC students will travel to Israel for ten days for free with other Jewish students from local Baltimore campuses.  It's a packed ten days with historic sights, great people, tasty food, contemporary culture--a great first trip to Israel.  We expect to leave the first week in June and will have more precise date information in a few weeks (don't worry, you'll have the option to have your deposit refunded before you're committed to the exact date).  Meanwhile, plan to sign up starting February 15 at noon.  Registration typically only lasts a few days, so it is important to sign up as soon as possible.  If you're interested in learning more, come to an info session in the Mosaic Center (2B23) in the Commons on Monday, February 13 from noon until 1 PM and have all your questions answered.  You can sign up for the trip on the 15th or learn more about the trip provider, Routes Travel-Amazing Israel, we're working with at Read more »

The Torah portion that Jews all over the world read this week is called "Bo."  It opens with the last few of the Ten Plagues in Egypt and continues  until the Israelites are on their way out of Egypt.  Perhaps the highlight of the Torah portion is the first Passover celebration in history.  This feast occurs in Egypt as the plague of darkness makes way to the plague of the slaying of the first born.  Our ancestors mark their houses with blood from lambs they have sacrificed, and they feast with matzah, unleavened bread.

But wait a minute?  What are they celebrating?  They are, after all, still in Egypt!  And isn't Passover supposed to celebrate leaving Egypt?  Perhaps they are celebrating not their physical liberation but their spiritual liberation, the faith that they could divorce themselves from lives of slavery and live as free people, as if physical freedom is worthless unless accompanied by a shift in our mentality as well. Read more »

An annual event you won't want to miss.  Come on out to Flat Tuesday's tonight from 7 until 11 for fun people, fried potato pancakes, music, dreidel games and dancing.  We evern hear that there is going to be a DJ!  Admission is free of charge.  And if you missed the Hanukkah Fry Fest yesterday, then you'll have another chance for a photo with the oh-so-adorable "Hanukkah bear."  Get more info on facebook here.

Sunday night in the lobby of Chesapeake Lounge, UMBC Hillel board members sat in front of the television and beamed with pride as CBS’s “60 Minutes” featured UMBC President Dr. Freeman Hrabowski telling his own story and the of the university.  While there have been Jewish students at UMBC since its founding in 1966, it is only in the past twelve years that there has been a Hillel presence on campus. U.S. News and World Report has ranked UMBC its Number One Up-and-Coming National University.  The Jewish community on campus is up-and-coming as well. Read more »

This year, Sukkot--the Jewish fall harvest festival--happens to coincide with Homecoming Weekend. 

What a great opportunity to build a Sukkah (hut) arranged like a home featuring UMBC-spirited black & gold in honor of coming home to our UMBC.  Feel free to come by the Sukkah on Commons Terrace at any time to enjoy this week-long home with spaces for eating, sleeping, and just hanging out.  We'll welcome you with hot beverages and tasty (black & gold?!) snack foods .

On Friday evening, October 14, weather-permitting, Homecoming Shabbat will take place in the Sukkah.  Services are at 6 PM followed by dinner at 7 PM.  You can get more info and sign up here.  (In the event of rain, we'll be in the Skylight Room on the third floor of the Commons.)

Other particular events in and around the Sukkah include:

Tuesday, October 11 -- Noon through evening -- building and decorating the Sukkah. Read more »

Cara Behneman, assistant director at UMBC Hillel, has been named a participant in Hillel’s Harrison Leadership and Professional International Development (Harrison LAPID) Initiative, a prestigious program that provides Hillel professionals with skills to further their development, so that they may engage and empower future student leaders.

“I am excited to participate in the program as I view Hillel work as sacred work. It is inspiring, nurturing and sometimes exhausting. I am inspired most by our ability to affect change in the world by motivating students to use their education, resources and Jewish identities for good. This is my life’s work. I do not always know what path that will take, but I know my place in Hillel is in no way ordinary,” says Behneman. “I expect that participation in Harrison LAPID will allow me to do no less than explore the sacred, improve Jewish life at UMBC and give back to my colleagues.”

  Read more »

Come by the Commons Breezeway all day Wednesday, August 31 for milk, cookies, and an opportunity to take a first-day-of-school picture.  Grab a lunchbox, globe, or giant calculator and have fun on your own or with a friend.  We'll be around most of the day, so we hope to see you there.  Here are some pictures from past first days of school.

As exam week drew to an end, UMBC Hillel celebrated Class of 2011 seniors (as well as the birthdays of Rabbi Jason Klein and Frank Salah '13).  Everyone was able to make his or her own ice cream sundae and enjoy the company of each other, in some cases possibly for the last time for a while, as seniors prepared for graduation the following week and begin their new lives outside of UMBC.  UMBC Hillel's tradition is to give its graduating seniors a copy of next fall's New Student Book Experience, in order to link them to the next generation of UMBC students.  This fall, the book is Outcasts United by Warren St. John.

While on campus for UMBC Hillel’s Annual Meeting, Wayne Firestone, President of Hillel International, came to speak directly with a group of students.  He talked with students about various topics, ranging from their favorite vegetables to his journey to become president of the largest Jewish campus organization in the world.  Then UMBC president, Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, came and met some of the students.  He brought them up to the roof of the Administration building in order to get a nice view of the UMBC campus and the city.  This was an honor for students because this is not an opportunity many students get to experience.

Later on that evening, Wayne Firestone spoke at the Annual Meeting.  His message was "Abercrombie to Zombie: Mobilizing a Generation, Creating a Better World."  It was attended by members of the UMBC and Baltimore Jewish communities.  He emphasized the importance of asking students tough questions. In addition, Sam Khuvis ’11 and Adina Goldwasser ’11 received awards for their participation in and impact on the Jewish community at UMBC.