Chaverim/Hillel
The budget for Colorado College’s Jewish community has just gone up $5,000. That’s the amount recently awarded to Chaverim/Hillel, CC’s Jewish student group, by the Soref Advancement Initiative.
The application process for this prestigious grant, bestowed upon only eight U.S. campuses, was quite rigorous, says faculty advisor and Associate Professor of Music Ofer Ben-Amots. He and four student representatives outlined their goals for the grant in a 30-minute phone interview with Soref.
The grant “will help create a lasting presence of Jewish life on campus,” says Chaverim/Hillel President Ari Stiller-Shulman ’06. The organization leadership’s first and foremost goal is to make the group known to incoming classes. “I think there are a lot of new students who would be interested in Chaverim/Hillel,” says Stiller-Shulman, “but they don’t even know it’s here.”
Other plans for the grant include bringing Jewish musicians to campus, maintaining a relationship with the Colorado Springs
Jewish community, remodeling the CC Chaverim/Hillel Web site, and inviting rabbis to campus on high holidays. The Soref Advancement Initiative also will send student representatives to leadership conferences and act as a long-term advisor for Chaverim/Hillel.
While the grant is a big step in the right direction, adds Ben-Amots, the group will continue to raise funds. “We can do a lot with this grant,” says Stiller-Shulman, “but the test will be to stay well-funded in the future.”
Alumni interested in supporting or being involved in the CC Jewish community may contact Ben-Amots at obenamots@ColoradoCollege.edu.
