HillelCarolinaNorthReportAnnual2021-2022
Ö Community ( | Kehillah): Building relationships with Jews at home, in Israel, and around the world; Ö Hospitality ( | Hachnasat Orchim): Welcoming people from diverse backgrounds and creating a warm, pluralistic environment; Ö Learning ( | Limmud): A lifelong pursuit of deeper understanding and Jewish learning; Ö Spirituality ( | Ruchaniut): Investigating religious questions and seeking personal growth and moral fulfillment; and Ö Justice ( | Tzedek): Striving for a more just and righteous world.
Ö In part due to the pandemic, we fully recognized the role Hillel can play in helping to alleviate the mental health crises among teens and emerging young adults. We have been able to put programming in the hands of our student leaders to shape how we create a caring, safe space for all students. This includes wellness programming on Universityissued mental health days and access to pastoral care by our Senior Jewish Educator/ Campus Rabbi at UNC Hillel.
Hannah Gutterman Spinrad Executive Director
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Ö NC Hillel Link - our new Statewide consortium composed of App State, ECU, UNCA, UNCC, UNCG, and UNCW Hillels - exceeded all engagement goals within its first year. This shows significant interest in improving the Jewish connection on and in between campuses with smaller Jewish populations.
Ö 98 NC Hillel students went on immersive Israel experiences such as Birthright and Onward. We are excited to see our fundamental Israel experiences come back in full swing after travel restrictions were lifted.
Laura Stein Chair, Board of Directors
North Carolina Hillel empowers and inspires students to pursue their own Jewish journeys by creating strong communities and transformative experiences. We aspire to cultivate within students a commitment to:
Dear Friends, As the new Executive Director and the new Board Chair, we are honored to follow our predecessors’ vision to inspire Jewish life among our students in the UNC School System. We are excited to bring NC Hillel to the forefront of Jewish life in North Carolina, helping to connect our in-state and out-of-state students with the tools they need to transform into proud young adults within our statewide community. Our 2021-2022 school year shifted us away from 2020-2021’s virtual programming and remote check-ins with students to offering cautiously optimistic in-person experiences with hybrid remote options. We still had to deal with constant last minute adaptations, which showcased the endless creativity from our tireless staff and student leadership. Because of their hard work, we have seen tremendous engagement growth among students actively participating in Hillel experiences. We are proud to share a few of the transformational highlights of the past school year:
Ö Overall, we served 816 Jewish students across eight campuses - a 27% increase from last school year. In this upcoming year, we are eager to engage with the broader community, traveling across the state to speak with students and stakeholders in order to enhance our network of resources available to UNC System students. Keep an eye on your inboxes throughout the year for regular updates from our campus Hillels. With an incredible team of staff, volunteer and student leadership, we know we will continue to grow from strength to strength. Thank you for your support!
Joanna Berman, Springboard Fellow, UNC
Rabbi Melissa B. Simon, Senior Jewish Educator, UNC Ginny Vellani, Director, Link Max Weinberg, Director of
Operations Laura Stein, Chair Mike Ross, Vice Chair Marissa Milstein, Secretary Harold Berger, Treasurer Peter Levinson, Past Chair Alan RabbiJasonBoyetteChautinCobiCohenMarcyGellerHarryKaplanDavidKessel Jennifer Rich Elizabeth Singer Eileen Springer Lisa Sutker Dr. Eileen Z. Taylor Board of Directors, 2022-2023 NC Hillel Staff created a Torah of values at their staff meeting in April Income Total = $ 1,438,785.62Donations60%Grants28% Other10%RevenueInvestment2% TotalExpenses=$1,312,724.44 Programming70% Admin18% 12%Fundraising
Nikki Michaelson, Director of Student Engagement, UNC Carson Pinker, Springboard Fellow, NC State
Hannah Spinrad, Executive
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State
Vicki Cathcart, Assistant Director, Sarah Gindes, Campus Director, NC
Systems Manager
Link
Director
Staff, 2022-2023
Sara Gottschalk, Donor
35 NC Hillel students from 6 of our campuses performed mitzvot on Good Deeds Day
Shabbat Shalom from UNC-Chapel Hill (left) and UNC Charlotte (right) Hillel students!
“My Birthright trip with UNC Hillel was a highlight of my year. I’ve been planning to go on it since my freshman year, and I finally got my chance after two years of a pandemic!
Before going on Birthright, I wasn’t super connected with Israel and my Jewish experience, and I thought it was just going to be a fun free ten-day trip to Israel, but it was such a powerful, life-changing experience. I am so excited to learn even more about Israel now and how I can connect with the country from the US.”
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- Hallie L., UNC-Chapel Hill ‘23
Hillel @ NC State had a monumental year with two full-time staff members on campus for the first time ever. Matzah Ball, a social event started in 2017 and paused at the beginning of the Pandemic, returned in full swing, welcoming 70 students from all over North Carolina to celebrate Havdallah at NC State. During Sukkot, Hillel @ NC State proudly built a Sukkah in the Brickyard for the entire campus to experience. For many students this was their first introduction to Hillel and a learning opportunity about Judaism and Sukkot.
UNCG Hillel planted hundreds of daffodils in their newly dedicated Holocaust Memorial Garden
UNCW (left) and App State (right) Hillel students hang out together on and off campus
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“We have put passion into everything we do here at Hillel which has positively impacted all of us. Everyone I know feels the urge to become more involved in Hillel and we have seen lots of non-Jewish students and staff take an interest in learning about Jewish culture through our events.”
“As the recipients of the Outstanding Student Group of the Year Award for three years in a row, UNCG Hillel has definitely helped transform student culture on campus. We are open to all Spartans, welcoming anyone who would like to join us at events, and we partner with several other student groups to educate the Spartan community on what we’re all -about.”AbbyC., UNCG ‘22
- Seth W., UNCG ‘22
Rabbi Melissa B. Simon Wins The Richard M. Joel Exemplar of Excellence Award from Hillel International Ari Gauss Leaves After 13 years
5 UNC Greensboro Hillel Wins Outstanding Student Group Three Years in a Row
The end of this school year marked the conclusion of the tenure of our long-time Executive Director, Ari Gauss. Ari had been at the helm of North Carolina Hillel for 13 years and brought passion and dedication to the mission of Hillel. As Executive Director, Ari built important, lasting relationships with university leaders and worked tirelessly to combat anti-Semitism on all UNC campuses. We are grateful for Ari’s leadership and commitment to excellence, made possible with your support.
Rabbi Melissa B. Simon, our Senior Jewish Educator, won The Richard M. Joel Exemplar of Excellence Award from Hillel International for showcasing her remarkable passion and outstanding devotion to the Jewish campus community.
This school year alone, Rabbi Melissa has flexed her outreach and engagement skills by having at least one meaningful interaction with 317 students.
98 NC OnwardstudentsHillelwenttoIsraelonourBirthright,Israel,andPerspectivesTrips “Being in person again is not just about resuming programming; our Jewish values call us to prioritize student wellness by coming up with opportunities for deep, meaningful conversation and connections between Jewish students.” - Avital P., NC State ‘23 “Being able to gather at UNC Hillel has been a breath of fresh air. I cherish that Hillel is able to provide that through the Jewish Learning Fellowship and other weekly programs.” - Oscar W., UNC-Chapel Hill ‘23 35 participatedstudentsin our cohort Northexperiences,learningincludingourJewishLearningFellowships,TarHeelTzedakah,andKholYisraelCarolinaHillelserved816 Jewish undergraduate students during the 2021-2022 school year 343 orattendedstudentssixmoreHillelprograms 6
