Last Monday night, December 29th, the parents and students of Torah Academy of Bergen County and Ma’ayanot were privileged to hear from 30 student representatives and JLIC rabbi/educators–all under one roof–hailing from almost 20 universities, including such varied schools as Yale, Princeton, Cornell, SUNY at Binghamton, Stony Brook and Albany, Cooper Union, New York University, Columbia, University of Pennsylvania, Drexel, Brandeis, Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland, Rutgers, Queens, CCNY Engineering, University of Michigan, Carnegie Mellon, and even Yeshiva University, as they informed their audience about the vibrant Jewish life that exists on their college campuses. The packed presentation was followed by an informal question and answer period.

Both students and parents appreciated the huge amount of information they received about so many different types of colleges, with many filling their programs with notes and others staying late into the evening to ask their specific questions of the many students and rabbis who participated in the evening.

It was both gratifying and heartwarming to see so many TABC and Ma’ayanot alumni, representing a full range of prestigious colleges and talking animatedly about the shiurim, minyanim and other Jewish-related activities that they make it their business to seek out and participate in, no matter which college they attend. Anyone watching so many intelligent and exemplary Jewish youth speaking so eloquently about the Jewish life they have chosen to either participate in or fundamentally create within the colleges of their choice would have been proud. Most of the colleges have JLIC rabbi educators on their campuses as well, who are sent from the OU and work in partnership with Hillel, to help college students navigate the college environment and balance their Jewish commitments with their desire to engage in the secular world.

The program was jointly organized by the College Guidance Departments of TABC and Ma’ayanot, through the hard work of Dr. Carol Master, also Chair of the English department at Torah Academy of Bergen County, and Ms. Leebie Mallin, Director of College Guidance at Ma’ayanot. Dr. Garry Katz is the Director of College Guidance of Torah Academy of Bergen County.