News

Notes from Springboard Fellows: Inspiring the Next Generation of Jewish Leaders

Author

糖心vlogl

Date

January 23, 2025

Notes from Springboard Fellows is a series of deep dives into the work of first and second year Springboard Fellows who play transformative roles in their Hillel communities. Read on to learn more about Lindsay Rosenzweig, the Innovation and Intrapreneurship Springboard Fellow at University of Central Florida.聽

Interested in becoming a Springboard Fellow? Apply today.

For Lindsay Rosenzweig, Innovation and Intrapreneurship Springboard Fellow at , Hillel was a passion that unexpectedly became a career.

Lindsay grew up in North Carolina, and attended Elon University as an undergraduate, where she majored in human services studies 鈥� a unique course of study that encompasses concepts and skills related to social work, nonprofit management, social justice, and other human service fields. She was active in Hillel, serving as an engagement intern, the religious and education chair on the student board, and then as co-president her junior and senior year. Throughout her undergraduate career, she formed meaningful and impactful relationships with the Hillel staff that influenced her decisions post-graduation.

鈥淭hey were really my mentors,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 stayed close with them even after graduation.鈥� As Lindsay began her career working at a domestic violence nonprofit, those relationships proved key to her finding the right fit. 

鈥淚 told [my Hillel mentors] where I was working and how I was feeling conflicted about it, and they told me to apply for Springboard,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey really stressed that they thought I would be a good fit, and a great addition to the movement.鈥�

At first, Lindsay wasn鈥檛 sure 鈥� she saw Hillel as a passion, but not necessarily a career path. Yet her mentors were persuasive, and Lindsay decided to apply for the fellowship. 

Now, in her second year as a Springboard Fellow at UCF, Lindsay can鈥檛 imagine doing anything else. 鈥淚nnovation and intrapreneurship really stood out to me as an opportunity to try something different than what I had been doing for so long,鈥� she said. Also, as someone interested in social justice, she finds this track of work particularly rewarding, because it鈥檚 all about solving problems in a way that starts with what each student needs and why. 

鈥淚t’s about taking an emphasis on creating innovative solutions, and bringing them to our campuses,鈥� she explained. 鈥淗ow do we shape our programs and our structure around student needs and wants? That鈥檚 what we鈥檙e trying to figure out.鈥�

One of Lindsay鈥檚 proudest moments as a Springboard Fellow was helping one of her students go through the Springboard application process herself. 鈥淜nowing that I had such an impact on her that she wanted to go through the Springboard experience was so rewarding to me,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e had many conversations, just talking about her future and the schools she matched with, and I got to serve as a mentor for her.鈥�

Professional development is a key part of the Springboard experience, and Lindsay has taken full advantage of the opportunities 糖心vlogl has to offer. 

Last March, she participated in a Sipurim trip to Israel, a special program for Hillel professionals designed to help shift Israel education in a post-October 7 world. 鈥淢y team was so excited for me when I got accepted,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey were my biggest cheerleaders.鈥�

Lindsay also worked one-on-one with her Springboard-assigned mentor who works in talent management at 糖心vlogl.

鈥淚鈥檓 so appreciative of everything he鈥檚 done, because my goal is to stay with Hillel after my fellowship ends,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been so helpful to hear what happens at the organization behind the scenes, and to have his support in planning conversations I need for my next steps.鈥�

As she heads into the second semester of her final year as a Springboard Fellow, Lindsay has found the cohort experience to be one of the most fulfilling aspects of the program. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e joining a group of people who are in similar positions and can really lean on each other,鈥� she said. 鈥淥ur friendships developed quickly, and that has blossomed into many other connections within the Fellowship and within the Hillel movement.鈥�

Every Springboard Fellow鈥檚 experience is different, but they all have one thing in common: They鈥檙e helping to make Jewish campus life more engaging and inclusive for college students.

鈥淚 wanted to inspire the next generation of Jewish leaders,鈥� Lindsay said. 鈥淛ust like my mentors did for me.鈥�

To learn more about the Springboard Fellowship and see if it鈥檚 right for you, visit today.

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News

Welcome to Hillel: The Ramirez Sisters Head Back to School

Author

糖心vlogl

Date

August 30, 2023

Roll Call:

College students across the country are headed back to school. At the University of Central Florida (UCF) and at New York University (NYU), two sisters are kicking off the school year as brand new Hillel staff members. Melina Ramirez, Engagement Manager at UCF Hillel, and Sofie Ramirez, Springboard Innovation Fellow at NYU Hillel, are excited to welcome students back to campus and to continue their own Hillel journeys. 

Growing up in a small Jewish community on Long Island, Sofie and Melina were both deeply involved in their childhood synagogue, as well as . 

When Melina started school at Florida Southern College, a school with a very small Jewish population, it was a new experience for her to be one of the only Jewish people that most of her classmates had ever met. She quickly became involved in the tight-knit Hillel community, and after graduation, decided that connecting with a larger, vibrant Jewish community, like the one she grew up with and the one she found on her gap year in Israel, was a priority for her career and life choices. After working for BBYO and her local JCC, she found her way back to Hillel where she is starting her first year as a Hillel professional. 

Sofie鈥檚 journey also took her to Hillel as a student at Hofstra University on Long Island. Hofstra Hillel became an important part of her college experience as she volunteered as a student leader and worked closely with the Hillel rabbi on campus. After taking some time off following graduation to visit her family in Puerto Rico, Sofie is excited to share her love for Hillel with students at NYU as a Springboard Innovation Fellow.

Welcome to Hillel!

As first-year students move onto campus and begin exploring their new schools and communities, Hillel staff and student leaders are there to welcome them. 

kicked off this past weekend with a brunch that brought together first-year students and their families in the Hillel building. For the next two weeks, Hillel staff will be available to help students move into their dorms, connect with new friends, and chat over coffee. Different types of programs will be available to students depending on their interests. Sofie will run a one-day color war for student athletes that will include team-building exercises as well as classic games like wheelbarrow races and ring toss. She believes that offering space and programming to students with a wide variety of interests and backgrounds is essential to helping first-year students start to feel at home on campus and at Hillel.

At the University of Central Florida, students started arriving on campus in mid-August. UCF Hillel hosted FreshFest, an early move-in opportunity for Jewish students paired with programming and a chance to meet other first-year students before classes began. Twenty first-year students, along with third- and fourth-year student leaders and Hillel staff members had a splash at the nearby Aquatica Water Park. Following two days of getting to know each other, the FreshFest students attended the first Shabbat dinner of the semester with 80 other students from across the university. 

Melina reflected that in addition to FreshFest, her favorite part of welcoming new students was and bring them to the Hillel building for coffee chats, activities, and hang-out time. She鈥檚 excited for the energy of this first week to carry through the rest of the year. 

Wishes for the New Year:

The first weeks of the new school year often lead right into Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Reflecting on the upcoming academic and Jewish year, Melina and Sofie each have dreams they鈥檙e hoping to accomplish with their students. 

Melina said, 鈥淎s students come out of a very isolated experience with the Covid-19 pandemic, we want to make sure there is a warm and welcoming environment waiting for them at Hillel. A big part of that is making sure that each student has a space where they can feel comfortable. As a Jewish Latina, building a space for Jews of color to share their experiences and their voices is so important to me.鈥� 

Sofie added, 鈥淐reating an affinity space for Jews of color at NYU means that there will be a unique space for every Jewish student to speak up. I鈥檓 excited to run a Yom Kippur program about forgiveness and processing emotions around difficult interactions鈥擨鈥檓 looking forward to broadening this space for Jewish students of color.鈥�

As sisters, Melina and Sofie are also looking forward to connecting with each other through their Hillel work and to growing strong, vibrant communities at UCF and NYU.

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