The Bronfman Fellowship Launches a Pilot Program for Jewish College Students with Seed Grant from UJA-Federation of New York: Campus Commons: Building Bridges with Jewish Wisdom

Fifty Jewish college students to learn together in a dynamic program designed to enhance social cohesion and cultivate pluralistic leadership on college campuses

September 2024 – The Bronfman Fellowship is launching a year-long pilot for a diverse group of Jewish college students called Campus Commons: Building Bridges with Jewish Wisdom. Drawing on the Fellowship’s 38 years of experience cultivating the pluralistic leadership of Jewish teenagers and young adults, this free program will empower students to use Jewish values and wisdom to enhance social cohesion on their campuses and beyond. Participants will explore core Jewish ideas and texts related to pluralism, as well as the latest research in social psychology, communication, and conflict management. Campus Commons is made possible through a seed grant from UJA-Federation of New York.

Fifty participants will be selected for the first cohort of Campus Commons. This all-expenses-paid program is open to full-time college students who identify as Jewish and who have completed at least one year of college. The cohort of Bridge Builders will be student leaders who are and are not formally involved in Jewish life on campus. For this pilot year early preference will be given to students who are from New York and/or who attend a New York college.  The deadline to apply is October 21, 2024, and admission is rolling.  Students can learn more and apply at campuscommons.bronfman.org.

Designed in response to the rise in polarization, social instability, and isolation on college campuses, Campus Commons will help participants cultivate their own agency and gain real-world, actionable skills to foster environments where people can build relationships across differences. Led by The Bronfman Fellowship’s renowned faculty and staff, the program will include a three-day, in-person seminar to model building pluralistic communities; monthly Zoom sessions for learning and reflection on experiences on campus; and mentorship to assist participants in the design of their own on-campus initiatives. Upon completion of the program, participants will receive a Certificate in Relationship Building Across Difference. 

The Campus Commons program is built on The Bronfman Fellowship’s conception of Positive Pluralism – the understanding that a person can learn and grow from relationships with those who are different from them, and the recognition that this ability can and should be nurtured. Most importantly, it’s the knowledge that therein lies the key to a better future.

“Jewish college students have the opportunity to lead the way in cultivating campus environments that value diversity and can sustain healthy conflict,” said Becky Voorwinde, CEO of The Bronfman Fellowship.  “Jewish texts and traditions offer an incredible blueprint for how to thrive in a shared society and bring  people together. We’re so much stronger as a community when we get out of our echo chambers and deeply engage with people whose stories and experiences are different from our own.”

“We are so excited to be partnering with The Bronfman Fellowship to launch Campus Commons,” said Joshua Satok, Senior Lead of Strategic Planning and Grants at the Jewish Life Department of the UJA-Federation of New York. “Now, more than ever, it’s critical that Jewish college students have opportunities to come together and build the skills and ability to grow and talk across differences. The Bronfman Fellowship is uniquely positioned to build on their strengths and create an incredible new program.”

Campus Commons stems from The Bronfman Fellowship’s 38 years of experience in fostering pluralistic Jewish community and leadership through its flagship year-long Fellowship program for Jewish teenagers in North America and Israel, and through programming for its vibrant alumni community.  At the core of the Fellowship’s approach is a passionate belief that building trust and mutual understanding works best when Jews can learn and engage together and with other communities, drawing on Jewish texts and tradition as tools for finding common language. Young people with strong convictions, rooted in their unique Jewish identities, are best prepared to navigate complex relationships to contribute to a stronger shared society.  

The Bronfman Fellowship hopes to expand the Campus Commons pilot program to other locations across the country over the next three years. For more information and to apply, please visit www.campuscommons.bronfman.org/. For questions about the program, please contact campuscommons@bronfman.org.