- Thanks to our generous donors, Hillel of Colorado had a banner year, enabling us to meet the needs of Jewish students on our key university campuses and gain the trust of our universities’ presidents and chancellors. Meanwhile, the summer is flying by: two of our three main Hillel of Colorado campuses begin classes in about a week! Back-to-school move-in events for parents and students this year include two Jewish Parent town halls. Find out more here.
- More than ever we are committed to assuring our 2,000 Jewish students have a safe and supportive environment in which to embrace their Jewish and Zionist identities; help them learn about advocacy efforts and initiatives designed to ensure they have skills they need now and after college; and empower them to use their voices (and ours) to raise awareness and create a compelling community where Jewish students can celebrate their identity and thrive.
- We continue working with our university leaders to assure they do better in protecting our students this academic year. We know hate speech cannot be eliminated, but we insist our chancellors and presidents use their free speech to assure students and parents they learned from last year. Here is what we have asked:
August 2025. Hillel of Colorado encourages our university chancellors and presidents to assure state clearly and publicly some of the things they have privately committed to us this summer, things our Jewish parents, students and community need to hear:
- Your commitment to keeping all students physically safe on campus will never waver, that your staff and faculty will do everything possible to assure no individuals or groups of students feel unsafe, marginalized, or targeted spiritually or emotionally.
- Your acknowledgement that, despite that commitment, some of our Jewish students did feel those things on campus this past year, and that what you learned last year makes you more able to assure the university will do better beginning this September.
- Toward that end, please assure us that the university will:
- enforce a zero tolerance policy toward protest encampments – there will be no repeat of the protest encampment on campus.
- continue to be committed to free speech in all legal forms but commit to using your voice to address and limit hate speech as you can – since it creates divisions, threatens democracy, and halts productive discourse, all of which are essential at a thriving university.
- encourage faculty groups and academic departments have tough conversations about the limitations and responsibilities of academic freedom.
- work to step up antisemitism training and awareness for university personnel, from residence hall advisors to those in highest leadership.
- hold students and student groups that violate university policy and conduct codes responsible and subject to appropriate discipline.
