The Sukkah party was the first event sponsored by a new student group, Jews on the Street, which is funded by the Jewish organization Chabad and aims to further the presence of Jewish life at the eating clubs.
“As an organization, we are trying to bring Jewish events to students in places where they feel most comfortable and spend much of their time, which for many students is in the eating clubs,” JOTS on-campus coordinator Alana D’Alfonso ’11 said in an e-mail. Terrace, Cloister Inn, Cottage Club, Ivy Club, Tiger Inn and Charter Club all have designated representatives, D’Alfonso said, noting that the representatives for Tower, Quadrangle, Colonial and Cap & Gown clubs have not yet been determined. The eating clubs involved in the initiative each have one or two representatives, who all work with D’Alfonso in her role as coordinator. Gabe Greenwood ’12, the JOTS representative to Terrace, said he considered the Sukkah party a success, noting that he has received a lot of support from his club.
“The great thing about Judaism is there are holidays all the time,” Greenwood said. “So rather than taking Princeton students out of their social lives to go be Jewish someplace else, why not bring that Jewish life to Prospect Street and have a great time while we’re at it?”
The idea of creating an organization to better merge Judaism and life on the Street arose last spring after Terrace hosted a Purim party “with an open bar in the Terrace library which was also sponsored and mainly organized by Chabad,” Greenwood said.
“In the aftermath of that, we decided to institutionalize this a little bit and make a more organized effort to have more things like that more often,” he explained.
Gitty Webb, co-director of Chabad at Princeton and wife of Chabad Rabbi Eitan Webb, said she saw the Sukkah party as a way for students to learn about the Jewish holiday.
“Everyone had a great time, but at the same time it was learning something about Jewish culture,” she explained. Chabad provides funding for all JOTS endeavors and may seek a partnership with a sponsor soon, Webb noted, adding that future events may take several directions.
“There will be lots of different programs, hopefully,” Webb said. “We also hope that within the clubs themselves, they will have club-only events, so it’s not all going to be inter-club related.”
Greenwood said he hoped individual clubs could host Chabad dinners.
The Center for Jewish Life is not directly involved with JOTS, said Rabbi Julie Roth, executive director of the CJL. She added that she found out about the first JOTS event from a Facebook event invitation.
“I think it’s great to have Jewish programming throughout campus,” Roth said. “After one event, I’m curious to see what happens. I wish them the best of luck.”
Both Greenwood and Webb said they believe JOTS has been successful thus far, noting that they haven’t received any negative feedback. D’Alfonso explained that JOTS is “not trying to bring religion to the Street, but rather a sense of culture,” adding that “the events are meant to be open and comfortable for all Jewish and non-Jewish students.”
“There’s a lot of potential here,” Webb said. “I hope that it will get stronger and really become a great opportunity for all Jews on campus.”
JOTS representatives from other clubs did not respond to repeated requests for comment.
Read More
Yale University to join Research Collections and Preservation Consortium (ReCAP)
David YunYale University has joined Princeton, Columbia, Harvard, and the New York Public Library in one of the world’s largest library and archives preservation repositories and shared collections, Research Collections and Preservation Consortium, also known as ReCAP.
Yale University has joined Princeton, Columbia, Harvard, and the New York Public Library in one of the world’s largest library and archives preservation repositories and shared collections, Research Collections and Preservation Consortium, also known as ReCAP.
Princeton rising junior passes away in cycling accident
Victoria DaviesKerry Grundlingh ’27 has passed away in a cycling accident near her home in South Africa.
Kerry Grundlingh ’27 has passed away in a cycling accident near her home in South Africa.
15 personas detenidas por ICE en Calle Harrison, explican funcionarios de Princeton
Luke GrippoSegún el alcalde de Princeton, Mark Freda, inicialmente los oficiales de inmigración solamente estaban en busca de una persona. Ana Paola Pazmiño, directora ejecutiva del grupo local de defensa de la inmigración, Resistencia en Acción NJ, reveló que los oficiales detuvieron a estas personas y les pusieron en una camioneta mientras ellos estaban de camino a su trabajo de paisajismo.
Según el alcalde de Princeton, Mark Freda, inicialmente los oficiales de inmigración solamente estaban en busca de una persona. Ana Paola Pazmiño, directora ejecutiva del grupo local de defensa de la inmigración, Resistencia en Acción NJ, reveló que los oficiales detuvieron a estas personas y les pusieron en una camioneta mientras ellos estaban de camino a su trabajo de paisajismo.