I ON CAMPUS
HOLIDAY
DILEMMA
School vs. shul . . . College students
face the annual problem of what
to do on the High Holidays
SUSAN WEINGARDEN
Special to The Jewish News
Sandi Ham merstro m
I
was very concerned about
missing my classes," said Lisa
Schatz, a second year law stu-
dent at Wayne State Univer-
sity. "I considered going to
school, but I grew up observing the
Jewish holidays and I wasn't going to
change my ways because I was in
graduate school."
As Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kip-
pur approach, Schatz expressed the
dilemma many college students face •
in regards to the Jewish high
holidays. Can they afford to miss
school in order to observe their
religion?
"All my Jewish friends had an in-
ternal struggle!' Schatz said. "Last
year was my first year in law school
and I didn't want to miss class. But
I made the decision to go to services.
I told my professors in advance and I
got the notes from someone else. After
services I spent the day studying.
"Pesach was right before finals. I
went to one Seder and left early. This
year Yom Kippur is on a Saturday, but
I'm sure I will miss school on Rosh
Hashanah."
As a Wayne student, Schatz lives
at home and is able to spend the
holidays with her family. Before
graduate school, she attended the
University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
"I always brought home my out-of-
state friends on the Jewish holidays
and took them to services and to din-
ner."
For students away at school, the
holidays often create a double dilem-
ma. Should they miss school, and can
they afford the time to spend the
holidays with their families?
Some of the factors involved in the
decision are the difficulty of the
classes, the policy of the school, exam
schedules, facilities for Jewish
students, the distance and travel ex-
pense to get home, and the personal
feelings of both the student and the
parent. While each Jew observes in
his or her own way, the holidays have
traditionally been a time for being
with family.
"It is difficult sending a child
away to college," said West Bloomfield
mother Barbara Meyers. "My son,
Bryan, is a sophomore at Syracuse
University in New York. Last year
was his first year away at school. Our
family has always been together at
the holiday and we flew him home
because we really wanted him to be
with us.
"To me, the important tradition of
the holiday is the family being
together. If he can't be here with us,
I at least want to know that he is
celebrating the holiday with other
Jewish people!"
"I came home for Yom Kippur!'
Bryan Meyers said. "Syracuse closes
because there is a large Jewish
population. On Rosh Hashanah I at-
tended services at Hillel. There is also
a dinner available.
"I had homework and the normal
amount of school pressure, but I had
no exams. I feel it is important to go
to services on important holidays. I
wanted to be with Jewish kids and
discuss things from a Jewish point of
view!"
Bryan said he also attended a
seder at Hillel on Pesach. "The
university rabbi explained everything
so that everyone could understand
what was going on. I'm glad I did not
have to spend the holiday alone!'
Like Bryan, students who stay on
campus for the holidays often turn to
the B'nai B'rith Hillel Foundations as
means to participate with other Jews.
"The purpose of Hillel is to serve
the needs of the Jewish students on
campus," said Joseph Kohane,
associate director of the University of
Michigan Hillel Foundation in Ann
Arbor. "We are a resource for both
religious and cultural activities for
the Jewish student on campus.
"We offer services for all holidays
and Shabbat. Students plug into Rosh
Hashanah and Yom Kippur more
than other holidays, and we have
mega-size services. We offer three dif-
ferent services. Usually we'll have
about 1,500 attend the Conservative
service, 600 at the Reform, and about
60 at the Orthodox.
"Most of our in-state students
celebrate the holidays in the shul they
belong to," said Carol Kazander, ac-
ting co-director of the Hillel Founda-
tion of metro Detroit. "We do not hold
services here at Wayne State, but we
would if we felt there was a need. On
Passover we try to hook up out-of-town
students with families nearby!"
Janet Stanton, administrative
assistant at Hillel Jewish Student
Center at Michigan State University
in East Lansing, said they offer ser-
vices for each of the three branches of
Judaism. "Our services are well at-
tended. On the high holidays the
chapel is filled.
"This year we are having a
welcoming dinner Wednesday night
and a Rosh Hashanah brunch. Ser-
vices are always free, but there is a
charge for the meals. Our center
serves the community throughout the
year!"
Often there are scheduling con-
flicts at universities, and at times
registration or the first day of school
coincides with the Jewish holidays.
"This is a conflict that comes up from
time to time," said Dr. David K. Scott,
provost and vice president of
academic affairs at Michigan State.
"This year registration falls on
September 24, which is a holiday for
the Jewish students.
We have to develop a calendar
that has a certain number of class
days a year and we have to recognize
national holidays. When the Jewish
holidays coincide, we try to be sen-
sitive to that issue. We try to make ar-
rangements with the Jewish Student
Center for students to register early
or late without. paying any penalty
fee. We have asked the rabbi to com-
municate this information to the
students.
Dr. Scott said the MSU policy is
to make the university community
aware and sensitive to the needs of
the Jewish students. "We share a copy
of the Jewish holiday calendar with
the deans of colleges so they can be
accommodating to the needs of the
Jewi41 students.
"If a student needs to be absent
from class he can inform the instruc-
tor and make arrangements to make
up the work. If they can't make ar-
rangements with the professor, they
can appeal to the associate dean or
the dean!"
State Representative David
Honigman (R-West Bloomfield) said
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 43