for college students by college students
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MAY 20, 2010 / 7 SIVAN 5770
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Wayne State
Junior Earns
$500 Hillel
Scholarship
Love Of Judaism
Jewish At OU
OCC student takes on Hillel Israel advocacy role
after "amazing" Birthright trip.
by Alyssa McMillan I jewish@edu staff writer
Freshman's
involvement
allows her to be
comfortable with
her religion.
by Jennifer Goodman
jewish@edu staff writer
Growing up in a Modern
Orthodox household, I was
surrounded by religion. I
attended a Jewish school from
kindergarten to my senior
year, attending classes with
the same people year after
year. After school, I worked at
my parents' kosher restaurant,
Sara's Deli in Southfield, serv-
ing most of the Detroit Jewish
community.
Between work and school,
I was always in a place where
living a Jewish lifestyle was
the norm. I admit that I lived
in a bubble although once I
graduated from high school,
my bubble burst. Most of my
friends chose to go to Israel
to study in seminary for the
year, but I decided to get
a head start on my college
career and applied to Oakland
University (OU).
I honestly was a little wor-
ried as to how I was going
to keep my Jewish iden-
tity when all of my religious
safety nets had been cut out
I
'ni Alyssa McMillan, and
yes, I am a black Jew. Some
people might use the term
"blewish" to describe me.
Instead, let me describe who I
really am.
I grew up in north Oak Park
and attended the Berkley School
District. In those surroundings, I
was exposed to many Jewish rituals
and traditions — and I learned a
lot. My parents and I were always
very open-minded about different
cultures and religions, and the one
that captivated us the most was
Judaism.
My parents and I started taking
classes at Temple Israel in West
Bloomfield and felt the comfort and
family within the congregation. In
October of 2006, at age 20, I con-
verted to Judaism. One week later,
my mother converted and two years
after that, my father followed in our
footsteps.
In February of 2008, I was recruited by a Hillel of Metro
Detroit (HMD) staff member to go to Israel on Taglit-
Birthright. Everything happened so fast; that May, I was
crossing the Atlantic Ocean on my way to the Holy Land!
After participating in this amazing experience, I wanted to
take on more of a leadership role in the Jewish community
and applied to become Hillel of Metro Detroit's Grinspoon
Israel Advocacy Intern with a focus on multicultural dia-
logue.
As a Grinspoon intern, my aim is to enhance Israel's
image and educate HMD's campus communities to become
more knowledgeable about and supportive of the State of
Israel. I try to connect Metro Detroit college students and
young adults to Israeli culture,
history and diversity and get them
to recognize the unique role that
Israel plays in their lives.
The multicultural dialogue ini-
tiative has given me the framework
in which to put on educational
and social programming, such
as Israel and Diversity Lunch &
Learns, Falafel & Film with the
Jewish Gay Network of Detroit,
Israeli Purim Masquerade, Faces
of Israel Panel and Israeli Earth
Day Shabbat. It has been such a
positive learning experience to
put on these programs through a
team effort, with help from HMD,
the network of Grinspoon interns
throughout the country and the
Israel on Campus Coalition. With
all of my partners, I believe we
are making a difference and positively
affecting people's views of and feelings
toward Israel.
Beyond my role with Hillel of Metro Detroit, I am a stu-
dent at Oakland Community College in Farmington Hills
and Schoolcraft College in Livonia, working on a degree in
vocal performance with a minor in Hebrew. Next year, I am
transferring to Oakland University. I am heavily involved
in my synagogue, Temple Israel, where I sing on two
choirs, the T'fillah Team and Kol HaKahal. I am also an
AmeriCorps member serving at the South Oakland Shelter
in Royal Oak. I love to volunteer and help people; and I
hope to one day open up my own nonprofit organization.
And that is the real Alyssa McMillan.
Alyssa McMillan of West Bloomfield just finished her freshman year at
Oakland Community College.
from under me. I was already
dreading the questions I
knew I would be asked such
as: "Why are you wearing
a skirt when it is below
zero, aren't you cold?" or
Goodman, just graduated
from OU and was the presi-
"Why can't you come out on
dent of the Jewish Student
Organization/Hillel (JSO) there
if I was interested, I should
consider taking on this leader-
the year before I enrolled so
I already knew some Jewish
ship role. I thought about it,
and I really did want to get
involved, so I stepped up and
minority and portray a good
representation of how a
Jewish woman behaves; it
seemed like a lot of pressure.
78
May 20 2010
Family Scholarship to Wayne
State University student Erica
Rogers of Birmingham. The
$500 scholarship is awarded to
a student currently enrolled in
a Metro Detroit university on
the basis of academic strength,
need, service to the community
and HMD involvement.
Rogers is a junior at Wayne
State University in Detroit
studying public relations.
She also is a Peer Network
Engagement Intern for HMD
and assisted in planning
HMD's Alternative Spring
Break program.
"I was uninvolved until I
took a chance and went on
HMD's Alternative Spring
Break to New Orleans last
year," Rogers said. "As an
HMD intern, I try to show
people just what I saw and
learned after New Orleans. The
experiences gained through
HMD and being part of the
Detroit Jewish community
have added a great richness to
my life."
HMD also awarded two
honorable mention Direnfeld
Family Scholarships to Kristina
Yusufova of Detroit, a WSU
senior studying mechanical
engineering, and Ari Jacobovitz
of Oak Park, a WSU freshman
studying marketing manage-
ment. @
Jacqueline Gordon, who
told me the JSO needed a
secretary. She suggested that
Saturday?"
I knew it was going to
be tough having to be the
Hillel of Metro Detroit (HMD)
awarded its annual Direnfeld
Luckily, my brother, Jereme
students and most of the JSO
board before attending school.
On the first day of classes,
I ran into the new president,
became their secretary during
my first year in college.
Ever since then, I have
been involved in organizing
lunch-and-learns, Shabbat
dinners, tabling events and
holiday parties with other
executive board members,
Vice President Alaina Farber,
Treasurer Maxx Lesnick and
our Hillel of Metro Detroit
(HMD) adviser Julie Schechter.
Being able to be part of the
Jewish Student Organization
and HMD has allowed me to
be comfortable with my reli-
gion so that I am not afraid
to dress a certain way or to
decline an event because it is
conflicting with Shabbat or a
certain holiday.
Overall, the JSO at Oakland
University, along with Hillel
of Metro Detroit, has allowed
Jewish students to meet oth-
ers with similar values and
empower them to feel free
to live a Jewish lifestyle. I
am glad to be a leader in an
organization that strives to
grow Jewish life at Oakland
University and on other Metro
Detroit campuses. @
Jennifer Goodman of Oak Park
just finished her freshman year at
Oakland University.