for college students by college students

Aug. 31, 2017/ 9 Elul 5777

Taking Action

Summer In Israel

UM-D student senator touts
the importance of involvement.

U-M interns in Tel Aviv gain
more than work experience.

Jordan Wohl } jewish@edu writer

spent this summer working as an orientation leader
at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. Orientation
is designed to help new students succeed academi-
cally, adjust to collegiate life and meet new friends.
Whenever I took a group past the Student
Government Office on the second floor of our
University Center, I smiled. I was glad because I had an
excellent spiel:
I told the students that sometime in their collegiate
career, they will be bothered by something on campus.
Be it parking issues, concerns with leadership or lack of
a certain resource — there will always be something.
Moreover, if they don’t have an issue at some point,
they will actually miss out. I always explained that
Student Government works to address those issues,
and that is why I was proud to be a part of it.
I first joined Student Government halfway through
my second semester at UM-Dearborn after having

I

“Student Government
gives me the opportunity
to be a part of something
greater than myself …”

Jordan Wohl

— Jordan Wohl

many friends pestering me to do so. A few months
later, I was elected to the role of senator, which I have
been all summer. I love having the opportunity to
represent my school and the people in it as a student
senator. In addition, as vice president of Hillel of Metro
Detroit’s Jewish Student Organization at UM-Dearborn
since October 2016, I have been allowed to represent
Jewish students and their concerns, and meet other
student leaders from many different campus organiza-
tions.
Over the past few months, the leadership of Student
Government has worked toward adjusting its meet-
ing times to better convenience students who observe
Shabbat, and now we will be working with a new
meeting time this fall because of it.
I want to help make UM-Dearborn a destination
for all students, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity,
sexual orientation or anything else that makes an indi-
vidual an individual. Student Government gives me the
opportunity to be a part of something greater than
myself to achieve that goal, and I can’t wait to get to
work in September. @

Jordan Wohl of Danvers, Mass., is a sophomore at University of
Michigan-Dearborn is the vice president of the UM-Dearborn Jewish
Student Organization and a senator of the Student Government.

72

August 31 • 2017

Claire Yerman

Abbey Blender

U

niversity of Michigan juniors from
Metro Detroit share highlights of
their summer internships in Israel.

Claire Yerman,
West Bloomfield

This summer, I moved across the Atlantic to
help develop the ocean wave energy indus-
try. By August, living in Israel had unexpect-
edly become the most instrumental part of
my journey.
I worked in Tel Aviv at Eco Wave Power
Ltd. as a business development and strategy
intern. I spent weekdays meeting with inves-
tors, developing multimillion-dollar proj-
ects and strategizing global expansion. On
weekends, I immersed myself in culture and
experiences, including spending time with
an Israeli camper I met at Tamarack Camps
many years ago and staying at the home of a
teacher I had at Hillel Day School.
The full immersion — including public
transportation, work culture and terror
attacks — forced me to consistently chal-
lenge myself. Built from a strong foundation-
al Jewish identity, my experiences further
engaged my appreciation for the Jewish state
and promoted my own growth and learning
in ways I could have never imagined.

Abbey Blender,
Bloomfield Hills

This summer, I was lucky enough to spend
two months in Israel, a place I am fortunate
to call my second home. It has always been a

Autumn Jacob

dream of mine to spend a summer in Israel
and, with the help of Onward Israel, I was
able to make that dream a reality.
I spent my summer as a marketing intern
at the Heschel Center for Sustainability in
Tel Aviv, an organization that focuses on pro-
moting environmentally friendly practices in
Israeli society. Through working and living
in the suburbs of Tel Aviv, I was able to fully
immerse myself in the Israeli culture, which
I had not been able to previously experience
on guided tours through the country.

Autumn Jacob,
West Bloomfield

I spent the summer in Tel Aviv interning
for an artificial intelligence company called
Neura. Though I have been to Israel many
times, this experience of living and working
in Tel Aviv offered me a completely different
perspective.
As a user experience intern, I was chal-
lenged to create simple solutions to reveal
the complex features AI has to offer the
world. I was so fortunate to be surrounded
by all the crazy, talented minds within the
Neura family. But beyond my experience
working, I was constantly learning the cul-
ture of Tel Aviv: crowded bus rides, matkot
on the beach, hummus at every meal. I truly
miss it all. Looking back at my summer, I left
with way more than mud from the Dead Sea
or Israeli popping chocolate. I left with the
wisdom of Tel Aviv’s culture and incredible
relationships that I will forever hold on to. @

jn

UC

