 Media Credit: Levine Hillell Center The Levine Hillel Center on Morgan Street serves as a resource for Jewish students on campus, and welcomes all to participate in activities.
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The Levine Hillel is preparing to welcome students to the UIC community. As a non-profit organization, Hillel is established to engage Jewish students of diverse backgrounds in the community and empower them to affirm their Jewish identity. Hillel is excited for new programs that will be coordinated especially for the dorms. One of the goals of the organization is to maximize social opportunities and relationships between Jewish and non-Jewish students on and beyond campus. These new plans are focused to include all students on campus, and not only Jewish students.
Hillel is eager to see how the organization will mature in the future. With the tremendous growth of UIC over the past few years, Hillel is also booming with new members and interest. The addition of new student internship positions will allow Hillel to coordinate events to reach out to students who would not typically associate with Jewish issues. Hillel hopes to promote Jewish students to take part in activities with friends from the dorms. This will foster student empowerment by increasing the quantity and quality of student contributions to program planning and implementation.
Hosting events in the dorms provides an opportunity for students to participate in a location where they feel most comfortable. Enjoyable events allow students to celebrate with fellow classmates. A Valentine's Day-themed party, Hillelentines, is the organization's annual signature event and sees the largest attendance each year. Hillel is looking to expand upon its coordinated events by offering additional opportunities to participate in the dorms. The organization will host Friday night Shabbat dinners in the dorms so students can celebrate with their friends.
There are also many educational and enrichment opportunities. World-renowned speakers discuss issues such as counter-terrorism, environmentalism and improving relations in the Middle East. Outings with peers are frequently popular and include attending Chicago Bulls games, "Jersey Boys," and volunteer opportunities at the Uptown Café. In addition, for the first time this year, students planned a mini-music festival that brought together people from around the city to raise awareness and funds for the people of Israel.
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