By Kayla Glickman

At a time when many Jewish students report hiding visible signs of their Jewish identity or avoiding speaking openly about Israel on campus, 100 students gathered at the fifth annual Nitzavim Fellowship Impact Project Showcase to mark the culmination of a year-long investment with a different message: the future of Jewish campus life will be shaped by students willing to lead proudly.

The showcase, hosted at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, featured seventeen finalists spanning six projects, with this year’s winning project, titled “Am Echad,” developed by Skylar Margulies of Long Island, Sacha Feit of New Milford, New Jersey, and Ari Gordon of Atlanta, Georgia. The team received $5,000 in seed funding to implement their initiative this fall at Washington University in St. Louis.

Their project aims to connect Jewish college students with Jewish high school and elementary school students from different religious backgrounds through free tutoring and mentorship opportunities, using academic support as a vehicle to strengthen Jewish unity and foster deeper connections.

This year, the judging panel comprised Deputy Director from the Ministry of Diaspora and Combating Anti-Semitism, Yom Tov Ranaan; Chief Development Officer of Masa Israel Journey Sacky Mitrani; Hebrew University Professor Ron Shor; and Program Director of Jewish Life at the Walder Foundation Jenni Richton.

“Jewish students can find real connection and community on campus through meaningful mentoring and tutoring relationships, one partnership at a time,” said Margulies, who grew up in the Five Towns. “We’ve already recruited 15 tutors and paired another 15 to 30 students, and we believe that by building strong mentorship networks, we can meaningfully strengthen both our community today and our future.”

Founded in 2021 by Rabbi Adi Isaacs in partnership with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Seven Schwartz Brothers Leadership Trust, the Nitzavim Fellowship educates, engages, and empowers gap year students from North America and the UK to create impact projects that will solve problems they anticipate facing on campus.

“We are living through a time when many Jewish students feel the need to hide their identity or stay silent about Israel on campus, yet this showcase reflects a growing movement of young Jewish leaders choosing to proactively shape campus culture and strengthen Jewish life amid rising antisemitism across North American universities,” said Rabbi Isaacs. “What we saw at the showcase was an inspiring generation stepping forward with courage, creativity, and a deep sense of responsibility for the future of the Jewish people.”

The fellowship has expanded in recent years through its partnership with Masa Israel Journey to include leadership seminars, a Shabbaton for additional gap year students, and additional educational programming throughout the year.

“It’s clear that this program gives students incredible confidence, leadership training, and presentation skills,” said Jenni Richton, who sat on the judging panel. “What makes the program especially powerful is that it brings together students from such a diverse cross-section of Jewish life and campus experiences, and that diversity only strengthens the impact they are able to have together.”

High school graduates heading to Israel for a gap year before college can now apply for the 2026-27 Fellowship or get more information at Nitzavim.org.