On this campus, professors join students on Friday nights
Franklin & Marshall College (Lancaster, Pa.)—
The laughter of playing children can be heard amid the chatter of college students at Hillel on Friday nights. It may be unusual for Hillel attendees to show up with their own children, but at Franklin & Marshall College, students aren’t the only regulars. Many professors and their families celebrate Shabbat on campus, too.
The close student-professor relationship is the reason why senior Jessica Fink came to F&M, a small liberal arts school.
“Whether or not I actually speak to my professors at Hillel, I feel that seeing them around campus, and at Hillel, enhances the feeling of community and familiarity that makes F&M so special,” Fink said.
Many professors mingle their professional lives with their personal lives by participating in non-academic events on campus, like Shabbat at Hillel.
“F&M is the kind of school where it is even better if you bring your private life with you when you come to campus, in an appropriate manner of course,” Kabi Hartman, senior adjunct assistant professor of English, said.
Ah, the perks of attending a 2,200 undergraduate college with a faculty to student ratio of only 10 to one. Students often take it for granted that they know little details about their professors’ lives outside of their academic careers, such as their food preferences, their families and their traditional customs. All of which can be gained, in the case of some Jewish F&M professors, from observing and interacting with them at Hillel on a Friday night.
“Sometimes there can be a bad rap associated with Hillel, like nerdy or not cool, and I think that should be totally buried because Hillel attracts all different types of people and there is such a cross-section of F&M students who come here—athletes, Greeks, etc.,” Matthew Hoffman, associate professor of Judaic Studies and History, said.
As a means of separating Shabbat from her hectic academic week, Fink said, “I like to say hello, and maybe even talk about non-school related topics, but I wouldn’t want to think of them as my professor on that occasion.”
Marco DiGuilio, assistant professor of Hebrew language and literature expressed a similar sentiment from the other side. “I like to establish a closer relationship with my students in the Hillel environment, but I realize sometimes having me around at first might make them nervous,” he said.
Some students even worry about their appearances around professors. “Sometimes I get self-conscious about what I’m wearing, just because it seems like whenever I see professors there they’re dressed a bit more formally than they are in class, and I’m not,” Fink said. “Other than that, I feel like I can really be myself.”
In fact, Hartman said students are more likely to approach her at Hillel.
Professors emphasized how often students personally reach out and invite them to Hillel. DiGuilio’s favorite aspect of attending Hillel Shabbat is “just being Jewish with other Jews. It’s a part of my life that I don’t get to live during the work week, and it’s meaningful to share it with the students and the faculty I see at Hillel.”
Professors’ with families often bring them along. “It’s nice for my son to see a bigger group of people celebrating Shabbat, recognizing he can still be a college student and still be Jewish,” Hoffman said.
DiGuilio said his daughter “loved the fact that college kids play with her at Hillel and make it such a welcoming environment.” Students from Hillel often end up babysitting for their kids, too.
While the interviewed professors all responded enthusiastically about attending Hillel Shabbat, they all come from different Jewish backgrounds. Hoffman and DiGuilio did not get interested in Judaism until their college years, though Hartman didn’t begin to incorporate Judaism into her life until she married someone who was interested in religious studies. Regardless of the different denominational affiliations shared among the professors, they still enjoy each other’s company.
“Socializing with other adults in this setting is one of the things I like the most about it,” Hoffman explained.
When they’re not at Hillel, some of the professors and their families host Shabbat in their homes, rotating the location.
Because they enjoy Shabbat at Hillel so much, some professors have sought further involvement. In Hartman’s case, she now leads the Jewish book group on campus. The group consists of members from both the Lancaster community and from the college, creating a wide range of ages. Reading contemporary Jewish literature, which is not her area of expertise as a professor, is “a great opportunity for a hobby to feed into my professional life,” Hartman said.
Summing up the effect of professors sharing Shabbat with students, Kagan said, “Seeing professors at Hillel and making a connection with them outside of the classroom definitely makes it easier to approach them when I need help during the week.”
Senior Emily Kagan said, “While in the classroom they might be intimidating, at Hillel grades do not matter and we can just talk and get to know each other as Jews.”
Kelly Seeger is a senior at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa. studying government and Arabic. Her other academic interests include national security, journalism and foreign policy–particularly regarding the Middle East. In her spare time, Kelly enjoys bicycling, traveling and reading. She is a New Voices national correspondent.
