Nitzavim: The campus revolution of next-generation Jewish leaders

They are the 2025 Nitzavim Fellows, and this fall they’ll deploy across 32 colleges and universities to launch 24 original projects designed to strengthen and inspire thousands of Jewish students. 

The initiative is not about reaction. It’s about leadership – proactive, compassionate, confident leadership rooted in Jewish values and powered by one shared goal: to ensure the future of Israel and the Jewish people. 

Each project is tailor-made to the campus it serves, with strategies ranging from combating antisemitism to providing Jewish programming and education about Israel.

The program was founded by Rabbi Adi Isaacs, in conjunction with the Rothberg International School of Hebrew University (RIS) and the Seven Schwartz Brothers Leadership Trust. Originally from Los Angeles, Isaacs is a dynamic force in the world of Jewish student engagement and founder of Jewish Year Abroad, a privately funded NGO umbrella for several Israel-based educational initiatives for Anglo students, including Thrive Study Abroad and Nitzavim. The Hebrew word nitzavim means “standing strong.”

“This program, in conjunction with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Seven Schwartz Brothers, and now in partnership with Masa Israel Journey, reflects our shared belief in preparing students not just for college but for leadership,” Isaacs said. “Together, we’re building a new generation of passionate, educated, and empowered Jewish advocates who will stand up for Israel and the Jewish people on their campuses, effecting tremendous change.”

Toby Kerekes is the director of partnerships and recruitment for RIS. “I’ve been working with Rabbi Isaacs for years, as has the university,” she said.

“We came up with an idea for Nitzavim during COVID: to bring students who were already in Israel to study part time at RIS,” Kerekes explained.

“Then, in the wake of the Hamas massacre on Oct. 7, 2023, it ballooned into this very relevant, immediate project that really spoke to people.”

From Israel to the Ivy League: A leadership engine

Their projects are pitched in a Shark Tank-style Showcase to a panel of judges representing business, academia, media, and Jewish organizational leadership. Winning teams receive start-up funding and mentorship to implement their initiatives when they return to college. The training also includes personal mentorship, media coaching, and scenario-based simulations of challenging conversations they are likely to face on campus.

“Nitzavim was founded to fill a void on college campuses,” said Rena Zoldan, COO of Nitzavim and Jewish Year Abroad. “More than ten years ago, Rabbi Isaacs launched Thrive – an accredited study-abroad experience at Hebrew University or Tel Aviv University that offers Jewish learning and Israel cultural immersion. Students live on campus in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, engage with peers from around the world, and experience Israel not as tourists but as residents.” 

Thrive took off. Students met IDF soldiers their own age, visited kibbutzim, explored innovation hubs, and engaged in conversations about peace, politics, and peoplehood. “It was immersive, raw, and real,” Zoldan said. “And it worked.”

And that’s how Nitzavim began – empowering gap year students in Israel with the tools to create a positive Israel and Jewish life movement on their campuses. Today, those fellows are creating opportunities for Jewish students to connect in grassroots, peer-to-peer interactions at colleges across North America.

As part of the new partnership with Masa, Nitzavim has expanded beyond the fellowship to educate an additional 100 students on the program’s mission of standing up on campus for Israel and the Jewish people in an immersive, two-day weekend retreat. It also gave a workshop at dozens of gap year schools, allowing hundreds of additional students to join the movement.

Prof. Akiva Gersh, who teaches the Nitzavim classes, emphasized that leadership means showing up with love. “We’re giving them the knowledge and confidence to support their Jewish peers – across denominations – with respect and empathy.”

Another huge aspect is the Jewish entrepreneurial part: building their projects from scratch, he said. “What does it mean to put out an idea? What's the problem? What's the solution? How are you going to craft it?” He has them ask and answer. 

“They've never done this – and we’re giving these 18-year-olds the tools and the skills to do it.”

Nitzavim Impact Showcase 2025

“We are honored to be a co-founder of the Nitzavim Fellowship, a pioneering program that embodies the spirit of innovation and excellence at Hebrew University’s Rothberg International School,” Fraenkel said. “Through this initiative, our fellows will serve as proud ambassadors for Israel, leveraging their knowledge and skills to promote a deeper understanding of the country and its people on campuses around the world.”

Holtz added: “At a time of rising antisemitism and divisive discourse, we believe that preparing young Jews with knowledge, pride, and resilience is critical. Our partnership with Nitzavim strengthens Jewish identity and equips our fellows with the tools to lead their communities with confidence. 

“In addition to the in-depth training they receive through Nitzavim, Masa fellows come with firsthand experience of living in Israel – a perspective many of their peers simply don’t have,” he said. “This combination enables them to translate what they’ve lived and learned here into practical tools for advocacy and support when they return home. This is the kind of impact we are proud to invest in.”

• ChallahPalooza – aims to create Jewish awareness and pride on the U. Maryland campus by hosting a yearly food festival showcasing different types of Jewish food from various geographical areas. 

• Israel Launch Pad – This project was formed by a group of students, all staying in Israel after their gap year. They found that there is no one resource to help students debating about going to the army or sheirut leumi. Therefore, they created a website to pair up mentors and mentees, create relationships, and share vast information in one place.

• One Campus, One Shabbat – a group that will host student-led Shabbat meals on the campuses of Cornell and Princeton University. Although these campuses have large Chabad / Hillel houses, a significant number of Jewish students do not partake in activities or Shabbat meals. These student-run meals will offer laid back, comfortable and casual Shabbat environments so that unaffiliated Jewish students on campus will feel welcome.  

• Jewish Life Unplugged – created by students attending numerous Ivy league universities, JLU will serve as a resource for prospective students to get a taste of Jewish life on campus across numerous universities. Using Instagram and a newsletter as their main platforms, they aim to reach hundreds of Jewish high school students to give them a well-informed look into Jewish life on campus. 

• Bonding and Bites – Led by a group of women who will be soon attending Columbia University, it will create activities for Jewish Freshmen and aims to increase Jewish unity and pride on campus.

• Chaverut – A Jewish learning app, it is a combination of tinder and Khan Academy. The app "matches" learning partners based on their learning level and what they want to learn. 

“When I won, I felt a wave of emotion,’ Goodman told In Jerusalem. 

“I went to a secular school and recently became religious,” the $5,000 winner said. “The app really came from my own Jewish experience – I want to reach out to non-religious Jews and show them that Jewish learning is really cool when its done in a tech-savvy, engaging way.”

Matching with mentors – everyone is a winner

“Every group has different mentors, who take an idea from concept to a plan, a presentation, and then help them to activate that on campus,” she said.

“The two students that I'm involved with actually made a decision while here in Israel to stay and continue learning here, which is great,” their mentor said proudly. “They will continue their project here and send the ideas back to their friends there.”

Besides the winner, some groups find sponsors for their projects, Ben Shalom said, and others would love to get sponsored.

Other projects included Jewish wellness clubs, volunteer initiatives, media campaigns, holiday outreach kits, social action events, and programs for students who had never celebrated a bar or bat mitzvah.

One team created “Shabbat To Go” boxes for dorm rooms. Another planned a mental health initiative that trains Jewish students to be peer listeners for those experiencing campus stress or isolation.

“The energy here is amazing – it's incredible to see so many Jewish students passionate about making a difference,” said Judge Beatie Deutsch, who made a big difference by winning the Tel Aviv Marathon – while seven months pregnant – and later the Jerusalem Marathon, just after having her fifth child (see "Meet Beatie Deutsch, a religious mom and fastest woman in Israel," March 3, 2024). 

“I was really grateful to be honored to be a judge here,” she said, “and see how the future of the Jewish people is bright.”

Rabbi Isaacs believes these tools are essential. “College campuses are ideological battlegrounds. Our fellows don’t just defend, they elevate – and model what it means to be a proud, compassionate Jew.”

Each week, fellows dissect anti-Israel content from social media, analyze how to respond to loaded questions, and train in how to listen with strength. They learn when to engage – and when to walk away.

Training for the front lines 

When they return to campus, some will launch prayer groups or mentorship programs. Others will host challah bakes, set up Jewish book clubs, or create safe spaces for Jews to talk about their experiences and fears.

Nitzavim started small; now it’s reaching thousands. With each fellow influencing dozens of peers, the math – and the mission – speak for themselves. Its network of Jewish student leadership is becoming a critical counterweight to growing antisemitic hostility on campus.

This fall, at Harvard, Barnard, Maryland, Princeton, Binghamton, Brown, Brandeis, Rutgers, Columbia, NYU, MIT, and other universities large and small, these young men and women will take their place – not just as students but as sources of light.

They are not just Jewish students anymore – they are Jewish leaders.

Students are coached not only in content but also in confidence. They rehearse difficult conversations, develop rapid-response toolkits, and learn how to turn hostile environments into teachable moments. The goal is not just to educate; it’s to empower.

The leadership curriculum is built around three core pillars: Jewish identity; strategic communication; and proactive engagement. Each fellow is taught how to balance moral clarity with empathy; how to build bridges rather than burn them. Isaacs emphasized that this is not about debating for sport; it’s about restoring dignity and inviting curiosity. “We don’t teach them to win arguments,’ he often says. ‘We teach them to win people.”

This past year, fellows heard from leading thinkers, which included journalists, activists, educators, and IDF officers. They engaged with Jewish leaders from across the spectrum – Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and secular – to understand the range of Jewish voices they will encounter on campus. 

A launchpad, not a graduation

Fellows are also signing up to take on leadership positions with organizations like Hillel, Chabad on Campus, Olami, and StandWithUs. This ensures that Nitzavim’s influence doesn’t end at Ben-Gurion Airport – it’s just beginning.

“This fourth year of the program was stellar in terms of the creativity the students applied to their campus projects,” noted Mark Sanders, a media content producer for Nitzavim. “Every gap year student heading to a secular university or college needs the skill set unique to this training.”

As the Jewish world grapples with generational shifts, the Nitzavim Fellowship may be one of the most hopeful signs on the horizon. It doesn’t just react to hate – it cultivates love: for Jewish values, the Jewish people, and for every Jewish soul. 