The Founding of The Jewish Student Union
Writer: Shaina F. / Editors: Caroline M. and Savannah T. / Photographer: Olivia E. / Graphic Designer: Taylor R.
Oftentimes, a person will notice a change that needs to be made, but do nothing about it. Keren B. is not one of those people.
As a student of the Jewish faith, Keren noticed a lack of a space that represented her and she took action in order to find that home for herself. Keren is the Vice-Chair of the Student Leadership Council for the College of Arts and Sciences, Director of Alpha Gamma Delta, Legislative Fellow for Torchlight FSU, a Rho Gamma for 2020 Panhellenic recruitment, and most notably, President and Founder of FSU’s Jewish Student Union (JSU).
When explaining why she decided to establish the JSU, Keren says, “When I came to FSU I struggled with finding where I fit in and what worked for me. Finding my footing in an organization or a committee that I could be a part of was super important. To build up a community that I was looking for, that I know other freshmen would come in looking for, was extremely important to me.”
In order to make her dream a reality, Keren had to put in a lot of hard work. Aside from building her initial membership, Bard started the journey of making the JSU a Recognized Student Organization (RSO). After around a month of tireless work, the JSU finally became an RSO and was officially recognized by the school.
“I feel like one of our campus’s biggest problems is that there is a lot of ignorance,” says Keren.“So, I started the Jewish Student Union with goals in mind of educating the student body and being able to make identifiable change over the next couple of years. So that the Jewish student community, along with faculty and staff, that feel like they’re not being heard and listened to, can be.”
Once receiving that official recognition, the JSU could then focus more on their own agenda. A prominent focus is, “...making changes in policy and student life.” A prominent focus of Keren’s is to make policy changes that will affect the lives of Jewish students. She is part of the task force for anti-Semitism, and also wants to ammend the religious observance policy. Some other prominent focuses that Keren has for the JSU is to promote education and understanding of Judaism, both within and outside the Jewish community. Keren is also on the task force for anti-Semitism, “We have been focusing on amending the religious observance policy and making sure that it is properly enforced.”
With very ambitious goals, Keren knew that she would not be able to accomplish all of her goals independently. The women of Alpha Gamma Delta have provided support and help her achieve her dreams. Keren explains that being the director of her chapter has provided her with a plethora of experience that is invaluable with her position within the JSU. There are many women in Alpha Gam that are involved with the JSU, like Hannah M., who even serves as the Chair of their Social Committee.
Hannah explains that, “I felt that it was important to be involved in an organization like JSU because it allowed me to be a part of something that was bigger than myself. JSU allows me to be in an organization while also celebrating and learning more about my religion and culture.”
Along with the help of her sisters, Bard explains that her experience and training as a Rho Gamma has helped her learn to be a better leader. Her ability to take skills learned in one aspect of life and then translate them to her passions is an incredible skill, making Keren the best leader she can be.
Keren states, “I was doing emotional intelligent leadership with Panhellenic for recruitment as I was starting the JSU. For any organization, you have to lead with empathy, kindness, and compassion, and really focus on what the team needs and how you can best fulfill those needs.”
Through all of her hard work and dedication, Keren has been able to kickstart an organization that will impact the lives of so many individuals in the future. Despite her challenges and extensive dedication needed, her passion for creating this space for those who need it, enables her to overpower any hardships.
When asked about her takeaways from this process, Keren says, “Anyone can start an organization. It takes passion, it takes time, but you have more time than you think you have. Deep dive into it.” Bard will continue to follow her own advice, by continuously working to achieve her goals with her organization. Despite only being an RSO for one semester, Keren has initiated change that will be able to continue throughout this school year, and for many to come.