Campus Update:

Columbia University/Barnard College

Motivating and Enlarging Participation

Alex Helfand
KOACH Intern

KOACH at Columbia University/Barnard College has paved exciting new pathways over the past eight months and it has been a fun, educational time for all in our community.

This year, Columbia KOACH has focused largely on motivating and enlarging participation in our programs, as well as bolstering KOACH educational programming throughout the year. Columbia KOACH has continued its tradition of offering Conservative egalitarian services every Shabbat, Hag, and Rosh Hodesh. We're always working to improve services and make them more inviting and lively. Many have led a service for the first time ever this past semester and we are in the process of developing a CD so people can have an easy way to learn how to lead services and read Torah and Megillah.

We started the year with a delicious Sunday morning Bagel Brunch kick off and followed up in early November with a fantastic KOACH Friday Night Shabbat Dinner to celebrate KOACH Shabbat. On Saturday, nearly 50 students came to learn about Conservative Judaism and Parashat HaShavua at a Lunch and Learn with tasty bagels, salads, desserts, and cheeses. Later in November, as part of our belief that KOACH has an integral role to play in supporting healthy dialogue about Israel on campus, KOACH helped to bring Walid Shoebat to speak to the Columbia campus about terrorism in Israel and the educational and governmental corruption throughout the greater Middle East. In December, we finished off the fall semester with a relaxing hour of Yoga to ease our minds from the stress of finals, followed by latke-making to celebrate Hanukkah.

After winter vacation, we returned to campus, to a festive social event to welcome back the KOACH community and have fun playing with food. We made several chocolate and vanilla cakes and put out a mammoth assortment of toppings so everyone could create their own Jewish cake sculpture. KOACH’s creative spirit quickly emerged as we sculpted all sorts of amazing things out of cake, from the Kotel in Jerusalem to Mount Sinai. Energized by a great social event which attracted many newcomers to our community, we followed up with another Lunch and Learn in February. Continuing with our goals of community building, education and Israel, Devora Greenberg, the Shliha for the Conservative Movement, came to discuss the Conservative (Masorti) Movement in Israel with us. Devora challenged us to think about the vital role that Israel’s Masorti Jews play in the formation and revitalization of open religious pluralism in Israel today.

In the coming months, Columbia KOACH is looking forward to Shabbat meals, a pot-luck Shabbat lunch in the spring, a Friday Night Oneg with Improv games and creative Bibliodrama, and a Purim Mishloah Manot exchange with an added component of making matanot l’evyonim (gifts for the needy). Columbia KOACH is strong and growing. We are forging ahead into an exciting future for KOACH and for Conservative Jews across the world.

[Posted 3/9/05]