Jews at Hopkins

Record of Books which are the Property of the Johns Hopkins Zionist Society

The library was catalogued by Zionist Society presidents Phineas Smoller and Joel Seidman, and totaled 157 English volumes and 11 "foreign" volumes in Hebrew, Yiddish, and German. This reflects the academic bent and capability of Jewish students at…

Jewish Awareness Week

Six events were listed on the Jewish Awareness Week flyer, suggesting that although there was a large Jewish presence on campus, many Jews were not affiliated with Jewish student groups. The types of events make it likely that this week was designed…

Shabbat in the KDH

Shabbat services and dinner were regularly held in the Kosher Dining Hall starting in 1966. Because they were not free except for students on the kosher dining plan, these dinners were primarily attended by a core of more observant Jews. However, as…

HCF Apology

The Hopkins Christian Fellowship wrote this apology letter after a Jews for Jesus brochure was on their booktable. While this indicates that some students were insensitive to Jewish students, the quick and sincere apology shows an ethos of…

BSU letter regarding Spring Fair on Passover

The Black Student Union wrote a letter encouraging Spring Fair to change the date from Passover. Not only would many Jewish students have been home for the holiday, but they also could not eat bread, harshly limiting their choices at Spring Fair…

JSA Semiformal

Similar to the Rink and Drink event, the JSA semiformal was designed to bring Jewish students together on a social, rather than religious, basis. These events were well attended, likely due to their variety and the high proportion of Jewish students…

Zionist society ad

This is one of the first times the University Zionist Society shows up in the records. The Zionist Society, though primarily focused on the nascent Jewish state, also served as a generally Jewish club, especially as the Menorah Society dwindled in…