By Shneur Levy, Opinions Editor
The Undergraduate Torah Studies (UTS) programming on the Wilf campus is undoubtedly geared towards the Mazer Yeshiva Program (MYP). Additionally, many of the ‘secular’ clubs at YU are geared towards Isaac Breuer College (IBC) and James Striar School (JSS) students, and most MYP and BMP students don’t show up to these events. As someone who has been in three out of four of the Wilf yeshiva programs, MYP, Stone Beit Midrash Program (SBMP) and IBC, it is clear that within UTS programming, there is a definite need for more achdut, which brings to light the question: how can we go about making YU a yeshiva and a university?
On August 28, I had the privilege of sitting in on YU President Rabbi Ari Berman’s shiur klali, which primarily focused on Gemara. While I appreciated being able to hear his genius, as having once been an IBC student, it’s not so easy to gain meaning from the majority of what is relayed in such a shiur. There were several meforshim (commentators) that, while incredible, were very complicated and may easily go over one’s head. In light of this reality, why should some students even bother showing up to these shiurim if they won’t be able to connect to what was shared anyway? If something wasn’t ‘for me’ I wouldn’t exactly want to go either.
For this reason, I propose a solution to our UTS programming crisis.
There should be a lot more UTS programming that targets not only the MYP and SBMP students, but the entire Wilf campus student body as a whole. For example, the Romimu Camp Shabbaton transcends the borders between the UTS programs, because students all sit together randomly and get to know people they may never have met otherwise. We sing songs that everyone knows so that everyone can get involved rather than the specific songs that only certain yeshivot in Israel sing. Because while the common culture is that students in YU take a gap year in Israel, UTS programming often leaves the students that didn’t in the dark.
Another aspect of UTS programming that should be changed is Shabbat in the cafeteria. There’s a special group chat called “Shabbat Helpers” that’s devoted to running divrei Torah and singing every weekend. However, it always turns out that the students who know all the songs end up singing the ones they and their table know but that not everyone else does. Therefore, while one side of the room sings, the other usually just talks because they’ve become indoctrinated to ignore the singing due to it not ‘being for them.’ Continuing the tradition from the Romimu Shabbaton, there should be a set list of songs, and instead of just starting to sing the songs, perhaps they can be introduced one by one so that people can actually follow along.
As a current upper senior, I love Yeshiva University and its vast Wilf population, however, we’re not all on the same page. I think it’s incredible when UTS plans programming for the whole yeshiva, but optimizing these opportunities so that they can benefit all of its students is essential. When we’re united as a yeshiva, there isn’t anything that can stop us from all becoming our best selves. No one is better than anyone else. There’s no reason for anyone to be looking down on others just because they had the opportunity of a lifetime to study in Israel when their fellow did not. We’re all only here to become our best selves, and putting someone down has the opposite effect. I hope that by implementing some of these strategies and more, we can all continue becoming a united community at such a wonderful institution.
Photo Caption: The Glueck Beit Midrash on the YU Wilf campus
Photo Credit: Yeshiva University