By Ally Hadge, Features Editor
Hadar Katsman (SCW ‘27) is a sophomore at Stern College for Women majoring in English Media Studies with a concentration in journalism. She is from Seattle, Washington and loves reading, playing the cello, hanging out with friends, and attending shiurim on the Beren campus.
What’s your favorite class at YU and why?
I love school so choosing a favorite class is extremely difficult for me. I go to sleep Monday and Wednesday internally jumping because I know the next morning I have Rav Shay Schachter’s Weekly Mitzvos class and Rav Soloveichik’s History of Zionism class. It’s Torah and Jewish history, so how could I not love these classes? However, as an English media studies major, I can’t leave out my News Writing and Reporting class with Professor Jason Gewirtz. I enjoy educating myself more on the news and improving my reporting skills.
Why did you choose to attend YU?
Besides the fact that it’s a Jewish college, YU really values campus life and makes student clubs and events a priority (shoutout to the Office of Student Life). YU also offers a warm Shabbos atmosphere on campus that out-of-towners like myself can really benefit from. My favorite of all are the daily shiurim and learning opportunities (like Tuesday Night Live) that Stern provides. I can’t imagine attending any other Jewish college that doesn’t prioritize things like these, that make my college experience much more uplifting and exciting.
What’s been your favorite article to write so far?
I have to say my feature “Step Outside the Biology Lab: Underrepresented Majors in YU”. I find it so fascinating to conduct interviews and see others’ perspectives on different topics. Writing this article personally helped me see majors like political science and studio art in a new light and gave me more of an appreciation for them. As much as I love writing opinion articles, writing features gives me an opportunity to both socialize and learn more on topics that I’m either passionate about or have little to no previous knowledge on, which is just so exciting to me.
Did you always enjoy writing, or was it something you grew into?
I’ve always found an outlet in writing from a young age. When I was in elementary school, I wrote several short stories and gave them to my school library for kids to check out (I’m not joking, the library literally had a designated bin for all of my stories). As I grew older, I became obsessed with inspirational quotes and journaling my thoughts out, which I continue to do. I also began writing for the YU Observer during my first semester and have loved every second of it.
What legacy do you hope to leave through your writing?
I hope my writing can bring topics to the spotlight that many people are ignorant or uneducated on, and to share my own opinions in the hope that others will take meaning from the stories that I have to share. There’s so much sheker (falsehood) in the world, and it pains me when people don’t see the truth. I want to use my writing to educate others on what’s right and to spread awareness of issues that plague our Jewish people and the rest of the world.
Photo Caption: Hadar Katsman
Photo Credit: Hadar Katsman