By David Smigel, Opinions Editor, and Gavi Tropper, Features Editor
Mixed Messages and a Confusing Rollout
On August 22, a seemingly innocuous email from Undergraduate Dean and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Rebecca Cypess was sent to the entire student body announcing “Project Yamim,” the university’s dean-led plan for institutional reform ahead of Yeshiva University’s hundredth anniversary in 2028. The email listed numerous areas of focus, such as enhanced Shabbat life, improved professional development resources and further integration of Torah values into the undergraduate experience. They promised swift follow-up and opportunities for student feedback.
Three days later, on August 25, students received another email, from Dean of Students Sara Asher, welcoming them back to campus and further detailing Yamim’s initiatives. Among the listed improvements, under a section titled “Academic and Leadership Development,” the email mentioned “transforming our approach to undergraduate student organizations with enhanced mentorship, higher training expectations, and meaningful leadership development opportunities.” The email went without much notice.
But on August 27, two days after that, existing club leaders and student council members were surprised to receive an exclusive email signed by Dr. Jonathan Schwab, Director of Student Life, and Dean Asher outlining a new visionary framework for student organizations that would overhaul the current club system. The email was quickly circulated across the student body, its contents eliciting confusion and contempt from many. Announcements such as clubs now being “thoughtfully curated,” the introduction of an updated “comprehensive application process” and a requirement for each club to have “a Torah Mentor to provide genuine mentorship” all left room for rampant speculation. It wasn’t until two weeks later, on Thursday, September 11, that the administration announced a virtual town hall and training sessions for the following days to clarify the changes and answer questions.
As a result of so much information coming in such quick succession, many got the false impression that the club changes, which are a part of Project Yamim, were the entirety of Project Yamim. But in an exchange with the YU Observer, Dean Cypess described Project Yamim as a multi-departmental initiative intended “to ensure that all the undergraduate units exist in harmony and work together to create a seamless student experience.” Other components of Project Yamim, such as student focus groups, are already underway.
As for the club overhaul, Dr. Schwab told the YU Observer that it “has been in the works for a long time,” and only when Project Yamim was introduced for YU in general were the club changes subsumed within its brand. Dr. Schwab added that this was “very confusing for students and for staff.”
Some students suspect that the changes to the club system were influenced by tensions between the university and Hareni last year, which ultimately resulted in the LGBTQ+ club’s dissolution in May. These students argue that because the original settlement with Hareni stated that “[t]he Club will not be required to submit to any approval or oversight procedures that are not required for all student Clubs,” the school is now implementing general measures similar to those alluded to an open letter published by YU’s roshei yeshiva in April.
The YU administration denies these claims. “The changes around student organizations have been planned for over a year. They were created through a rigorous benchmarking process using other universities as a point of reference but adapted to YU’s specific mission,” Dean Cypess said. “The changes were not a reaction to any club or incident; rather, they are a proactive, affirmative step that speaks to Project Yamim’s goal of ensuring that all aspects of the undergraduate experience are aligned.”
Clubs to Organizations
Structurally, the primary change under the new system is the reorganization of clubs into student organizations. The administration’s goal is to limit the number of groups, but have each organization cover a broader subject range, with subgroups that encompass more niche topics. Many similar existing clubs are likely to be combined, though the administration will continue to assess what particular structures will best suit each individual organization’s operation.
The school has explained that the goal of consolidation is for student organizations to remain substantial institutions that don’t fall apart from year to year, as clubs were often prone to. Larger organizations will have greater leverage in dealing with outside partners, and the oversight of experienced organizational leaders can ensure the smooth operation of subgroups’ programming.
The centralized leadership of umbrella organizations could also serve to facilitate activities that used to require extensive inter-club collaboration. “When we talk about Yom HaZikaron programing, or even the October 7th memorial, it would be great if it’s not just sponsored by Student Council and the Office of Student Life (OSL), but that there’s an Israel student group on campus that represents all Israel related things and brings the power and organization of that to large events,” Dr. Schwab said.
In the past, all clubs received a default budget of $500 per year. Dr. Schwab recalled times when students formed several clubs which then co-sponsored events in order to utilize more funding. Under the new system, organization leaders will have to plan a budget specific to their operating and event goals and submit it to the OSL for approval. This, he said, ensures that clubs that need more or less than the old default allocation will be able to receive funding according to their needs.
In an effort to ensure administrative oversight over campus events, the school has also announced that student organizations can no longer function as a chapter of an outside group or include an outside organization’s name in their title. Events can still be sponsored and run in collaboration with outside groups, but they will have to be approved by the OSL.
Dr. Schwab has tied these new requirements to frequent issues in the past relating to event and fundraising quotas students take on by representing outside organizations without administrative approval. The administration aims to combat the false impression that a chapter can circumvent YU involvement in conducting events and impose their own requirements on students and the university. Dr. Schwab is hopeful that this will enable student organizations to partner with several outside organizations for events, even simultaneously, rather than being forced to maintain exclusivity to one.
The presence of fewer clubs on campus, however, means there may be fewer leadership positions available to students. There are also fears that the new layers of administration will hinder organizations’ flexibility in hosting smaller, niche events.
“[The new system] is very bureaucratic. It’s unnecessary,” Josh Reback (SSSB ‘28) told the YU Observer. “Why do we need a network of different organizations? [A club] is just a little fun thing you do on campus. It doesn’t have to be that big of a trial to get something through.”
In the past, making a club required little more than submitting a short application to the OSL. Under Project Yamim’s new stipulations, the updated application requires discussion of the organization’s alignment with new values-driven requirements along with detailed plans for events, budgeting and leadership roles.
In addition, starting as early as the Spring 2026 semester, organization leaders will also be required to complete leadership training offered by the school that will cover topics such as budgeting and recruitment. The goal is to frontload leaders with the information and skills they will need before they start leading programming. The existing requirement for leaders to undergo healthy relationship training at the start of every year will also be more strictly enforced than in the past, much like it is for student employees and athletes.
The school aims to host these sessions in person, though segments of the course may end up being asynchronous. Dr. Schwab also suggested the possibility that in the future, successful student leaders may be able to run some of these sessions.
Although these courses will eventually be mandatory for a group’s primary leader, for this fall semester, all that will be required is attendance of a single training session of those OSL is offering both in-person and online. This is required even for those who led clubs in the past, as all formerly existing organizations have been suspended and must be reformed. It appears undecided as to whether the fall training will exempt students from undergoing the full future training.
This year, first time on campus (FTOC) students who attended fall training sessions will be allowed to create organizations. The OSL will be evaluating future policies for FTOCs based partly on the success of these organizations, which in the past have suffered poor rates of continuity. “Very likely, there will be opportunities in the fall for first-year students to begin training for eventually taking over the leadership of existing organizations, not submit new organizations in mid-year.” Dr. Schwab said.
YU Values and Student Life
The shift from clubs to student organizations is not purely pragmatic. The school has made clear that student organizations would now need to have an “educational goal,” eliciting pushback from many within the student body.
“[A club] doesn’t have to be that educational,” Reback said. “It just has to be social and a good use of your time. And who are they to say what’s a good use of our time?”
The school has clarified, however, that they are willing to define this “educational” requirement more broadly. “‘Educational’ means there is a vision to what you’re trying to do,” Dr. Schwab explained at a training session. He went on to clarify that clubs such as the AMC and Magic the Gathering clubs could be easily integrated under the new system since they build a sense of community. This has left ensuing confusion, however, as to what the school’s exact parameters for “educational” will be.
The school has offered that while some events don’t justify the creation of an organization, students can instead coordinate activities in direct cooperation with the OSL. “That part made a lot of sense to me,” Ilan Eisenberger (Katz ’26) told the YU Observer. “You wanted to get something going, or you were inspired by something, and you wanted to have an event, you had to go through all the hassle of starting a club.”
Some students, however, are still unsure what the school’s parameters are for the events they choose to allow. It also remains to be seen how arduous the process of organizing events with the OSL will be. “It seems like a lot of [club] events are going to be carried over through the Office of Student Life — which is important, people want their nice social outings, and we’re here to learn and make friends. But the question is what clubs are not going to get that funding,” Dovid Bluth (YC ‘27) told the YU Observer.
Another step the school has taken to fully align student activities with YU values is providing every organization a Torah Mentor to guide them in areas of halacha and Torah values. A mentor will be chosen by the school for each group from either male or female Judaic studies faculty. Organization leaders will meet with their mentors at least once, and can meet further if any Torah-related issues arise.
“Your Torah Mentor should have an idea of what you’re trying to accomplish with your group, what are your goals. So when a question comes up, they’re not meeting you for the first time,” Dr. Schwab said. “They’re very knowledgeable and understanding of what your group is doing.”
Bluth views having Torah Mentors in a positive light. “We are a yeshiva and a university, and those have to go hand in hand,” he said.
The Future
Although these new regulations have generated a lot of passionate discussion over the last month, the administration has tied much of this agitation to a lack of knowledge about the changes. “I think our initial communication was not incredibly clear about a number of things. I’m glad we’re clarifying a number of things at this point,” Dr. Schwab said. “If a lot of students are confused, it’s because we have not communicated clearly.”
It is clear, however, that the disapproval from segments of the student body stems from the content of the policies as well. Whether students as a whole favor the changes will likely depend on how these policies are implemented over the coming year, and whether they end up hindering or enhancing student-led programming. Dr Schwab, however, remains confident in the long-term benefits.
“With all of the pain sometimes that change brings, I’m also excited about the opportunities here,” he said. “I think there are a lot of chances to do new things we haven’t done before and for students to learn new things they haven’t done before.”
Photo Credit: Shloimy Lowy