College Choice

With high schools on summer break, college is on the mind of many of their students.

Rising high school seniors will be obsessing during the next few months about finding the perfect college fit, while those who just graduated will be anticipating their move to college with a mixture of excitement and anxiety. Selecting a college has always been about figuring out where students are most likely to thrive.  But with campuses ablaze with antisemitism, the stakes for Jewish students seem to be higher than ever.

As a longtime professor and administrator, I have been asked over and over again if I have any advice to share.

For what it is worth, here it is:

If you are deciding where to apply, I would not shy away from those schools that have recently been pilloried in the news.  The coverage of the vitriol in the encampments might understandably give you (and your parents) pause, but remember that students come and go, and so do college “leaders.”  Has it been really ugly, for example, at our local schools, UCLA and USC?  Sure.  But they are among the most prestigious universities in the world, and to dismiss them out of hand as potential choices would be a mistake.  A small percentage of students have soiled their colleges’ reputations with their intimidating behavior and outrageous demands, urged on by faculty and staff enablers and by outside agitators.  The rest are either peacefully exercising their right to free speech, or simply going about the business of education the best they can.

It would be unwise to eliminate schools based on the activities of some out-of-control students and spineless administrators who refuse to hold them accountable for their words and actions.

If you cross out those two schools from your search list, where do you stop?  At last count, 123 colleges and universities have had encampments. You might as well drop Columbia and Penn, Harvard and Dartmouth, Pomona and Brown, Rutgers and Indiana, Michigan and Texas, and more than a hundred more.  Take a close look at Brandeis – it is a wonderful institution with a proud Jewish heritage – but it would be unwise to eliminate schools based on the activities of some out-of-control students and spineless administrators who refuse to hold them accountable for their words and actions. 

What about when you arrive on campus?  College is a time to reinvent yourself, to stretch intellectually, to rediscover the joys of learning, to gain the humility and the tools to educate yourself for a lifetime, to make enduring friendships, and yes, to have fun. For more than a decade I welcomed Jewish students at Northwestern’s Hillel during move-in days. I reminded them that they were not in school to represent the Jewish people, to defend Israel’s right to exist, or to otherwise carry the burden of educating others about our faith.  That was true prior to Oct.7, and remains true today.

But should you do so – and G-d bless you for trying – don’t be naïve.  Be aware of the myriad traps that await you. My experience as a student, parent and educator suggests that the ideal place to grapple with the challenging issues relating to your Jewish identity is not at a public forum or in the dining halls – it is when you are among your fellow Jews. Hillels and other Jewish organizations provide space for vigorous debate in front of friends.  Arguing within the broader college community can be an exceedingly risky proposition. It is a terrible thing to be cancelled, and it is particularly painful should it happen to you in your dorm.  

And be sure to select your classes carefully, especially if they are in academic disciplines that are hotbeds for what passes these days as “progressive” thinking.  The vast majority of faculty teach their subjects with pride and integrity.  But not all.  Every school has professors who are more interested in indoctrination than in education.  And a frequent target is the Jewish state.  That is another reason to spend time at Hillel – students know which faculty and courses to avoid.

This is not meant to suggest that you hide your Jewishness or turn a blind eye when confronted with ignorance and hate.  But recognize that the personal stakes are high, and choose your spots with great care.

And if your college experience results in your being more aware of the ever-present hostility that Jews face, that is a life lesson that should, alas, serve you all too well following graduation.

Morton Schapiro is the former president of Williams College and Northwestern University.  His most recent book (with Gary Saul Morson) is “Minds Wide Shut:  How the New Fundamentalisms Divide Us.”