When Lior was sent to the overnight Alonim Summer Camp in Los Angeles in 2013 to serve as a Jewish Agency Shaliach (Israeli emissary) just after his release from the Israeli army, it was his first time really getting to know the American Jewish community. He returned to Israel and attended Tel Aviv University, completing his bachelor’s degree in Television and Cinema Studies, but that experience in the U.S. remained in the back of his mind. Once the pandemic began and life stopped, he started thinking more about his time as a Shaliach, and when COVID got better, he felt inspired to do something different and become a Jewish Agency Campus Israel Fellow.
Campus Israel Fellows are Israeli young adults who have finished their Israeli army service and university and who are brought to North American college campuses every year by The Jewish Agency, in partnership with Hillel. These Fellows help substitute education for ignorance when it comes to student opinions about Israel, creating safe spaces for tolerance and diversity, and give students a chance to develop lasting connections with an Israeli.
“I loved being a Shaliach in L.A. and whether I’m at a summer camp or on a college campus, my mission is the same,” shared Lior. “So when I had the opportunity to become an Israel Fellow, I felt like it would be a great way to make a big impact and interact with young Jews that I’d never otherwise meet and have deep conversations about Israel and Judaism.”
Now, Lior, 30, is beginning his third year as a Jewish Agency Campus Israel Fellow at the Hillel at Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania. Every week, he helps plan Israel education activities and events to engage students in non-conventional ways, enjoying his time getting to know people on campus personally and embracing the diverse Jewish practices of the students.
“Having an Israel Fellow here long-term and consistently is key. Now that I’m entering my third year, I’ve built some strong relationships with students who feel they can come to me about anything,” Lior explained. “We’re very blessed to not have had much antisemitism or anti-Israel sentiment expressed here and I think my presence and willingness to have hard and critical conversations helps a lot.”
One feat Lior is especially proud of is the huge jump in students participating in his Israel cohort, which explored the diversity and complexities of Jewish life in the Jewish state. During his first semester at Muhlenberg, there were only eight students and his last cohort had grown to nearly 40. Additionally, after Friday night services, he typically stayed after dinner to hang out and play board games with students, and more students stuck around Hillel longer, which also led to more meaningful connections and discussions.
“My last two years as an Israel Fellow have been great and I can see a genuine impact being made,” said Lior. “All the little things and big things are really intertwined and make a big difference and I’m excited for my third year here!”
