Student Life: Jewish Life

The Jewish Life collection documents various aspects of Jewish student life at Oberlin. The majority of the materials are from various Jewish student groups and publications, Kosher Halal Cooperative (founded originally as Kosher Cooperative), the Judaic and Near Eastern Studies (JNES) Department, and Hebrew House. There are also smaller amounts of religious materials, materials concerning interfaith/intergroup work and the role of non-profit organizations, and discourse surrounding antisemitism and Zionism. The materials are organized into subgroups based on their provenance. Subgroup I (1964-2015) consists of materials accumulated and stored in a file cabinet belonging to the Jewish student group Oberlin Hillel and Cleveland Hillel staff. Subgroup II (2016-2023) consists of materials collected and curated by Elliot Diaz ‘23 in his capacity as a board member of Oberlin Hillel, member of Kosher Halal Co-op, and advocate for the preservation of Kosher Halal Co-op. Subgroup III (1987-2021) consists of the materials left behind by Kosher Halal Co-op in Talcott Hall. Subgroup IV consists of materials donated from alumni related to Jewish student life and Kosher Halal Co-op. Subgroup I is divided into alphabetical series by topic and into folders by type of material. There are instances in which a folder contains multiple types of materials due to the paucity of certain materials. The dates of materials range from 1964 to 2015, but the majority of the records are from 1974 up through the 1990s. These materials speak to the interconnected nature of Jewish life at Oberlin College through records primarily assembled (and often written) by the Advisor to Jewish Students. The majority of the records were compiled by two advisors during their tenure: Neil Kauffman (1974-1977) and Rabbi Shimon Brand (1977-2015). The subgroup also contains some religious materials compiled by Rabbi Megan Doherty (2017-2022). Kauffman and Brand’s role as Advisors both shapes this subgroup’s provenance and documents the variety of groups and issues pertinent to their role. The materials that the advisor and Oberlin Hillel collected are inclusive of smaller organizations that either fell under Hillel’s purview, Hillel members or staff helped to organize, and/or broke away from Oberlin Hillel. These groups include the Jewish Women’s Group, Hoshen (a Jewish men’s group), Kadima (a reform/progressive Jewish group), a Soviet Jewry group, the Oberlin Zionists, the Progressive Zionist caucus, Tiferet/Zehut, and Kosher Halal Co-op (formerly Kosher Co-op). Many of these organizations have their own series or are otherwise included under the series "Jewish Life." The series "Jewish Life" consists of materials that relate to multiple organizations, speak to the experiences of multiple aspects of Jewish life on Oberlin’s campus, or materials related to Jewish life that necessitate an item-level description. Further descriptions of the contents of the series can be found in the Jewish Life case file. Overall, one of this subgroup’s strengths is its documentation that captures the complex nature of Jewish life on Oberlin’s campus. However, there are gaps within the collection due to missing pages, lack of dates, or unclear authorship. Subgroup II consists of materials collected and curated by Elliot Diaz ’23. This subgroup contains two series: Series 1. Oberlin Hillel and Series 2. Kosher Halal Co-Op. Materials in Series 1 include materials from Diaz’s time on the board of Oberlin Hillel and materials found on Oberlin Hillel’s social media accounts and Google Drive. The contents pertain to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Oberlin Hillel leadership and events, the departure of the Director of Oberlin Jewish Life, Rabbi Megan Doherty (2022), and materials used during Oberlin Hillel religious events. Materials in Series 2 document Diaz’s time as a member of Kosher Halal Co-op (KHC), his time as an advocate for KHC and students with religious dietary restrictions, the khcoberlin@gmail.com email and Google Drive, and the posts of @kosherhalaalcoop account on Instagram. For more detail on the formation of this subgroup, see the curation note contained within the case file. Subgroup III contains materials that were in the physical possession of Kosher Halal Co-op in 2020. Many of the materials found in this subgroup supplement materials in the previous subgroups by providing more examples of religious materials used in partnership with Oberlin Hillel. There are materials unique to this subgroup, including student art, a selection of pertinent co-op financial records, recipes, memorials to students, photographs, and save plate labels (see series description). Subgroup IV contains alumni materials related to Jewish Life and Kosher Halal Co-op. As of 2023, this subgroup contains materials from alumni Michael Appel ’83 and Josh Shuman ’86. SERIES DESCRIPTIONS Subgroup I. Oberlin Hillel, 1964-2015, n.d. (1.0 l.f.) This subgroup is arranged in fifteen series, and it documents various groups, themes, and individuals affiliated with campus Jewish life, with a focus on the 1970s-90s.             Series 1. Antisemitism 1990-91, ca. 1994, n.d. (0.02 l.f.)             This series contains defaced materials (such as posters) and correspondence that document antisemitic incidents on Oberlin’s campus See also Series 10 for documentation related to Kwame Ture’s 1989 and 1996 speeches at Oberlin.             Series 2. Campus Ministry (later the Office of Religious Life), 1969-97                                    (0.06 l.f.)             The materials in this series. likely compiled by Neil Kauffman and Rabbi Shimon Brand, contain records of the Office’s mission and activities, the duties of specific team members associated with different religious traditions, and correspondence about the Office’s future. The series includes correspondence from supporters of the Campus Ministry Office. See also Series 13 for the materials of the Religious Interest Committee.             Series 3. Hebrew House, 1969-80, n.d. (0.08 l.f.) This series documents Hebrew House’s early history, including calendars of early Winter Term events, fliers for events held at Hebrew House (later Johnson House), and correspondence about the house’s affiliation, as well as other materials that document its early history. Materials in this series also document how Hebrew House’s relationship with the JNES (Jewish and Near Eastern Studies) department and the position of the Advisor to Jewish Students varied over time.             Series 4. Intergroup Dialogues, 1987, n.d. (0.02 l.f.)             The materials within this series document discussions between white Jews and Black non-Jews. The materials include correspondence, a project proposal for the Oberlin Church Rebuilding Project–an effort Oberlin Jews organized to help rebuild historically Black churches in the South, an untitled reflection on “Black and Jewish dialogues,” and a Winter Term project called “Narratives of the other: Blacks & Jews.” See also Series 10 for materials related to Kwame Toure’s 1989 and 1996 speeches at Oberlin.             Series 5. Jewish Life, 1964-2005, n.d. (0.1 l.f.)             The Jewish Life series contains materials related to multiple, separate organizations, singular issues of Oberlin publications that are Jewish or relate to Jewish life on campus, the Experimental College (ExCo), and miscellaneous materials. The calendars include Neil Kauffman’s newsletter/calendar “Jewish Life at Oberlin,” relevant copies of the Oberlin College Newscope, the Jewish Student Union calendar, the Oberlin College Jewscope, and the schedule of a Jewish film series. The calendars mention topics such as Jewish ExCos, Kosher Co-op, the celebration of religious holidays, Israel, and Zionism. The folder entitled ExCos contains correspondence, filers for Jewish ExCos, ExCo course catalogs and syllabi, and a letter from the Radical Judaism ExCo. The publications in this series include an issue of the Wilder Voice that discusses Zionism, What: News about Oberlin Jewish Life, and the JAGazine (Jewish Advocacy Group). The two folders within this series entitled “General” contain materials related to Yiddish at Oberlin, materials concerning the protest of classes on High Holidays, reflections on the nature of Jewish life on campus, surveys of Jewish students, brochures about Jewish life, and reports and abstracts of Jewish events not clearly affiliated with a particular organization. The General materials additionally include materials on Jewish women, anonymous poetry, a letter from the Oberlin College Alumni Association to the General Faculty Council outlining problems for Jewish students on campus, and materials related to the 1995 Ad Hoc Committee on Jewish Chaplaincy. An item-level inventory of materials in the General folders can be found in the case file.             Series 6. Jewish Socialist Community, 1981-c.1990, n.d. (0.02 l.f.)             Founded in 1978 by Daniel Soyer ’79, Stuart Schear ‘79, and Flo (Feygl) Jacobs ’80, the Jewish Socialist Community, in the words of co-founded Daniel Soyer ’79, was “committed to the idea that Jewishness should be linked with a progressive political outlook.”[url=#_ftn1]^[1]