Union of Jewish Students

Updated on Dec 08, 2023

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Type Student Union		Location London, UK

Founded 1919; 98 years ago (1919) Area served The United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland Members c. 64 Jewish Societies, > 8,500 members Key people Josh Seitler (President)

The Union of Jewish Students of the United Kingdom and Ireland (UJS) was established in 1919 as the Inter-University Jewish Federation (IUJF). The organisation was renamed UJS in 1973 and represents a constituency of approximately 8,500 Jewish students, with somewhere between four and five thousand being members of its affiliated Jewish Societies (J-Socs) on individual campuses. It is an executive member of the World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS) and the European Union of Jewish Students (EUJS). The current President for the 2016/17 academic year is Josh Seitler, a graduate of the London School of Economics. The President-elect is Josh Holt, a final year student at Nottingham University; he will begin his one year term in June 2017.

About the UJS

UJS is a confederation of Jewish Societies (J-Socs) but also provides further opportunities for student engagement through our national programming. The body's full-time staff are recent graduates led by an elected President.

The core values of UJS are:

Cross-Communalism: They believe that UJS and J-Soc activities should be open to all Jewish students regardless of religious affiliation or denomination.

Peer-leadership: They believe in empowering students to run their own programming for their peers.

Representation: They believe that Jewish students should have their voices heard both locally and nationally. J-Soc committees and the UJS President are elected roles which consider the views of their members and in turn represent the views of Jewish students to the wider community.

Engagement with Israel: They believe that Jewish students should have the support and space to explore their connection and relationship with Israel.

UJS's work is divided into 5 areas:

J-Socs: They currently provide training and funding for over 60 J-Socs situated around the country. UJS offers J-Socs this support in order to enhance their activities and Jewish student life on campus.

Campaigns: UJS campaigns to defend its members' interests. They work with universities, NUS (National Union of Students) and the government to ensure that the needs of Jewish students are met and represented at every level.

Careers and Networking: Members of UJS are offered the opportunity to participate in career networking events, master classes and a summer placement scheme.

National Events: Each year UJS hosts and runs national events to bring together Jewish students from across the country. These include: JUEFA Cup football tournament, UJS training Summit, UJS Conference, UJS Student Awards, Shabbat UK and Jewniversity Challenge.

Services: They work with universities to secure Jewish student accommodation and spaces for J-Soc activities as well as sourcing kosher food for students on campuses around the country.

History

The IUJF (Inter University Jewish Federation) was the creation of the Manchester Jewish Association. They saw a growing pride in the Jewish Community and believed it was appropriate for Jewish students to have a national organisation to co-ordinate the activities of the Jewish student Societies and to represent Jewish students at a national level.

The first step was to hold a conference in Manchester on 17 July 1919 at which four Jewish societies were represented: Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Oxford. Although not represented on the outset, the London University Jewish Society subsequently took an active and eventually a leading part in the federation’s affairs.

In 1946 the following Universities had societies affiliated to the Federation in addition to those already mentioned: Belfast, Birmingham, Cambridge, University College, Cardiff, Dublin, Durham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Reading and Sheffield.

The two main activities of the Federation, from its inception, were an annual Summer School and an Annual Conference, held in the winter vacation.

With the rise to power of the Nazi Party, large numbers of Jewish students had their studies disrupted and sought refuge in non-occupied Europe and elsewhere; the International Students Service was in the forefront of providing advice to these displaced students and financial assistance was made available from communal funds. The Federation was active in supporting these efforts; almost £2,000 was raised from University students in Britain.

Throughout its existence the IUJF was involved with the general Jewish community. It was represented on the Board of Deputies and the Zionist Federation and had an ongoing liaison with Jewish Youth Study Groups.

For almost fifty years from its foundation until the creation of the Hillel Foundation, the IUJF had no office, no staff, no sabbatical officers and no assured budget other than the money that the students could raise themselves. The Federation was run from the rooms of the then Chairman or Secretary; all activities were organized by the students themselves on a voluntary basis in their spare time; from time to time small subventions were obtained from the general community.

It was the partner with which B’nai B’rith set up the Hillel Foundation which provided the IUJF with its first permanent office and its first professional assistance. This enabled the Federation and its successor, UJS, to increase its work beyond the wildest expectations its founders.

The organization was renamed UJS in 1973 and currently represents a constituency of approximately 8,500 Jewish students, with somewhere between 2500 – 3000 active members of its affiliated Jewish Societies (J-Socs) on individual campuses.

Activities

UJS also takes a leading role in the politics of the National Union of Students with at least one member of the National Executive Committee being closely linked to UJS for many years. UJS has supported Wes Streeting and Aaron Porter, who became successive Presidents of the National Union of Students in 2008 and 2010. The UJS funds delegations of Students’ Union leaders to visit Israel. Through this it has had a close involvement with the NUS Anti-Racism and Anti-Fascism campaigns in recent years. UJS does not locate itself anywhere specific on the right-left political spectrum, claiming to be a pressure group supporting the interests of Jewish students, rather than a political faction. UJS works with those it believes to support the interests of Jewish students.

In addition to its political role, UJS is active in representing Jewish students' specific religious needs to academic institutions, providing informal Jewish education to members, promoting inter-faith dialogue, and social activity. For many of its members the political aspect of its activities are secondary.

The UJS Student Awards

The annual UJS Student Awards were inaugurated in 2009 to recognise the hard work and dedication of Jewish students who have made an exceptional contribution to Jewish life on campus. These students devote countless hours of their time on top of university work, extra curriculars and spending time with their friends to ensure that Jewish student life on campus is thriving, vibrant, safe, and fun. The winners of the awards are listed below.

For 2011 & 2012 this award was known as the Large J-Soc Committee of the year award before becoming the J-Soc of the year award in 2013

The Alan Senitt Award is given each year to a student who has given an outstanding contribution to Jewish student life. The award is given in memory of Alan Senitt (UJS Chair 2001-2003), who was murdered in Washington DC in 2006 aged just 27.

In 2015, 2 J-Soc's were jointly awarded the Developing J-Soc of the year award.

Past Leadership

The UJS President is elected by Jewish students to represent their voices within the community, universities, colleges and wider society.

References

Union of Jewish Students Wikipedia

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