Jewish Life at Duke

Jewish Life at Duke Jewish Life at Duke: Your source for everything Jewish at Duke University.

As a department within the Division of Student Affairs and an accredited Hillel, Jewish Life at Duke serves as the address for Jewish life on campus. Students, staff and faculty come together to create a vibrant, diverse and pluralistic Jewish community. We are here to help you celebrate holidays, make friends, enjoy a good meal, discuss Israel, as well as connect with amazing Jewish opportunities

on campus, at home and throughout the world. Jewish Life at Duke is comprised of the Freeman Center for Jewish Life and the Rubenstein-Silvers Hillel. The Freeman Center provides a home for Jewish life on campus while the Rubenstein-Silvers Hillel provides exciting and innovative programming throughout the Duke community. The combination works to foster and enrich Jewish life through social, educational, religious and cultural activities.

The Jewish High Holidays are right around the corner! Register TODAY at duke.is/HighHoldidays (link in our bio!) for del...
09/01/2026

The Jewish High Holidays are right around the corner! Register TODAY at duke.is/HighHoldidays (link in our bio!) for delicious, free, kosher holiday meals! Make sure to sign up by Wednesday, September 9. The Jewish Life at Duke community is thrilled to celebrate with you! ✨🍎

We think the first week of classes calls for a sweet treat! 🍦🎉 TOMORROW, August 26 from 8pm-9pm, join the Jewish Studen...
08/25/2026

We think the first week of classes calls for a sweet treat! 🍦🎉 TOMORROW, August 26 from 8pm-9pm, join the Jewish Student Union and your JFAMilies to meet fellow students over free ice cream on East Campus!✨

🥳 JFAM Ice Cream Social
🗓️ August 26, 2026
🕖 8pm-9pm
📍 Gilbert-Addoms Down Under (GADU)

All class years invited. Dairy-free and gluten-free options will be provided.
No RSVP needed.

Happy FDOC!!📚🎉We are so thrilled to have seen all your beautiful faces back on campus yesterday at the Welcome Back BBQ ...
08/24/2026

Happy FDOC!!📚🎉

We are so thrilled to have seen all your beautiful faces back on campus yesterday at the Welcome Back BBQ & JFAM Kickoff! ✈️🥳 Weren't able to make it? That's okay! here's what we have coming up:

🍨 First-year and transfer students: join us for a First-year/JFAM ice cream social on Wednesday, August 26th from 8pm-9pm at Gilbert-Addoms Down Under and get to know the incoming class!

✡️ This Friday, August 28th, is our first full Shabbat as a community back on campus! Don't have your *Duke in Hebrew* shirt yet? Join us for services at 6pm or dinner at 7pm, or both! Text SHABBAT to 984-333-5603 to RSVP. (RSVP requested)

🥯 Celebrate the completion of your first week back with bagels, lox, and coffee at our Welcome Bagel Brunch on Sunday, August 30th from 11am-1pm at the Freeman Center for Jewish Life! Wake up with a matcha or chai from and a personalize poem from !

🇮🇱 Wednesday, September 2nd is our annual Israel Opportunities Dinner! Learn more about Israel, opportunities to get involved, and our incredible Heyman Winter Israel Fellow, Nadav! Dinner is at 6pm at the Freeman Center for Jewish Life!

All are welcome to join, regardless of religious affiliation!

We are THRILLED to share this news! In part inspired by their own experiences at Jewish Life at Duke, six families came ...
08/19/2026

We are THRILLED to share this news! In part inspired by their own experiences at Jewish Life at Duke, six families came together to establish a $2.5 million endowment that will support a full-time rabbi at Duke University for generations to come. 👏

The endowment ensures Rabbi Elana Friedman, Duke's current campus rabbi and Jewish chaplain, and her successors will be a permanent presence in leading Shabbat services and holiday programs, meeting with hundreds of students one on one to navigate college life, and providing signature learning experiences. ✡️

“Every conversation, coffee chat, Shabbat meal, moment of celebration or challenge at Duke is an opportunity for students to discover meaning, purpose, awe, resilience, and hope,” said Rabbi Elana. “I am filled with profound gratitude to do this work every day.”

Read more about how this gift will strengthen the Jewish campus community at Duke: https://madeforthis.duke.edu/stories/ensuring-a-jewish-future-at-duke-a-historic-endowment-for-the-campus-rabbi

We are SO THRILLED to finally share this news! Jewish Life at Duke has established the Jewish Life Rabbinic Fund, a perm...
08/19/2026

We are SO THRILLED to finally share this news! Jewish Life at Duke has established the Jewish Life Rabbinic Fund, a permanently endowed fund that will secure a full-time Campus Rabbi at Duke University for generations to come. This achievement was more than ten years in the making and was made possible through the generosity of six donor families whose collective commitments totaled $2.5 million. Read more: https://duke.is/JLDRabbi

Our first Shabbat of the 2026-2027 year in the books! ⭐️ It was SO incredible getting to meet over 200 incoming students...
08/18/2026

Our first Shabbat of the 2026-2027 year in the books! ⭐️ It was SO incredible getting to meet over 200 incoming students & family members at the Class of 2030 Open House & Shabbat Reception this past Friday night. (Don't worry parents, we will make sure your students have a Jewish home away from home 😊)

Next Up: Close out Orientation Week by meeting your fellow first-years for Shabbat services and a free, family-style kosher Shabbat with Jewish Life at Duke this Friday 8/21. Our egalitarian Kabbalat Shabbat service starts at 5:30pm in the Freeman Center Sanctuary, followed by dinner at 6:30pm. Just returning from an Orientation program? No worries, come whenever you can, even if it’s late! You’re also welcome to join for just dinner. There will be a pre-arranged bus to take first-years directly from the Freeman Center to the Class of 2030 photo on East Campus after dinner! Text 'SHABBAT' to 984-333-5603 to RSVP!

All are welcome.

Hey JLD family! We're so excited to welcome you to campus with our Welcome Week events! 🎉🧭 Orientation Week Shabbat will...
08/13/2026

Hey JLD family! We're so excited to welcome you to campus with our Welcome Week events! 🎉

🧭 Orientation Week Shabbat will be at the Freeman Center for Jewish Life: 5:30pm service, 6:30pm-7:20pm dinner, on August 21st, but don't worry class of 2030, we'll get you to your class photo on time!

🥳 Kick off the year with our Welcome BBQ and JFAM Kickoff on August 23rd from 5pm-7pm at the Freeman Center for Jewish Life! Enjoy a delicious kosher BBQ, and meet your JFAMily! Students of all class years are invited to come, regardless of involvement in JFAM!

🤩 Don't worry grad students, we have a BBQ just for you on August 23rd from 6pm-7pm on the Freeman Center Patio where you can meet and mingle with other graduate and professional students!

🍨 First-year and transfer students: join us for a First-year/JFAM ice cream social on August 26th from 8pm-9pm at Gilbert-Addoms Down Under and get to know the incoming class!

✡️ August 28th is our first full Shabbat as a community back on campus! Don't have your *Duke in Hebrew* shirt yet? Join us for services at 6pm or dinner at 7pm, or both! Text “SHABBAT” to 984-333-5603 to RSVP. (RSVP requested)

🥯 Celebrate the completion of your first week back with bagels, lox, and coffee at our Welcome Bagel Brunch on August 30th from 11am-1pm at the Freeman Center for Jewish Life! Wake up with a matcha or chai from and a personalize poem from !

🇮🇱 September 2nd is our annual Israel Opportunities Dinner! Learn more about Israel, opportunities to get involved, and our incredible Heyman Winter Israel Fellow, Nadav! Dinner is at 6pm at the Freeman Center for Jewish Life!

All are welcome to join, regardless of religious affiliation!

Shabbat, canoes, and s'mores--what more could you ask for?! 🌿Jewish Life at Duke and Jewish Student Union invite you to ...
08/12/2026

Shabbat, canoes, and s'mores--what more could you ask for?! 🌿

Jewish Life at Duke and Jewish Student Union invite you to a weekend of recreation and relaxation! 💫 This year's retreat will take place about 30 minutes from campus in Efland, NC over Labor Day weekend starting the evening of Friday, September 4th and wrapping up the morning of Sunday, September 6th. Visit the link in our bio to register now! 🏕

The Jewish Life Retreat is open to all, regardless of religious affiliation. Need more information? Visit the FAQ linked in our bio!

🎉 Introducing Nadav as our new Heyman Winter Israel Fellow! 🎉As the Heyman Winter Israel Fellow, Nadav hosts Israel-them...
08/11/2026

🎉 Introducing Nadav as our new Heyman Winter Israel Fellow! 🎉

As the Heyman Winter Israel Fellow, Nadav hosts Israel-themed events, advises our Israel-focused student groups, travels with students to Israel on our annual Birthright Israel trip, and provides educational and social opportunities to engage with Israel. We're so excited to welcome Nadav to Jewish Life at Duke! 💙

At the Freeman Center and across campus, the Israel Fellow helps students explore their connection to and relationship with Israel's people, places, and culture. The Fellow hosts Café Ivrit, a space for students to learn about Israeli culture and practice Hebrew together. They oversee the Israel Gap Year program and the Jewish Learning Fellowship: Kol Yisrael educational cohort seminar, and hosts wide-ranging events exploring Israeli people, culture, and politics.

Before coming to Duke, Nadav received a B.A. in Education and Criminology and a teaching certificate from Ariel University in Israel. He served as a counselor in the Tzofim (Israeli Scouts), worked with American teens at Alexander Muss High School in Israel, and spent time volunteering with at-risk populations. In his free time, you can find Nadav hanging out with friends, traveling, and finding new trails to hike and explore. ✈️ 🏔️

Please help us welcome Nadav in the comments! 💙🎉⬇️

How it feels to walk into the Freeman Center for Jewish Life after a whole summer away✨We can't wait to see you all at t...
08/10/2026

How it feels to walk into the Freeman Center for Jewish Life after a whole summer away✨

We can't wait to see you all at the Welcome Back BBQ & JFAM Kickoff on Sunday, August 23 at 5pm!

Incoming students: fill out the form in our bio to stay in the loop on all things Jewish Life at Duke, including the Jewish First Year Advisory Mentorship Program! We can't wait to meet you! 💙

Address

BOX 90936, 1415 Faber Street
Durham, NC
27708

Telephone

+19196846422

Website

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