ירושלים בכלל והאוניברסיטה העברית בפרט, מהוות אבן שואבת למאות סטודנטים מחו"ל, בעיקר צפון אמריקאים, הבאים ללמוד לתקופה שבין מס' חודשים עד שנה ושנתיים. רוב הסטודנטים היהודים המגיעים ארצה רואים זאת כפתח לבניית הזהות היהודית שלהם, ולחיזוק קשריהם עם ישראל. את הידע והחוויות אותם הם צוברים, הם לוקחים איתם חזרה לקהילות מהם באו, מה שמשפיע רבות על הקהילות היהודיות בתפוצות ויחסן לישראל. על מנת לתת מענה לצורך זה של אותם סטודנטים, בית הלל ו-OSA בביה"ס לתלמידים מחו"ל יוצרים תכניות רבות אשר מטרתן העיקרית לחזק את הזהות היהודית של הסטודנטים וליצור זיקה בינם לבין החברה הישראלית, כך ששהותם בארץ תהיה רבת משמעות עבורם.

Overseas Student Programs
Jerusalem in general and Hebrew University in particular are magnets for hundreds of overseas students, especially North Americans, who come to study in Israel for any length of time, from a few months to a year or two. Most of the overseas students see this as an opportunity to build their Jewish identity and strengthen their ties with the Jewish people. Afterwards they bring back with them the knowledge and experiences that they've gained here, which in turn influence their home community's relationship with Israel. To meet the needs of overseas students, Beit Hillel and the overseas students' program at Hebrew University's Rothberg School offer programs with a focus on Jewish identity and building a relationship with Israeli society, so that their time in Israel will be as meaningful as possible.

The Five Modules of Beit Hillel Programming

Jewish Renewal
By 'Jewish Renewal' we mean active participation in dynamic Jewish experiences, connecting the old with the new, through a rich and fruitful dialogue with the world around us. Our goal is to preserve Jewish life as a living entity that is relevant in our time, but also with an eye to the past, to our national history and culture. Jewish renewal is expressed in a wide variety of ways in Beit Hillel, for instance through reading and studying texts from the Jewish bookshelf, by presenting new commentaries that resonate for each individual, and by learning the older, established commentaries as well.

Israeli Culture
Israeli culture, like that of any other place, is created by the people who are a part of it. We try to keep our finger on the pulse of Israeli society as it relates to contemporary culture and to bring today's culture to Hillel programs, since each of us is a part of the society around us. Hillel's culture programs include "Derech haMilim - Through Words" and "S'ratim Yisraeli'im - Israeli Films" - expressing the cultural dialogue taking place in literature and current movies, through relevant student comments from a different angle than the usual. Other culture programs include: "To the Alleyways" – guided walks through less-traveled areas of Jerusalem; "Mysterious Secrets" – a look at Jewish mysticism; "B'Mishpat Echad" – a look at Jewish law; and "Early and Late Commentators" – building a familiarity with Jewish thought from ancient times to the present. We also host "Creative Stage" for students to present their own creative work, in poetry, prose, song, and drama.

Social Action
Ethics of the Fathers teaches us that "Learning is not the main thing, but rather doing" (2:17). We at Hillel believe in combining the two, learning and doing. Beit Hillel offers a variety of programs for social action in the community, based on the attitude that while "it is not up to you to complete the work" it is also true that "you may not exempt yourself from it" (Ethics of the Fathers 2:16). Each social justice project has a learning component as well as volunteer work. "Mimizrach tzedek Hillel" is a beit midrash program that combines study and volunteer work; "Remember and Honor" consists of Holocaust study and volunteer work with elderly survivors; "Jerusalem Syllabus" participants volunteer in a different location each month; and Halas is an umbrella for various student groups that work for social justice. We are always open to new student initiatives for social action programs.

Student Initiatives
Beit Hillel believes that the best and most interesting program ideas come from the students. We therefore give a high priority to student initiatives for whatever vision they bring to us that accords with the spirit of Hillel. Student initiatives are judged by three criteria: student engagement, Jewish content, and a new target population. We supervise the initiatives and train the student initiators in how to see their program through to the end. The best of Beit Hillel's current programs began as student initiatives, and our door is still open to new ideas.

רכזת תלמידי חו"ל סביון מדליון
	סטודנטית לתואר ראשון בחוגים תקשורת והיסטוריה כללית. משפט מנחה לחיים:                                                                                                "יונה צריכה לאהוב את הבית שלה, אחרת היא לר תרצה לחזור" מתוך "יונה ונער" - מאיר שלו.
02-5817714 (206) savion@hillelnet.org.il