Rabbi Careers

Make your mark on Jewish student life by joining Hillel of San Luis Obispo (SLO) as the Director of Jewish Student Life. As a community builder, you’ll inspire Cal Poly students to be partners in creating a vibrant and welcoming Jewish community on campus as a solo professional. You will drive Hillel forward by thinking big and implementing with excellence on a day to day basis.

The entirely student-run organization, Hillel of SLO supports nearly 1,000 Jewish students at Cal Poly through a diverse set of social, cultural, religious and Israel programs. Hillel hosts 75-100 students at monthly Shabbat dinners where student Shabbat chairs organize, cook and serve the community. Hillel of SLO students have been instrumental in founding other successful Jewish student organizations on campus, such as AEPi, AEPhi and Mustangs United for Israel.

In order to sustainably grow this thriving Jewish community, Hillel of SLO needs dedicated, professional leadership. As the Director of Jewish Student Life, you will motivate and inspire the current leaders to sustain and grow their current programming while supporting them in honing their leadership skills and ensuring excellent leadership succession planning. You will develop innovative engagement strategies to build niche micro-communities among Jewish students who are not currently connected to the Hillel community. You will partner with the Hillel of SLO board, faculty advisor and Hillel International to take Hillel of SLO to a new level of success. If you are excited about working in an emerging and dynamic environment in which your actions directly impact the quality of life on campus, this is the job for you.

What You’ll Do

• Develop one-on-one relationships with Jewish students by meeting them where they live, work and/or study, utilizing creative methods to engage them in Jewish life.
• Expand Hillel’s reach on campus by creating niche, micro-communities around students’ interests.
• Mentor student leaders in their development as Jews through individual meetings and group programs to cultivate a Jewish community that is caring, diverse, welcoming and actively inclusive.
• Work with students to implement a wide range of programs, including Shabbat and holiday celebrations, social opportunities, social justice projects and Jewish learning opportunities.
• Serve as an advisor for the Hillel board and collaborate with our various Cal Poly communities, such as Mustangs United for Israel, AEPi, and AEPhi.
• Oversee marketing, social media, and content for Hillel website; maintain participant tracking database.
• Support the Board of Directors development efforts.

On a day to day basis you will

• Have coffee with a first-year student who has expressed interest in becoming more involved in Jewish life on campus.
• Plan a student leadership development workshop.
• Meet with students to design a new program targeting a population that hasn’t been involved in Hillel before.
• Create a social media plan to promote an upcoming speaker at Hillel.
• Set up a conference call for a Hillel of SLO board meeting.
• Enter contributions into donor database, and work with a student intern on sending thank-you notes to donors.

What You’ve Accomplished

• 2-4 years professional experience in Jewish communal work, experiential or higher education; Hillel experience highly preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree required.
• Proven success in:
  • Building pluralistic Jewish communities and creating a welcoming, vibrant, and deeply enriching Jewish environment
  • Inspiring, mentoring and motivating college-age students through traditional and experiential education
  • Strategically networking and building partnerships with young adults and leaders
  • Managing multiple projects simultaneously while maintaining quality across all areas

What You’ll Bring to the Job

• A passion for working with young adults and investing in their growth as Jewish leaders.
• A commitment to pluralism and comfort with your Jewish identity so you may act as a role model and mentor for emerging Jewish adults.
• Owning your unique Jewish knowledge and experiences and inspiring others to be on a Jewish journey.
• Familiarity with higher education and campus settings
• Comfort working independently and collaboratively.
• An entrepreneurial spirit – things may not always go according to plan, but you understand that ambiguity is part of developing great new opportunities.
• Strong written and verbal skills, effective at communicating with a variety of stakeholders including students, parents, alumnae/i, and university partners.

About Hillel of San Luis Obispo
Hillel of SLO supports Cal Poly’s Jewish community. As a student-run organization, Hillel has a very strong student board, which meets weekly and organizes regular programs including social events, monthly Shabbat dinners, and holiday celebrations. Over the past four years, Hillel has seen tremendous growth, and Jewish students are now choosing Cal Poly for its active and dynamic Jewish community.

Cal Poly is a nationally ranked public university located in the idyllic central coast of California. It is driven by its core philosophy of Learn by Doing — a powerful combination of academic expertise and hands-on experience. With more than 380 clubs and student organizations, the campus is alive with activity and culture. Hillel has been recognized by the university as one of the ten largest clubs on campus and as a model club for maximizing the benefits of co-sponsorship.

Hillel of SLO has recently built a new Board of Directors with alumni, parents, faculty and local leaders. The Board is committed to growing Hillel’s organizational capacity over the next several years with support from the Alevy Foundation and local donors, parents, and alumni.

About Hillel International
Hillel of SLO is affiliated with Hillel International. In 1923, Rabbi Benjamin Frankel started Hillel with humble means, a noble mission, and a breathtaking vision: to convey Jewish civilization to a new generation. Today, Hillel International continues to enrich the lives of Jewish students and is the largest Jewish campus organization in the world at more than 550 colleges and universities across North America and around the world. As Hillel evolves as an organization, the mission remains steadfast: to create lasting connections with every Jewish student that foster an enduring commitment to Jewish life, learning, and Israel and train them to become the next Jewish leaders. Hillel International enriches the lives of Jewish students so they may enrich the Jewish people and the world, and envisions a world where every student is inspired to make an enduring commitment to Jewish life, learning, and Israel.