Major: Global Studies Major, Film Studies minor
From Hillel president to organizing a TEDx conference at Colby, Jacob’s managed to make quite an impact on campus in his four years here. Read about what he’s accomplished and how he’s tied it all together.
What do you do on campus or what have you done that has been important to you?
I’ve been pretty involved with Hillel. I was president during my sophomore year and last year [before I went abroad in the spring]. It’s a lot of work and I wanted to do other things. Now, as a member, I still go to most of the events and I do community outreach. Basically I try to make sure students are helping out in the synagogue and I’ve also planned a Shabbat dinner in which students went congregants’ houses for dinner.
Why did you get involved and when did you start?
I went to a Jewish high school, but as a freshman I didn’t do much in Hillel. I started to miss the familiarity and, so sophomore year I got more and more involved in the group and community it provides.
What role do you think Hillel plays on campus?
I think Hillel is really good thing for Colby to have. There will always be people who want it; it’s nice to be able to celebrate holidays when you’re far from home. The number of students who need it at Colby really changes from year to year, but if it’s something you want it should be there for you. We never put an emphasis on prayer or bible study; it’s there if you want, but our focus is more on creating a community to share meals and big holidays with.
I’ve heard that you did some activism last year; what was that about and what were you able to accomplish?
Along with Annie Chen ’12, we asked that the portion of the endowment that is in stocks held directly by the school to be released. The idea came about when the Occupy Colby movement was active. In a focus group that I attended about the school’s finances, Annie and I found that we had similar ideas about how it should be, so we decided to ask the school to release this information. Before the meeting, I had read an article about the responsible endowment coalition, so it made sense to me that something should be done.
We spoke to Doug Terp, the vice president, and he went to the Board of Trustees to ask if they would agree to do so. It was a pretty easy fix and we didn’t get much pushback. One of the problems, whether it is true or not, is that there is a sense that the administration isn’t forthcoming with a lot of information, so this release is a gesture of transparency and is information that should be public.
For more information please see this Echo article: http://www.thecolbyecho.com/news/college-to-reveal-its-direct-investments
What was studying abroad like? Where were you and what did you do?
I was at the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland, taking international relations classes for my global studies major. There’s a lot more to say about studying abroad than I can really do justice here. I think traveling, being around people from different countries and having different people in the classroom environment gives you a new perspective. At St Andrews, a 600 year-old school, it was different being at such an old university that had so many traditions and history we just don’t have as a school or even as a country. I also played rugby there on the team, and have continued since I’ve been back at Colby.
So, TEDx Colby is happening on Saturday. How did you come up with this idea and why did you decide to do it?
When I was in Scotland, I went to the TEDx conference at the University of St Andrews, and I had known about TED and TEDx events before, but it was the real rush and real excitement being there that made me want to do one here at Colby. People are talking about the things that make them passionate and it’s hard not to get excited and feel engaged.
I think it’s important for several reasons that we have a TEDx event here. We go to college and we’re here to learn. To me, the questions are, “why haven’t we had one already?” and “what could be more liberal arts than having one?” In my experience, Colby students are really smart, articulate and passionate but it shouldn’t require a negative catalyst for it to be seen, such as is often seen on the civil discourse. TEDx Colby seemed like a good way to give people a platform for the things they’re passionate about.
How’s the planning been for a completely new event?
It’s been really hard. I had no idea what I was getting myself into but fortunately I had a really good team, and I’ve been lucky to find people who share the belief of why it’s important to have one here at Colby. We’ve received a lot of help on campus to make this a reality and a lot of things have gone in our favor. We’ve had to raise money, find speakers and set a date and venue, among other details. Each member of the team has specialized in devoting time to an area to make this happen.
How did you choose the speakers?
We targeted some speakers that we really wanted; others came to us and asked about speaking. We tried to have a balance of speakers from inside and outside the Colby community. An example of a speaker we asked would be the founder of Barrels, David Grulak to talk about entrepreneurship and sustainability, but unfortunately he’s had to drop out. Although this is a TEDx Colby event, Colby is a part of Waterville and we’re a part of the community to bring people in, which is why we tried to have the mix. We’ve invited students from Waterville High School to come to the event as well. I’m excited for all of the speakers and hope that it’ll be a great event.