On Thursday night, sophomore Sarah Levitt was almost completely alone on the second floor of Worcester Hall. Most of her dorm mates had gone home to observe Passover, the Jewish holiday celebrating the exodus of Jews from Egypt.
Levitt is among a minority of non-Jews who live in a cluster of South Campus dorms that have become unofficially designated for Jewish students needing access to the nearby Hillel.
Almost one-third of the girls on Levitt’s floor are Orthodox Jews, said Mary Glover, a junior biology major and resident assistant in the building. Glover said her floor has the fewest Jewish students, and she guessed 100 of the 150 dorm residents are Jewish.
Worcester, along with Carroll, Caroline and Wicomico Halls, have become popular preferences for many Orthodox Jews because of their close proximity to the university’s Hillel Center for Jewish Life. Incoming students requesting to live near Hillel are usually placed in one of these four halls, with the largest concentration seeming to come to Worcester, said Tosh Patterson, resident director for the North Hill Community.
“There’s a need to access Hillel three times a day — for breakfast, lunch and dinner — as well as have a community and fellowship of students that practice similar religious beliefs,” she said.
The concentration brings a diverse learning experience and a unique mix to the residents.
When sophomore Christine Mann moved in to Worcester Hall late last August, she noticed her new neighbors were a little different than the students she lived with in Elkton Hall her freshman year.
“The first week, I noticed many girls with longer skirts and lots of Israeli flags,” the early childhood education major said.
“I just really didn’t realize I would be a minority as the non-Jewish one,” said Mann, who signed up for a room in Worcester at the suggestion of a friend when her low priority number prevented her from moving into a suite on South Campus.
Niranjan Seshadri, a sophomore economics and finance major, said living in Worcester has helped him become well versed in the Jewish faith.
“I probably know more about Judaism than my own religion now,” he said. “I ask my roommate about everything he does.”
Many Jewish residents say they enjoy having the company of non-Jewish friends but recognize their ties to one another may be intimidating for them.
“I think in general, it’s easy for [Jewish students] to hang out,” said sophomore criminology and criminal justice major Cheryl Jacobi. “We go to dinner together and spend our Friday nights together.”
Levitt, a sophomore dance major, said she has made trips to Hillel with the girls on her floor, even though she’s not Jewish.
“It’s been really nice. I know we’re always invited,” she said. “Our dorm mates make sure to include us.”
In turn, the residence hall staff works closely with Jewish students to accommodate their needs and make sure they feel included as residents. They work closely with Hillel to make sure all events are accessible for students.
“When we do different programs, we try to keep [Jewish students] in mind,” Patterson said. “We buy kosher drinks and snacks for movie night and get pizza from Dominos and Hillel so that Jewish students aren’t excluded.”
However, some students say they feel like outsiders as non-Jews and that living in this environment made it difficult to make friends and create a social life, especially during holidays and religious observances when much of the hall is absent.
“It seems like everyone keeps to themselves,” said Ade Awe, a freshman biology major. “It’s just different. At night I just try to get out.”
Instead of finding his best college buddies on his floor, Awe said he has made friends other ways, such as through his classes, and now the division doesn’t bother him.
As for the quiet days when his hall is absent, “It just helps me sleep,” he said.
