In May 2022, IU graduates in caps, gowns, and colored tassels lined up in the late spring heat. Between shifting peers, waves to smiling guests in the stands, and the swift exchange of degrees and handshakes onstage, it was hard to focus on one student in particular. But in that bustling line was Levi Gettleman, an award-winning graduate of the Borns Jewish Studies Program, one of the nation’s largest, oldest, and most comprehensive programs of its kind.
50 years ago, Jewish culture at IU took two great leaps forward that have defined the experiences of students, faculty, and international partners alike in the decades that followed – the first study abroad trip to Israel and establishment of the Jewish Studies Program on the Bloomington campus. From a group of IU students exploring the early stages of a budding partnership abroad, all the way to a student waiting for his name to be called at commencement, draw his time at IU to a close, and continue toward his future.
Though Levi was only at IU for three years, graduating early and beginning rabbinical studies the next fall, he reflects on the faculty and community that he grew alongside in his short but impactful time at IU: “There’s something remarkable about the feeling of belonging and having a place where I can be my true, authentic self.”
But how did IU get to this point?
In 1971, a handful of Indiana University study abroad students arrived at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJ), the first Israel-based exchange in IU’s history. They had few expectations; there was no handbook to guide them through the process as they grabbed their belongings and headed to their new home for the semester.
Part of signing up for study abroad is stepping outside of your expectations and seeing the world, but in the first few days of jet lag, culture shock, and adjustment, the reality feels overwhelming. Terry Hendin and her future husband Ron Hendin were among those first study abroad students in 1971, and despite—or perhaps because of—the difficulties of navigating an entirely new system in a new culture, they gained invaluable experiences that they took home and shared with others.
Terry’s relationship with HUJ continued even after she returned to Bloomington. Terry was determined to make sure HUJ courses’ academic credits were appropriately recognized at IU and reflected their wealth of knowledge, but there weren’t yet standard transfer credits in the fledgling program. Working with the director of what was then called “Foreign Studies,” Terry and her classmates began to write a handbook for future students.
“That,” Terry says, “was the starting point of our standardized relationship with HUJ.”
Now living in Jerusalem, Terry still recalls the unique experience of studying abroad in such a diverse city. While taking an anthropology course on Arab village structures, one day the professor said, “Okay, get up, here we go!” and walked the class across HUJ’s campus to a nearby village so they could hear from the residents themselves. “That kind of hands-on, local experience stuff was great!”
Excepting the period of travel restrictions related to the pandemic, IU students have traveled to Israel every year since 1972 when the university formalized this new study abroad experience. Now when students arrive at HUJ, Terry is there to greet them as a Friend of IU who not only pre-dates the official program but was a part of its foundation. She and her husband invite the students over as early as possible once they arrive in Jerusalem, giving them a familiar, welcome space that they can rely on throughout their stay. Terry’s profession and background as a social worker and advisor for educational programs in Israel means she is very much at home helping students adapt to and become part of the community at HUJ and in Jerusalem more broadly.
Even this career choice was informed by her experiences abroad, as she recalls, “I recently found a letter of recommendation that Professor Walter Nugent [who at the time presided over what would become the Office of Overseas Study] wrote for me when I applied to social work schools, noting my contribution to the foreign study experience and that he’d welcome me to work with him!”
Long removed from her days as a student, Terry cherishes the continued relationship with IU, particularly with retired Vice President for Overseas Study Kathleen Sideli and Carolyn Lipson-Walker, retired Assistant Director of the Borns Jewish Studies Program. In fact, the Jewish Studies program at IU was just getting started during the same academic year that Terri unknowingly laid the groundwork for a long-term partnership with HUJ. This program – named in 1992 for IU alumni Robert A. and Sandra S. Borns – would allow students to learn about Jewish culture and history for decades to come. Since its inception, the program has fostered student engagement with biblical study, musicology, comparative literature, Yiddish and Hebrew language, history and more alongside world-renowned faculty.
Just as the nation of Israel is tied to Jewish identities, the study of Jewish culture is itself a global endeavor. As Dr. Lipson-Walker so eloquently puts it, “Jewish culture is multilingual and multicultural, developing in dialogue with cultures from eastern and western Europe, Asia, North Africa, North America, even the Amazon.”
Back on Bloomington’s campus, the benefits of the relationship between people like Terry and Dr. Lipson-Walker—or institutions like HUJ and IU—are felt even for those who do not travel to Jerusalem themselves.
Although Levi Gettleman did not attend HUJ, he and Terry share stories that center on their enduring sense of community. A recipient of the Carolyn Lipson-Walker Outstanding Senior Scholarship for Jewish Studies Students, Levi shares, “We have a rich and vibrant academic Jewish life on campus, with the resources to allow anyone to learn what it means to be Jewish – but we also have Jewish life as it relates to celebrating Jewish culture and religion. It’s a remarkable scale of Jewish life.”
In his time on campus, Levi was dedicated to academic excellence, encouraging the students around him to pursue their own interests and passions with the same energy he brought to Jewish Studies. He served as a Jewish Studies administrative intern, attended Congregation Beth Shalom, was a member of IU Hillel, and president of the Jewish Studies Student Association. Levi’s approach to community is proactive: “It takes someone to say ‘I am going to commit to being involved and helping to further Jewish life, to take the time to help build these events and experiences.’” Just as Terry committed to welcoming and guiding students in Israel, Levi dedicated his time at IU to uplifting the culture and students around him.
This is the essence of the community itself: even as times change and experiences shift, students, faculty, and friends unite to create a space for growth. What starts as unfamiliar or unsure, builds itself upward, from a guidebook, to a dinner, to an institutional partnership with half a century of rich history; from a few students to a community that bridges thousands of miles. A barbeque in Jerusalem sparks the same joy and energy as a Shabbat dinner in Bloomington today. It’s through this endless cycle of connection and support that we work toward a shared vision for a world where everyone has the opportunity to succeed.
Despite never meeting each other, and with a gap of nearly 50 years between their educational experiences, both Terry and Levi have remarkably similar advice to current students: “Get involved, seek education and experience, be aware – there’s always more to learn whether you’re a part of the community or coming from outside it. Listen to the community and get involved,” says Levi. From 6,000 miles away, Terry enthusiastically echoes, “Immerse yourself in the culture, get out of your bubble.” The continuity of their message, regardless of where you are in the world, exemplifies the enduring virtue of engagement that is inherent to the transformative nature of global experiences and community building.
For more information on Jewish life and scholarship on the Bloomington campus, visit the Borns Jewish Studies Program website, Jewish Culture Center, and the Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism.
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