University of Toronto
Toronto, ON

Adina lives in Toronto, and is studying English, Psychology and Jewish Studies at the University of Toronto. On campus, she is on the board at Hillel; she edits a literary journal; she plays music with other students for patients at a nearby hospital; and she volunteers at a student-run sustainable cafe. Adina is inspired by Judaism's propensity towards questioning. Nothing is meant to just be accepted; everything is meant to be questioned and discussed. This gives way for us to find personal meaning in its teachings.

List College/ Columbia University
Farmington Hills, MI

Ami is studying Economics and Math at Columbia and Talmud at JTS. He is co-President of the Partnership Minyan of Hillel; active in Nefesh (the Mental Health Awareness group at Hillel); and an NCSY Advisor. Ami is Director of Investment Fund of Tamid (organization that trains college students to advise Israeli companies); a member of the Columbia investment banking division; and a Research Assistant at UTS (Union Theological Seminary). Before coming to college Ami spent a year studying at Yeshivat Har Etzion in Israel. He worked on an NCSY summer program and attended Tamarack Camps as a kid.

Camp Tevya
Brandeis University
Newton, MA

Andrew Jacobson is a junior at Brandeis University majoring in Philosophy, and minoring in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, as well as Creative Writing. Originally from Swampscott, Massachusetts, Andrew is a columnist for The Justice, Brandeis' independent student  newspaper, participant of Brandeis Mock Trial, and brother of AEPi. What inspires Andrew most about Judaism (and it's really hard to boil down) is its eternal drive at truth, relentless questioning, cohesive family unit, vibrant community, zmirot, and Philip Roth. Andrew spent last summer as an intern investigator at Washington, DC's Public Defender Office and hopes to become a criminal defense attorney. In his free time, Andrew runs, rock-climbs, writes poetry, and drinks kombucha.

Camp Ramah in Wisconsin
Columbia University
Deerfield, IL

From the suburbs of Chicago, Avidan grew up attending USY and spending summers at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. After high school he spent a year studying at Maaleh Gilboa in Israel. Avidan is now a student at Columbia University where he is majoring in Religion with a minor in History. Avidan is the Business Director of Pizmon- the Jewish Acappella Group of Columbia/Barnard. He is active at Hillel, serving as Jewish Life Orientation Leader. He is a participant of the “Judaism and You” seminars. Avidan is an active member of Koach (the Conservative Community on campus), the Partnership minyan and the Yavneh (Orthodox) community. He also acts in the Columbia Musical Theater Society.

Camp Ramah Outdoor Adventure
Emory University
Denver, CO

Aviva is from Denver but she currently attends Emory University, majoring in Political Science and Public Health. She is involved in Emory Hillel, Emory Student Ambassadors, and is on the women's club Ultimate Frisbee team. Aviva worked at Ramah in the Rockies last summer as a Bogrim (14-15 year olds) counselor, trip leader, and duatholon (like triathlon minus the swimming) specialist. What inspires Aviva about Judaism is its ability to bring people together. Wherever you are in the country or the world, you know you can find a place for Shabbat or some Jews to help you out. For the future, Aviva is considering a number of career paths including policy, public health, law, the Jewish non-profits.

URJ Six Points Sports Academy
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Raleigh, NC

A junior at UNC Chapel Hill, Ayla is majoring in Peace, War and Defense at UNC with a minor in French. Ayla is active in Hillel and Challah for Hunger. She is also a member of, and on the Evaluation Committee of AKPsi, a Professional Business Fraternity. Off campus, she is involved with the local Judea Reform Congregation, where she teaches Hebrew School. Ayla is originally from Raleigh, North Carolina, and she spends her summers at URJ Six Points Sports Academy.

Camp Alonim
Sherman Oaks, CA
List College/ Columbia University

Ben de Toledo, from Los Angeles, is currently studying Jewish History and Sociology in the joint program between Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary. He is a 2017 recipient of the JTS Ettenberg Award for “Outstanding Student Who is Planning a Career in Jewish Education.” He serves on the List College Student Council Policy Committee; he is in the JTS Artist-in-Residence Fellowship; and he is active in Hillel, Chabad and JLIC. Ben is an assistant teacher at The Shefa School, a new Jewish community day school for students with language-based learning disabilities. He was teen leadership advisor and Imagineer at Camp Alonim, and a Jewish Experiential Nature Educator (JENE) fellow. Ben is inspired by the radical vision and mission of our Jewish ancestors, Abraham and Sarah, who operated an open tent in the middle of the desert and believed in the power of hospitality and kindness to change the world. In the future, Ben hopes to make Judaism more lively, relevant, and accessible to Jews of all backgrounds, and build a camp-inspired residential Jewish community.

Camp Ramah in California
Indiana University
Porter Ranch, CA

Bianca is from the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles and attends Indiana University Bloomington. She is majoring in Journalism with a specialization in Public Relations and minoring in Spanish. Bianca is active in her sorority on campus, having held various leadership positions, and is connected to the Jewish community as well. She has participated in various Hillel classes ranging from exploring the History of Jewish Summer Camps to learning about Jewish Culture in North America. Bianca spends her summers at Camp Ramah in California, where she most recently served as one of the Head Counselors for the oldest age group. After being active in her Jewish youth group in high school, she continued on by attending numerous leadership conferences throughout the year as a Ramah representative. Bianca currently serves as a Digital Ambassador Intern for ISRAEL21c. She hopes The Nachshon Project will expose her to various career opportunities, mixing both the Jewish and Israeli world while incorporating her interest in modern day media. Bianca is excited to adventure through Israel as she continues to explore her future path.

URJ Eisner Camp
University of Connecticut
Cheshire, CT

Dan is a Psychology and Human Rights double major at the University of Connecticut. On campus, he participates in two theater clubs, is very active in Hillel, and participates in the UConn Dance Marathon called HuskyTHON. His fraternity, Sigma Alpha Mu, is the main Jewish fraternity on campus. This past year, Dan’s main leadership roles were serving as a Morale Captain for HuskyTHON, serving as the VP of Membership Development and Programming for the Inter-Fraternity Council, and serving as the Director of Recruitment for the Greek Community Affairs Board. This past summer he worked at URJ Eisner Camp as a general counselor for 15-year-olds. What inspires Dan about Judaism is the amazing sense of community in Jewish spaces, the focus placed on social justice, and the expectation that one will question and reflect on his/her faith in meaningful ways and not simply follow blindly. In the future, he hope to get a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, eventually opening up his own private practice for therapy with adolescents.

Ramah in Canada
List College/ Columbia University
Bloomfield Hills, MI

Daphne, from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, is a junior in the Joint Program between Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary. She is majoring in Urban Studies at Columbia and in Talmud at JTS. Daphne is currently a fellow at the Drisha Institute as well as a fellow in Columbia’s Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies, and she is a tour guide for the List College Admissions Office. In past years, Daphne has served on List College Student Council, on the board of the Jewish Activist Collective at Columbia/Barnard Hillel, and as an iEngage fellow at Columbia/Barnard Hillel. This past summer, she was an iEngage intern at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, an administrative intern at the Jerusalem nonprofit Kashouvot, and a marketing intern at the Center for Community-Based Enterprise in Detroit. For twelve summers prior to 2017, Daphne was at Camp Ramah in Canada, spending ten years as a camper and then two years as a counselor. She is drawn to Jewish life because of Judaism’s unique and compelling conceptions of peoplehood, and its grounding in a theology born of serious and critical intellectual pursuits.