Student Senate Votes To Defund Jewish Organization

NEW YORK, NY— Students at The New School voted to strip funding from the campus Hillel chapter, a move the university says the student senate lacks authority to make.

The 22-member student senate approved the measure Friday, declaring Hillel, Jewish student organization, “not in good standing” and citing its ties to programs connected to the Israeli Defense Forces, including student trips to Israel and participation in Birthright Israel.

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“Our Hillel chapter remains, as it always has been, in good standing, eligible for funding, and supporting Jewish life at The New School,” a spokesperson for the New School said.

A student government report accused Hillel of involvement in activities it said made students “complicit,” including volunteer programs on Israeli military bases and travel to disputed territories.

“To continue to fund Hillel at the New School would mean that your student fees would be used to support violations of international law,” the report stated. “Our shared values require us to enforce our policies until Hillel agrees to affirm and abide by international law.”

The report also questioned the use of mandatory student activity fees, which are distributed to campus organizations.

The university rejected the senate’s decision.

“The student senate does not have the authority to determine the recognition, funding eligibility, or official status of registered student organizations,” a New School spokesperson said. “That authority rests with university administration.”

Hillel International, which operates on more than 850 campuses nationwide, described the vote as part of a broader pattern of targeting Jewish student life.

“Demonizing Hillel with false charges rooted in age-old antisemitic tropes is wrong, plain and simple,” said Hillel International CEO Adam Lehman.

City Council Member Eric Dinowitz also condemned the decision, calling it “a direct attack on Jewish life on campus.”

The student vote marks what organizers described as a “landmark decision,” though the university said no change to Hillel’s status will take effect.