Editor: Keith Davis Writer: Dave Maley Publisher: Office of Public Information Volume 22, No. 8   November 29, 1999

Twenty Students to Visit Israel During Winter Break This coming January, 20 Ithaca College students and their group leader will be taking part in Israel 2000, a free 10-day trip to Israel. And though there will be time for nature walks, concerts, dances, and banquets, the trip isn't going to be your typical winter break. "Israel is a dynamic, modern society built on the same soil where civilizations have risen and fallen for thousands of years," says Jewish chaplain Michael Faber, who will accompany the group. "We hope that giving Jewish young people a chance to experience the Jewish state will open them up to their cultural and religious identities and inspire a lifelong commitment to Judaism. Israel 2000 isn't a tour or a vacation - it's a journey." Israel 2000 is being coordinated by Hillel, the Israeli government, and Birthright Israel, which is paying the students' expenses. The group was formed earlier this year by philanthropists who want to stimulate the growth of the Jewish community and maintain the continuity of Jewish culture. Eligibility for the trip is extended to Jews who are between 16 and 25 years of age and who have never been on an organized peer group experience to Israel. About 100 colleges across the United States, including 19 in New York State, are participating in Israel 2000. The contingent from Ithaca College will be composed of 20 students, who will attend two orientation sessions to prepare themselves for the trip. "We had 68 applicants for the 20 positions," Faber says. "We had interviews that screened that number down to 49, and then we divided by class year and gender. Then we used a lottery to come up with the final 20." Since Birthright Israel plans to fund future trips of this nature, those students not chosen this year will have a chance to reapply. This January about 3,000 American college students will be participating in Israel 2000. "They won't all be going to the same spots at the same time, though," Faber says. "The itineraries will allow each group to travel with their group leaders and experience the country and then have conversations with each other about what they saw and felt. The only time all 3,000 students will be together will be January 8 at a gala gathering in Jerusalem to hear an address by Prime Minister Ehud Barak." The Ithaca College students will leave for Israel January 2. They can look forward to exploring Tel Aviv and the ancient city of Jerusalem, hiking through Galilee, scaling the heights of Masada, meeting Israeli soldiers and political leaders, talking with Jewish and Palestinian students, and discussing peace negotiations with a resident of the Golan Heights. The itinerary includes participating in an archaeological dig, visiting a kibbutz, and swimming in the Dead Sea. Throughout the journey they will have opportunities to talk with each other and with Faber about a range of topics, including the idea of a Jewish homeland, the differences between living in a minority culture as opposed to a majority one, continuity and change in the modern world, and ancient Judaism and pluralism. "We want to be constantly challenging the minds of the students so that they will have a positive experience," Faber says. "The purpose is to have students coming away from all this wondering about the nature of their relationship to the Jewish community."

Created by Andrejs Ozolins. Updated 29. Nov. 1999