Advocacy Versus Academics at High-Tech Campuses

By Samantha Vinokor, ICB Reporter

Pro-Israel student leaders across the country face never-ending challenges when it comes to
mobilizing students , but the hurdles can be even greater at schools where math, science,
engineering and other demanding majors prevail.
“People have their minds in math textbooks,” notes Rachel Bandler, president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Students for Israel. “It’s hard to get them to care.”
Bandler said that she faces great challenges when it comes to trying to advocate for Israel on a campus full of students whose main focus is engineering and scientific research. Nonetheless, in the fall of 2010, she was instrumental in revitalizing the pro-Israel movement at MIT.

Rebecca Yasner, the president of the newly restarted Tartans for Israel organization at Carnegie Mellon University, said she needs to meet students on their own terms. At Carnegie Mellon, she said, she can’t expect students to attend Israeli music events when their true interests lie in their studies.

Both Bandler and Yasner say that apathy is widespread – not just when the subject is Israel, but for most political and social issues. At Carnegie Mellon, Yasner said, “Most of the groups that are active are for a hobby, not a cause.”

At MIT, Bandler said, the College Democrats and College Republicans are small organizations. Elsewhere, these groups often are natural allies when it comes to promoting politically focused programs and activities. Large political science departments, filled with students who are interested in Middle Eastern affairs, also provide a natural source of activists and participants.

In their absence, other avenues have been explored and other allies have been cultivated.

In schools where most students are pursuing math and science studies, pro-Israel students to have to come up with new and innovative ways to appeal to their campuses.

For pro-Israel students at Carnegie Mellon, partnering with academic departments for events, as well as utilizing the resources provided by Chabad and Hillel allows for a broader audience for pro-Israel programming.

In some ways, the hurdles are similar to those encountered on all campuses. Like at every other school, MIT Students for Israel and Tartans for Israel have had developed unique ways to attract students to Israel and Israel programming.

Yasner said that their members have recognized the interests of the student body, and have planned events that link Israel to areas of interest. Examples include bringing speakers from technology leaders Intel and Microsoft.

The leadership of Tartans for Israel is working with various academic departments and schools at CMU to reach a broad base of students and appeal to the general campus population.

At MIT, Bandler and the members of MIT Students for Israel face a growing pro-Palestinian sentiment within the student body. High-profile Israel critic Noam Chomsky, who is on MIT’s faculty, has supported the growing movement, and the school has hosted a “Palestine Awareness Week” in the past.

These challenges helped motivate Bandler to revitalize the pro-Israel voice on campus. Since last semester, MIT Students for Israel has run numerous events, many of which specifically highlight Israel’s technological innovations as a way to appeal to the research and tech-oriented campus community.

According to MIT Hillel program director Eliad Shmuel, the campus has a large number of Israelis graduate students whose presence demonstrates to the greater campus community that Israel focuses on the high-tech sector and is full of intelligent people with whom students can forge personal bonds through shared academic endeavors.

Yasner’s advice to other student leaders on campuses where it is difficult to divert student attention from studies is to seek out ways to reach them on their own terms. This may mean that political activism won’t work, and advocates may be well-advised to address areas of particular interest to your audience.

“People are more likely to be receptive to information if it’s not perceived to be propaganda,” she said. “It’s better to see what the students are already interested in and show them all of the great things that Israel is doing in that field.”

With this advice in mind, science and technology-focused campuses have an edge, because Israel offers so many opportunities in these areas. The examples set by student groups at MIT and Carnegie Mellon can be mirrored on campuses across the country.

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