‘We want to unify’: Sacramento State opens Jewish student resource center

Gavin Baptiste sometimes felt like an outsider at Sacramento State.

Outside of school, he’s been reconnecting with his Jewish faith but, at school, finding that connection seemingly wasn’t as simple as turning to one place — a safe space with others seeking the same bonds.

That place was given a home for the second-year political science major and others Wednesday with the opening of the Jewish Life and Resource Center, the newest affinity center on campus.

In partnership with Hillel at Davis and Sacramento, the center will act as a hub for Jewish students at Sacramento State and create a bridge with the space created 58 years ago at UC Davis.

President Luke Wood, who greeted Wednesday’s visitors, said the center’s opening was born out of listening sessions he held when he first took office last summer. After speaking with Jewish students, Wood said Jewish students wanted a space where people “understand them, care about them and are rooting for them to succeed.”

“Our goal is that we will be a choice institution for students across the world, and particularly across the country who identify as Jewish and want to learn more about Jewish life and culture,” Wood said.

Creating an affinity center, which studies show have been beneficial for underrepresented students, came to mind.

“I think this will provide a face to our community,” Baptiste said. “This will provide a human face to connect with Jewish identity and not just a mysterious entity. We are actually people who exist, who have a community.”

Additionally, Wood said Sacramento State planned to provide training on antisemitism for faculty and staff, kosher food options and a recruitment initiative to increase the Jewish student population on campus.

A safe space for Jewish students is needed amid a steep rise in antisemitic hate crimes, said Rachel Darling, executive director of Hillel house.

“Jewish students are seeking out community and wanting a space where they can safely celebrate their Jewish heritage,” Darling said. “Having a safe haven for Jewish students to come together, to build community and celebrate their Jewish identity is so important.”

The opening also came a day after President Joe Biden, speaking during a ceremony to remember victims of the Holocaust, decried the “ferocious surge” in violence and hateful rhetoric on college campuses and around the globe since Hamas attacked Israel and triggered a war in Gaza.

Within the center Wednesday, photos of Israeli hostages, were laid upon a table underneath an Israeli flag. Over 100 hostages have been unaccounted for. The flyers read “bring them home.”

The center’s opening — happening hours after the university announced an agreement with pro-Palestinian protesters to investigate and divest from its Israel-tied investments — may have seemed like a juxtaposition to the encampment across campus.

Countering an atmosphere where people seem to be “moving away from open dialogue,” Wood aimed to meet the moment with optimism — Sacramento State, he said, should be a place where “open conversations” can unlock understanding, acceptance and a path forward.

“We want to go and be something that’s different. Where other campus communities may vilify, we want to unify,” Wood said. “For other campus communities who want to sow seeds of discord, we want to sow seeds of truth and understanding.”

Michael Berbach, a fourth-year computer science major, said the Jewish community is multifaceted. Individuals have different belief systems and isn’t a monolith. He said with the opening of the center, there is a renewed sense of belonging.

“There wasn’t really an opportunity to get to know the community here on campus before,” Berbach said.

The Jewish Life and Resource Center joins 10 other affinity and equity centers on campus, including the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American Center for students of Asian descent, the Esak’timá Center for Native American and Indigenous students, the MLK Center for Black and African American students, the PRIDE Center for LGBTQ students and the Veteran’s Success Center.