SAMi Impacts On College Campuses

On many college campuses, Sephardic and Mizrahi Jewish students remain marginalized and underserved. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many students feel completely abandoned by the existing Jewish infrastructure on college campuses across America.

For this reason, SAMi: The Sephardic American Mizrahi initiative, was launched with the mission to help serve students who identify and come from Sephardic and Mizrahi communities.

SAMi is amongst the first to think strategically about transforming student life to meet the needs and wants of Sephardic and Mizrahi students, creating a pipeline of Jewish leaders, while building and advancing the Jewish professional talent amongst Mizrahi and Sephardic students, preparing them for Jewish leadership, both as lay-leaders (volunteers) and non-profit professionals.

The organization strongly believes that investing in Sephardi and Mizrahi communities today ensures an inclusive and diverse leadership conduit for the future of the American Jewish community.

SAMi has already provided a platform and network for 1285 college students and young professionals in NYC and around the nation. They have engaged 258 students in in-person activities, 452 numbers of students in virtual activities, and as of January 1, 2022 will have 49 graduates of the SAMi Leadership Institute program.

SAMi operates a leadership cohort with fifteen students. Students from Touro College, Queens College, Queens Borough Community College, St. John’s University, and York College met in Queens for an in-person meeting that included a workshop and leadership training. SAMi also conducted two virtual trainings. One was New York-based with fifteen students participating from Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan, and Long Island. A third international training program was held with the participation of students from around the U.S. and included students from Canada and Brazil. “At the trainings, students learn leadership, entrepreneurial, and philanthropy skills,” explained founder Manashe Khaimov. “Regarding leadership, students are connected back to the teachings of the Torah. The students reflect on the world’s creation in Chumash, and Talmudic texts to become better leaders.” In one scenario where students identify styles of leadership, cards are given with the names of biblical Jewish inspirations like Moshe, Yosef, Rifka, Rachel, Ruth, amongst others and are asked to choose one with whom they identify and one that most reflects their character as a leader. “We watch as students connect their leadership style and connect it back to the origins of the Torah and the leadership styles portrayed by our forefathers and foremothers,” noted Khaimov. “Students are easily recognizing that they have a deep and strong connection to the Torah and Judaism overall.”

Regarding entrepreneurship students study the legacy of King Solomon and his famous quote, “There is nothing new under the sun.” Students deliberate if new items exist, and question if we are inventing something or if everything was here from before and we are just inventing it in our minds. In terms of philanthropy the students delve into the work of the Rambam in Maimonides' Ladder of Tzedakah. SAMi has found a transformative manner to learn Talmud and Torah that connects the students to learn and understand the texts often for their first time.

SAMi as well sponsored students to attend the Miami AIPAC conference where the SAMi students joined over 400 from around the globe. SAMi also held a reception for its students in the form of a networking breakfast that included local students and visitors at the Diplomat Beach Resort together with Jimena, an organization that works to obtain stipends from Arab countries that eradicated 850,000 Jews from their lands. SAMi has chosen to hold its next networking event on February 6 in Queens. The program will aim to unite collegiate students from New York and eventually pair them with a mentor.

Sephardic American Mizrahi Initiative is a new 501c3 organization that focuses on college campuses that have a large number of Sephardic and Mizrahi student-population. SAMi aims to serve their needs and support them while they are going through college in their formative years. SAMi aspires to transform the Jewish community across North America to be more inclusive, representative, and diverse. Learn more how you can help SAMi on their undertaking at www.fundly.com/support-sephardic-students-on-college-campuses.