Led by Yeshiva University, High School Students Head to D.C. on Israel Lobbying Mission More than 100 high school students headed to Capitol Hill on October 15 to lobby on behalf of Israel. The mission, organized by Yeshiva University, was directed by Matthew Schwartz, YU’s assistant director of recruitment and high school programming, and Ethan Wasserman, last year’s president of YUPAC (Yeshiva University Political Awareness Club) and a current YU presidential fellow. The lobbying mission came about after Rivka Abbe, a senior at Samuel H. Wang Yeshiva University High School for Girls (Central), approached Rabbi Kenneth Brander, David Mitzner Dean of the Center for the Jewish Future, with the idea. Abbe became passionate about politics and lobbying after working closely with former YUPAC president, Dina Muskin, who organized lobbying training for students at Central. After hearing Abbe’s idea, Brander asked Schwartz to lead the event. “I approached Rabbi Brander last year because I heard about all the things CJF does for Jewish communities around the world,” said Abbe, who also shared the idea with Rabbi Steven Burg, managing director of the Orthodox Union and international director of NCSY. “They agreed that it would be ideal to run this as a joint program between the OU and YU.” “We saw this as a great and creative opportunity to enrich high school students’ curricula and experiences,” said Schwartz, who reached out to several high schools to participate. In all, 12 high schools took part in the mission, including Central, Yeshiva University High School for Boys (MTA), Jewish Educational Center High School, Hillel Yeshiva of Deal, Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway, Hebrew Academy of Nassau County, Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School, Stella K. Abraham High School for Girls, Hebrew High School of New England, North Shore Hebrew Academy High School, Bruriah High School for Girls and Ma’ayonot Yeshiva High School for Girls. Students prepared for their trip by learning about issues ranging from foreign aid to Iran, and heard from prominent speakers including Brooke Goldstein, director of the Lawfare Project, and Rabbi Steven Burg. On the day of the mission, students were buzzing with excitement as their buses pulled up to Capitol Hill, engaging each other in intellectual and political debates, while practicing their lobbying tactics. The students then divided up into groups to meet with 15 congressional offices before meeting in the White House with Jarrod Bernstein, Jewish liaison to the White House. Bernstein addressed the group—discussing his background, how he got to his current position and what his job entails—before answering questions from the students. “I learned that it is easier to function in Washington as a frum Jew than I originally thought,” said Yehoshua Zafranski, a student at MTA. “It was also a great experience to meet other kids my age that share the same passion.”