SF Hillel is dedicated to helping students meet their basic needs through the following services:

​1. Food & housing security through grocery money & rent assistance
2. Pop-up food pantry
3. Free soup & snack bar always available in our building
4. Free mental health counseling through JFCS and wellness resources
5. Connecting you with scholarships and interest free loans for school

Click on any of the links above or keep scrolling to get connected with support. You are not alone.
Are you a donor looking to support one of our basic needs initiatives? Please contact Emily at [email protected].

SF Hillel's Basic Needs Support Application

With the rising costs of living, inflation for food costs, and lack of affordable mental health care, SF Hillel is trying to bridge that gap. Thanks to our generous funders at the San Francisco Jewish Community Federation, The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Ladle & Leaf, and local donors, we are able to provide our basic needs assistance initiative for a third year!
Information on applying:
  • On average, we are not able to provide more than $500 to a student in a month, and available funds depend on the number of applications each month. If your need exceeds $500, you are welcome to apply for more, but we cannot guarantee that the full amount requested will be granted. If you are in need of more assistance, please reach out to Alexandra ([email protected]) for help getting connected with other financial assistance resources.
  • We will only grant money to each student a maximum of 3 times per year and will give priority to students who have not yet received funds. You can apply more than 3 times if you did not receive funds every time you applied.
  • Grocery assistance will be provided in the form of a gift card to the indicated grocery store.
  • Rent assistance will be provided in the form of a check. If you are selected to receive rent assistance, SF Hillel will reach out to you to have you fill out a w-9 form. Depending on the amount granted, you may have to pay taxes on the funds provided.

Free, nutritious soups at Hillel!

Thanks to our friends at Ladle & Leaf, we are able to offer SF Hillel students free, nutritious soup, including Matzo ball soup! Stop by our building to grab a serving or fill out this form and connect with Matt to have it brought to your campus.

SF Hillel will host at least two Pop-Up Food Pantries per academic year.
Check back soon for our fall 2024 date!

Free mental health support for Hillel students

SF Hillel is able to offer free counseling services for a limited number of students each semester through JFCS (Jewish Family Children Services). To be considered, please contact us at [email protected].
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Located in the East Bay? A local alumni has offered to provide SF Hillel students with sliding scale therapy in Oakland or via telehealth. If interested, please contact [email protected] to be connected.
Click here to access all of our mental health resources, including campus-specific resources, online support, and care around the Bay Area.