Q Jew: How to Make Programs That Last
by Sarah Wechsler, Second-Year Fellow at San Francisco Hillel
During my time at San Francisco Hillel, I’ve learned that the best programs come from a mix of student-driven curiosity, real data, and personal creativity. At our Hillel, an interest that has come through loud and clear from our students has been an eagerness to learn more about Queer Jews. One of our biggest wins in this space is Q-Jew, a home-grown learning cohort created by the former Springboard Fellow, Matthew Lacoff, who now is a Hebrew School Principal.
Matt set out to create an engaging program that future facilitators and students alike could expect a deeper level of content, while still jumping into those harder topics with confidence.
This year, I’ve stepped into the Facilitation role for Q-Jew, round two! The 10-session curriculum created is designed to engage students beyond a surface level exploration of queer theory, historical queer Jews, modern queer Jews, and a spectrum of rabbinic perspectives across a number of topics, emphasizing that there is nothing new under the sun, queer Jews have always been around.
Throughout my facilitation I have approached the Q-Jew curriculum with flexibility by design, as both a steward and a creator- I’ve learned that it is my job to preserve the integrity of what students loved previously while also adapting sessions to meet the needs, questions, and lived experiences of a new group of students. New students showed up because they heard something real was happening. That kind of continuity—students telling other students that this space matters—is how a program grows into a community.
I had been advised by Matt, “These are sensitive topics… it takes a lot of preparation to be clear in your mind about how each piece connects to the next and to facilitate a conversation that can be quite difficult.” That guidance quickly proved true, especially when navigating students through sources that wrestle with homophobia, misogyny, and complex relationships with G-d.
And as I continue to facilitate, I’m reminded that this isn’t work meant for just one semester. We’re creating an entry point for students to keep developing their Jewish learning skills, their confidence, and their ability to stay in the conversation even when it’s challenging to do so. Q-Jew has allowed for complex ideas that deserve more than a single season to be altered to the needs of a new group of students, and eventually a new facilitator. Facilitating Q-Jew has provided me the opportunity to carry that vision forward, shaping the program through my voice, my values, and the needs of our students.
Announcing The Nancy & Stephen Grand Building
Announcing the Nancy and Stephen Grand Building at SF Hillel: San Francisco Jewish Community Comes Together to Provide College Students with Joyful, Safe, Accessible Space
San Francisco, CA—SF Hillel announced the spring 2026 groundbreaking for the transformative renovation of its house at 33 Banbury Drive after operating in the space for 40 years. The Nancy and Stephen Grand Building will be a modern, accessible community space for Jewish students across San Francisco and the surrounding areas. SF Hillel anticipates moving into the new space in August 2027.
"I am so thrilled to see the new building move forward and thankful to all those who stepped up to join me in supporting this project," said Nancy Grand. "SF Hillel has played such an important role in San Francisco and Stephen had aspired to support a major update to the building. He would have been very proud of this moment."
The new Hillel house will provide increased accessibility, security, and space for the students SF Hillel serves. The renovation expands programming spaces and adds private meeting rooms for counseling and pastoral care, a food pantry and a state-of-the-art kitchen to accommodate the increased needs associated with food insecurity, and an elevator to provide accessibility to accommodate all students. Additionally, the renovation includes numerous security upgrades, a need that was demonstrated by the attempted break-in and antisemitic vandalism of the existing building in December 2024.
It was the December incident that compelled Ripple Co-founder Chris Larsen to step up. "After seeing the horrific vandalism at the SF Hillel building, I realized how truly vulnerable Jewish students were in San Francisco and wanted to help in some way. When I heard about the capital project and the upgrades to the building, I knew that was where I wanted to provide my support."
After 60 years of serving the SF State University community, in the last two decades, they have expanded from serving predominantly San Francisco State University students to serving over 10 colleges in the Bay Area, reaching more than 1,000 Jewish students annually, and doubling its professional team to accommodate the increase in programming and engagement. The Nancy and Stephen Grand building will ensure students of all abilities can gather comfortably and safely with their peers.
"When we first learned about SF Hillel's vision for this building renovation, we knew immediately that this was exactly the kind of investment our community needed to make," said Joy Sisisky, the CEO and President of the Jewish Federation Bay Area. "This building represents more than just bricks and mortar—it's a statement that Jewish students in San Francisco have a home where they can explore their identity, build community, and feel safe. We're proud to have helped launch this campaign and grateful to see the entire community rally behind these students."
SF Hillel Executive Director Roger Feigelson adds, “By being able to make these critically needed upgrades to our building, we not only better support the engagement of our student community and strengthen our programs, but also show how seriously the broader Jewish community takes support for our college students. I can’t overstate how much our students notice when the community steps up. It makes them even more proud of their Jewish identity and encourages them to actively participate in Jewish life both in college and after college.”
The $8.6M capital campaign kicked off in April 2023 with seed gifts from the Jewish Federation Bay Area and the Joseph Pedott Perpetual Endowment Trust. Nancy Grand’s significant gift of $2.5M named the building after her late husband Stephen (z”l), who was a steadfast supporter of SF Hillel. The State of California and the California Legislative Jewish Caucus also saw the urgent need behind supporting this project as well. Other major supporters included Chris Larsen, the Herbst Foundation, the Libitzky Family Foundation, along with several other significant anonymous donations.
“As an early supporter, we celebrate the successful completion of SF Hillel’s capital campaign. Hillel’s work is more important than ever, and the new building will provide a warm and welcoming environment to help ensure our community’s future leaders thrive as proud Jews,” said Moses Libitzky.
Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), Co-Chair of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus, adds:
“San Francisco Hillel is an incredibly important resource for Jews across San Francisco’s many campuses of higher learning. SF Hillel provides a place for young Jews to be in community with one another and grow, and I am delighted the State saw the importance of this project and helped to ensure that the San Francisco collegiate Jewish community would have a space that meets their needs. I look forward to celebrating with them in the new space once it is complete.”
“The Campaign included a broad cross section of our community, who recognized the importance of this project and its far-reaching impact on our Jewish and Jewish-adjacent students,” said Carol Weitz, SF Hillel Capital Campaign Chair. “It was an honor to work with the Hillel team, Campaign Committee, and the many donors that helped make this happen.”
In another display of SF Hillel’s strong relationship with San Francisco State University, the school’s administration graciously offered staff and students temporary space in the library, which will provide both programming and office space while the Hillel building renovations are made. Hillel’s final events in its current building will occur in December this year, with the Hillel team moving to the SFSU location in early 2026.
“SF Hillel provides a very important service to Jewish students across the region. SF State students benefit from the close proximity to Hillel staff and, in fact, often constitute the majority of students supported by SF Hillel,” said SFSU President Lynn Mahoney. “In order to ensure that our students remain well served, SFSU is delighted to provide SF Hillel temporary space as their new building is under construction. We look forward to welcoming them in 2026.”
As part of the lead-up to construction and to sustain and grow SF Hillel’s student support, it is kicking off the Jewish Futures Campaign. SF Hillel is inviting donors to make a five-year annual commitment to support programming and engagement as we look to fortify Jewish continuity. Donors to the Jewish Future campaign will have their name added to a special donor display in the renovated building.
