UGA Kicks Off School Year with New Hillel Director

New University of Georgia Hillel Director Roey Shoshan is excited about his new role. But it’s not the first time the former Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta’s Israel and Overseas director has worked with college students.

Shoshan led a Birthright trip for UGA students and worked with that age group while at the Federation.

“I really enjoyed my time at the Federation and want to thank Mark Silberman, Joel Marks and Eric Robbins for allowing me to be who I am and to express my personality and my passion for this job. But I feel this is a demographic I really need to tackle because it’s the future.”

Shoshan says Jewish students at UGA should look at the campus Hillel as a home away from home. “I want them to be inspired to come live a Jewish life. I want them to interact with each other and the staff and figure out ways to be with each other; and I want them to care about Israel. I really hope that when they look back at their college experience, they remember that Hillel was a part of that and helped them shape their identity going forward.”

Hillels of Georgia Executive Director Russ Shulkes said about Shoshan’s new role, “We are so excited to keep Roey in Georgia. He has been so impactful for so many of our students even before he got here and even led a Birthright trip for our UGA students.”

He added that Roey “has a premiere record of outstanding impact, pro-Israel activities and leadership throughout Atlanta. This means we can grow our program in a concrete way with a person who knows what he is doing, understands expectations, really believes in Athens and Hillel and is able to take us to our next stage to fulfill our potential.”

During his two years as Federation’s Israel and Overseas director, Shoshan led four missions to Israel, completed a documentary about the Ethiopian community in Israel with Emmy-winning producer Adam Hirsh; and helped plan Israel@70. Shoshan also was able to grow the Federation’s ShinShinim program from two participants to eight.

Supported by The Jewish Agency for Israel, the ShinShinim program brings high school graduates willing to defer their military service from Israel to the United States so they can share their love for the Jewish state with different communities.

Shoshan says he does not like to get comfortable in one place and is always eager to find different ways he can impact the community. “At the end of the day you are dealing with a population that in the next 10 or 15 years could be the next leaders for the Federation, the JCC and FIDF [Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces], and if you are able to inspire them to take action and be active now, then ultimately, I will be doing a service for all those organizations in the future.”