Jewish students seek more secure environment after Hamas attack
WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, New York (WABC) -- There has been a rise in antisemitic incidents at college campuses ever since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack in Israel.
The incidents have prompted more students to choose Jewish schools, and at Yeshiva University, enrollment has soared to a record high.
"After Oct. 7, every time I walked into class, it felt like someone was giving you a dirty look," Ethan Oliner said.
Oliner planned on getting his degree from Cornell. He says rising tensions on campus forced him to transfer to Yeshiva University this spring.
"It's a safe environment where you're able to focus on your actual studies and not focus on fighting antisemitism every day," he said.
Oliner's story isn't unique.
Since the Oct.7 Hamas attack, Yeshiva school officials say they have seen a rise in enrollment by roughly 52%. Many of them are Jewish students from Ivy League colleges, who wanted a more secure environment.
"We are so packed, we took out, for example, additional residences in Midtown for our Midtown campus and we've had to expand our footprint," said Yeshiva University President Ari Berman.
Berman has taken steps to combat antisemitism, including leading a delegation of university presidents for the first time to the march of the living in Auschwitz earlier this month.
It's an annual program that brings students from around the world to Poland to explore the remnants of the Holocaust on Holocaust Memorial Day.
"I've never been, and truthfully I've been afraid, you know, emotionally to go there. But I felt like a delegation of university presidents was necessary today," Berman said.
The university also just started a new online Holocaust program to educate public school teachers on how to teach the history.
According to the NYPD, there has been 52% surge in antisemitic crimes in New York City over the past year.
Berman says the schools efforts are critical now more than ever.
Oliner has always been proud of his heritage but now he's exploring career opportunities that uplift his community.
"Whatever I want to go into, I want to shed a positive light on Judaism," he said.
Yeshiva University has extended its transfer deadline to the end of May for students looking to change schools this coming fall.
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