BGU Student Profile: Shir Mnuchin
BGU Student Profile: Shir Mnuchin
November 8, 2012
Negev Development & Community Programs
Shir Mnuchin was raised in a small community in Jerusalem, but it was a year in Alabama that showed her what living in a community is all about.
“I felt what it was like to be an outsider. The people reached out, made me feel part of their world. And once you feel a part of something greater than yourself, you want to give back.
“In Israel you have things in common with those around you but when you’re not automatically part of a community, people have to make room for you. Seeing the effort people put into that in Alabama, I realized this was something I wanted to implement in my life here.”
Shir chose Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in large part because of its reputation for encouraging community involvement. Before college, she had served in the military’s education corps, working with newcomers who made aliyah.
This exposed her to Jewish life in other countries, and she became interested in experiencing life outside Israel. The Jewish Agency for Israel sent her to Alabama, where she spent a year creating programs to explain modern Israel to audiences in churches and universities.
She spent the first year of her student life participating in BGU’s Lillian and Larry Goodman Open Apartments Program. Shir taught English to middle school girls, training them to initiate their own programs as community leaders.
By her final year as an undergraduate, Shir was the international relations coordinator for the University’s Student Association. In this role she served as the student liaison to the Board of Governors, and facilitated a range of student initiatives.
Motivated by her desire to bring international students into the fold, she created a host of programs to accomplish that goal.
“When I took the job I thought it was very important to see what other campuses are doing,” says Shir. I heard about the ‘buddy system’ and thought it would be great for ours. I tried to see what the needs are here, what was missing. Then I had to recruit people.”
She succeeded: about 550 Israeli students and 300 international students registered. The Buddy System now embraces a growing set of programs that aim to put Israeli and foreign students together. “We hold an orientation day when they get here, showing them around campus, and offering cultural programs and activities like yoga, zumba and spinning.”
She also organized Shabbat and weekend programs in the Negev student villages. “This allows students who wouldn’t meet in other circumstances to get together,” Shir says. People are paired up so they become familiar with each other’s language and culture as they get to know each other.
“Creating opportunities for overseas students to take part in and bring them into the community is one of the most amazing things you can do,” Shir believes. “You can create a home for them. The program answers both sides’ needs—so many Israeli students want to meet the foreign ones.”
Shir is thrilled with the support she received from BGU for her programs, even from the very top from BGU President Rivka Carmi, with whom she has met on several occasions.
“BGU more than lived up to my expectations. Our vibrant student life here truly enables students to not only focus on their studies but to be active in the community. You don’t hear about such things at other universities. We’re very much committed not just to talking, but to making things happen. It’s a privilege to be part of such a community,” said Shir.
Shir’s future plans include working for a non-governmental organization, perhaps one that combines education and community work.
Shir Mnuchin is now enrolled in BGU’s MBA in Social Leadership Program in the Guilford Glazer Faculty of Business and Management.
Stories Like This
