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Ira Blum ✉
Director
he/him
Ira is honored and grateful to return to his alma mater at Muhlenberg College as Director of Hillel at the Leffell Center for Jewish Student Life.
Over the last decade, Ira has engaged one-on-one with thousands of college students, supporting them along their paths of Jewish self-authorship. Before Muhlenberg, Ira served as Assistant Director at Penn Hillel, helping to shape a vibrant and dynamic Jewish life on campus.
Ira holds dual master’s degrees in Jewish Professional Leadership and Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis University. He is committed to the ongoing work of building enduring relationships with students, nurturing leadership and provoking emotional, intellectual, social and spiritual growth during critical years of young adulthood.
Alongside students, Ira continues to learn and grow in areas of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, engaging students across difference. In his work empowering student exploration, he has also traveled internationally with students to Israel, Rwanda, Poland, and Germany.
Ira is committed to continued professional development and has participated in courses and certifications addressing anti-violence advocacy, mental health and wellness and restorative practices. Additionally, Ira advances the Hillel movement by mentoring colleagues, contributing to field-wide learning materials such as “Jewish Sensibilities” and teaching Springboard Social Justice and Ezra cohorts.
Ira lives in Allentown with his wife, Risa, their cat Pumpkin and their dog Daffy.
Please click here to find a time to connect.
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April Cunningham ✉
Assistant Director
she/her
April has more than a decade of experience working with Jewish students at Muhlenberg Hillel. She joined the staff in 2008 as the Office Manager before being promoted to Assistant Director of The Leffell Center for Jewish Student Life. April is honored to have had the privilege of engaging with so many students throughout her time at Muhlenberg. The relationships she has fostered with students, parents, alumni, and community members have been integral in creating experiences and opportunities for our Hillel as well as enriching the diversity of Jewish life on campus.
April is a proud Alvernia University alumna holding a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Before coming to Muhlenberg, April worked at her alma mater, first in Institutional Research and later in Community Engagement, helping to connect college students with local youth in an afterschool program focused on outreach, mentoring, and creating a safe haven for young people.
April lives in Reading with her husband, Josh and their two children, Benjamin and Brenna. She enjoys traveling, kayaking, photography, and will never turn down chocolate. She is an allstar cheer mom, a dog mom, and the Hillel mom. Above all, April wants students to know that they always have a space in her office to come and chat, laugh, cry, or just be. “Being with students is what fills me up. It is what surpasses all of the other work that I do. Meeting a student where they are and being with them in their best and most challenging moments, humbles me to my core.” Please click here to find a time to connect.
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Hailey Smilowitz ✉
Springboard Fellow
she/her
Hailey is from Atlanta, Georgia and graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2024, where she studied Mass Communications and Jewish Studies. She started her Hillel journey as the Public Relations Chair at UofSC, taking photos at events and managing various social media pages. When she moved up to the Vice President of Communications and Media, she realized how much she loved collaborating and creating connections with students.
In the summer of 2022, after traveling to Israel on Birthright, she began her two-year internship as a Digital Marketing Intern at Hillel International. She learned many different communication techniques and was a vital part of unique marketing campaigns. She was inspired by all the connections she made working with college students and encouraging them to create their own Jewish stories.
In Hailey’s free time, you can find her out in nature, playing board games with friends and family, trying new coffee shops, and listening to Taylor Swift. Hailey is so excited to get on campus and connect with students as the Innovation Springboard Fellow!
Please click here to find a time to connect.
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Inbal Neeman ✉
Israel Fellow
she/her
Inbal was born and raised in Shoham, Israel. For the last three years, she has been living in Jerusalem, studying mathematics and computer science at Hebrew University. During this time she worked in Magshimim, a non-profit organization aiming to teach youth in Israel’s geographic and social periphery courses in computer science. While in high school, she participated in Bnei Akiva Youth Movement as a member and a counselor. After high school, she attended Lindenbaum Seminary in Jerusalem for a year and a half, where she studied Jewish Studies, which developed and enriched her connection to Judaism.
Inbal served in unit 8200 in the Israeli Intelligence for almost four years. During her time at seminary, she took on the challenge of studying the Jewish Talmud, which she finished during her service. Inbal describes this as an amazing combination of a very Jewish experience and a very Israeli one.
She is proud of being both Jewish and Israeli, and she believes both of these identities could and should include the global values she believes in, such as equality through education, feminism, LGBTQ rights, and environmental protection. She hopes to engage in conversation with Muhlenberg students about how these two identities can come together alongside other global values.
Inbal enjoys reading books (especially Harry Potter) and would love to recommend some great Israeli fiction. She also likes cooking vegetarian recipes and growing houseplants. She loves watching soccer and going to film festivals, and recently started bouldering.
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