In her new role as Executive Director of CU Boulder Hillel, Elyana Funk has brought her family full circle. In fact, she says, “It feels beshert.”
To understand why, it helps to know a little bit about her husband Jeremy’s family. Jeremy’s grandparents, Rabbi Julius Funk z’l and his wife Pearl Funk z’l founded the Hillel at Rutgers University, and they ran the organization for 43 years. Rutgers Hillel has devoted a memorial to their four decades of service.
Two generations later, Elyana now leads CU Boulder Hillel at the state’s flagship university where she supports 2,500-3,000 Jewish students.
“Isn’t it so Jewish, this l’dor v’dor?” she says. “I’m honored to bring Hillel back into the family. I am not a rabbi or a rabbi’s wife, but I think Julius and Pearl would be so proud of what we are doing.”
Funk also brings her own family’s history to her new position. She grew up in the Jewish community of York, Pennsylvania, where there were 12 students in her Sunday school class. What they lacked in numbers, they made up for in close friendships. She still talks to two of those friends every day, and they are essential supports to her as she navigates this Jewish leadership role. One of them, Melanie Kay, who is a professor at the CU Law School, now partners with Funk in organizing Jewish faculty on campus.
Funk says her upbringing in York defined her identity as someone who “did not take being Jewish for granted,” living in a small but strong Jewish community where her mother was a leader.
“I am all about creating community, building community, and joining a community where you feel you belong,” she says. “I learned that from my mother.”
She brings the histories of two families as well as nearly 25 years of experience working with nonprofits, with students, and with young professionals to her new position during a time when college campuses across the country have been in the spotlight for unrest, antisemitism, and anti-Israel protests.
“College students are our future leaders and after October 7, whether they chose it or not, they are current leaders in the Jewish community,” she says. “This is a pivotal moment for them in their Jewish journey, and I am deeply grateful to be part of an organization that shows up for them with the opportunity to be an influence as they make meaningful impacts in the world.”
Drawing on her experience in the community
Before coming to CU Boulder Hillel, Funk spent 24 years at the “I Have A Dream” Foundation of Boulder County (IHDF). She arrived straight out of college at the age of 22 as an AmeriCorps volunteer and so loved the work that she never left. She spent 11 years working alongside one group of students—“Dreamer Scholars”—from second grade through twelfth grade. Those students are now turning 31 years old.
Funk spent the next 13 years in several leadership roles at IHDF which included the supervision of 500 AmeriCorps volunteers who were hosted by IHDF.
“Spending that time with Dreamer Scholars and their families, AmeriCorps volunteers, and IHDF staff was a privilege and a gift,” she says. “The opportunity to work with change-makers, the people who want to be part of the solution to the riddles in our world, is transformative.”
She was the longest-standing employee at IHDF when she started to feel “I have another chapter in me.” She found herself increasingly intrigued by the work she was doing in the Jewish community, as a board member at Congregation Har HaShem and as a member of the Wexner Heritage Program, a Jewish Learning and Leadership Development program.
After October 7, Funk felt compelled to seek a new career direction, working as a Jewish professional.
“Like a lot of people, I wanted to do something to show up for the Jewish community – to highlight our strength, resilience, and our support for one another,” she says. “When the Hillel job became available, I knew it was an incredible opportunity to put my skills and passions towards a cause that I believe in, in a place where I can learn, grow, and advance important work.”
Looking to the future for CU Boulder Hillel
In a post-October 7 world, Jewish students reported feeling isolated and vulnerable on campus. Funk believes in Hillel’s value that the antidote to antisemitism is Jewish joy.
“We are very concerned about safety on campus—both physical and emotional safety—given the protests,” she says. “At the same time, we want to be boldly and proudly Jewish, not just at the Hillel House but also on campus through different programs and initiatives.”
Funk praises the students who comprise the CU Boulder Hillel “Buff Board,” describing them as “the change-makers from within.” Working on different teams, these student leaders drive decision-making about programs and events based on student interest and needs. They brought the event “Comedy for Peace” to campus with comedians from diverse backgrounds. They organized “Spread Schmear not Hate,” handing out bagels on campus while hearing each other’s stories. They encourage one-on-one often difficult conversations about current issues. They are planning an Israel Fest in spring.
On the programs side, CU Boulder Hillel offers a wide range of experiences including an Israel Learning Fellowship for students interested in Israel issues, a Jewish Learning Fellowship for students who want to study different Jewish themes, and a new service corps program to engage students in Jewish values through service and all types of holiday events throughout the year. Every Friday night, Hillel welcomes students to a camp-style Shabbat service and a delicious kosher dinner, and many students come to find community, friendships, and a place they can belong.
Funk has brought her long and deep community experience—as well as her family history and a desire to break down silos—to CU Boulder Hillel. After all, she says, “Ultimately, I am a Jewish mom who wants to look out for all the students.” To do that, she partnered with other Jewish moms at the Boulder JCC who throw an annual Hanukkah party for the Hillel students.
“I want the students to know that the community is here for them,” she says. “If you send your kid away to college, you hope that some other Jewish mom down the road there will help them celebrate Hanukkah and show up for them when they need support.”
At Rosh Hashanah, Funk and her team rented vans and drove students to congregations around Boulder to show the students that there is a thriving Jewish community near campus and to introduce the community to the “amazing Jewish Hillel leaders.”
Funk says she loves being around the students. She describes them as “insightful, driven, energetic, and pluralistic.” They are her inspiration for the future of CU Boulder Hillel.
“Hillel will impact Colorado with current and future Jewish leaders,” she says. “I would like to see us amplify the prominence of this large Jewish population at the state’s flagship university. We want Hillel to be something the students are proud of—that the entire state is proud of.”
To do that, Funk says, “We need to grow.” With a total of four staffers and one Israeli fellow, Funk describes her team as “lean but mighty.” But when she compared CU Boulder with 19 other campuses with similar size of Jewish population, she discovered those campuses averaged 10 Hillel staffers.
Furthermore, CU Boulder Hillel is not funded by Hillel International or CU Boulder. It is a stand-alone 501(c)(3), funded entirely by private donations from a community of parents, alumni, local community members, and grants (some of which do come from Hillel International.) To grow, Funk would like to hire more staff to reach more students.
“The more staff we have, the more students we can reach,” she says. “It’s just that simple.”
With her connections to the past and her eye on the future, Funk brings a unique perspective and enthusiasm to CU Boulder Hillel along with a very important optimistic spirit.
“In the first months after I started this position, I had the opportunity to meet with the university chancellor, and I brought two brilliant and thoughtful Hillel student leaders with me,” she says. “They did most of the talking. As I sat and listened, I thought to myself, ‘For good reason, we get very concerned about the state of affairs of the world, but if these students are in charge next, I think we might just be okay after all.’”