(JNS)

Hamilton College, a highly ranked, nearly 215-year-old private liberal arts school in Clinton, N.Y., announced on Monday that it has a new minor in Jewish studies.

Heidi Ravven, a Jewish studies professor who joined the faculty in 1983, “had long considered developing a Jewish studies program and believes now is the right moment given the war in the Middle East and tensions throughout the world,” the college stated.

Ravven told JNS that the new minor fulfills an “urgent” need, driven by “the rise in antisemitism worldwide and in the United States, and especially the appalling ignorance about Jews, Judaism and the State of Israel that we have seen played out on college campuses.”

“Student enthusiasm has been high and Jewish studies courses enthusiastically welcomed, and enrollments off the charts,” she told JNS.

The minor requires five courses, including courses on ancient Jewish wisdom, Jewish folklore, and modern Middle Eastern history.

Per Hillel International, 170 of Hamilton’s students (8.3%) are Jewish.