Elana Rebitzer longs to get out of California after the pandemic and share her pesto skills with the world.

Name, School, Major, Hometown:
Elana Rebitzer, Barnard, Comparative Literature / Jewish Studies, Palo Alto, CA

Claim to fame:
You probably know me from one of way too many activities I did on campus — Orchesis, Bwog, Gamma Phi Beta, Hillel, Koach, Writing Fellows — but I’d like to think that it’s my pesto-making abilities.

Where are you going?
Hopefully leaving California as soon as shelter-in-place is over.

What are 3 things you learned at Columbia and would like to share with the Class of 2024?

1. Prioritize finding community. I joined a lot of clubs my freshman year, and quit almost all of them when they didn’t feel right. Being a part of a sub-community on campus is the most essential thing to making this place feel like home. Be open to experimenting; you never know which niche club might become the most important part of your college experience.
2. Develop relationships with people who are not college students or professors. But also get to know your professors. The 20- and 30-somethings in my life (thanks, Hillel staff!) have been an endless source of support, wisdom, and perspective for me and I don’t think I could have survived college without them. My teenage campers give me the opportunity to reflect on how much I’ve grown since high school and make me feel more like an adult. It feels really good to know that your professors want you to succeed and will work with you to make that happen. Plus, professors have the best gossip.
3. Lean into your niche. You can have a lot of them (mine include early modern Spanish Jewry, feminist Bible interpretations, and crochet) but find the thing(s) that makes you feel really passionate and happy and do it for as long as it makes you feel that way.

“Back in my day…” 
It was Nussbaum + Wu not Wu + Nussbaum, the best place to study at Barnard was Lefrak, and Koach Saturday mornings were on the fifth floor (iykyk)

Favorite Columbia controversy?
Anything that doesn’t have to do with BDS.

What was your favorite class three classes at Columbia?
The Art of the Essay with Wendy Schor-Haim. I talked about this class every single day that I was in it, and it completely changed how I approach my own writing and my work as a Writing Fellow. Professor Schor-Haim is the kind of caring professor that I imagined all Barnard professors would be as a pre-frosh, and the essays and reading are genuinely fascinating.
Judaism and Translation in the Medieval and Early Modern Mediterranean with Isabelle Levy. I took this class as a freshman with an undeclared major and came out of it with a major, a new language to learn, and a thesis topic. The content was completely paradigm-shifting for me, and it was my first class of college where I actually developed a relationship with the professor.
Women in Renaissance Drama with Lauren Robertson. I thought I hated Shakespeare until I took a class with Professor Robertson. She loves this period so much and thinks about these texts in a really accessible but also really smart way that I started to change my mind, and even took a second class with her to learn more. Yet another professor who just really cares about her students and wants you to succeed.

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese?
“We also ask that you remember that this post will be going up under your name and as such may be viewable by future employers and others via Google Search.” – Bwog Staff

Whom would you like to thank?
My family, of course. My friends, especially my past and present roommates. Every single person who answered a late-night text from me, listened to me overthink a simple message or waved at me in Milstein. Many, many adults and professors who helped me figure out how to be a little more of a person.

One thing to do before graduating:
Join the Morningside Heights CSA for really good, really cheap vegetables delivered weekly in the fall semester. I made lots of really delicious food while feeling good about my environmental impact, what else could you want?

Any regrets?
I definitely have things I would do differently now, but I think I got to where I am by making those mistakes. So ultimately no.

Elana Rabitzer via Elana