Our History
A history of Minnesota Hillel - Coming Soon!
Our Building
After 80+ years on campus and 65 years in the same infrastructure, Minnesota Hillel underwent an $8 million renovation providing our community with many new spaces for our students to enjoy day to day.
Come relax between classes in our fireside lounge or burn off some steam by shooting hoops on a Tuesday afternoon! We have tons of space for you to spread out, study for your tests, or print your paper that’s due in 30 minutes. Stop by and allow Minnesota Hillel to truly be your home away from home!
Want to rent a space for a meeting or event?
Find Event Reservation information here!
Interested in a tour?
Community members, please reach out to Haylee Saxon!
Students, please reach out to Abby Kirshbaum!
Check out what our students and community members have to say about our new building!
Accessibility
Minnesota Hillel has taken steps to ensure our space is accessible to people of all abilities, including elevator, ramping, sensory study space, restroom design, and more.
Check out these articles detailing our building accessibility features.
“No student should feel unwelcome at our Hillel because it's not accessible” by Gabriel Lesser
“Added Benefit Of Hillel’s Rebuild? Accessibility” by Lonny Goldsmith
The Johnson Family Legacy
The Johnson family of St. Paul have been longtime benefactors of the Twin Cities Jewish community as well as the University of Minnesota. Fleeing pogroms and religious persecution, the family immigrated from Russia in the late 1800s and settled on the West Side of St. Paul. Since then, the Johnsons have been dedicated to fostering the Minnesota Jewish community and improving the lives of all Minnesotans through numerous community gifts and charitable contributions.
Lynn Johnson, who founded St. Paul-based Johnson Brothers, attended the University of Minnesota. He and his wife Gloria, also a U of M alumna, attended Hillel events together in this very building. Their children and grandchildren, some of whom are U of M graduates, have continued in their footsteps to build strong connections to the University and Hillel.
The gift to Hillel was made by Lynn and Gloria’s children and grandchildren with the goal of enriching Jewish life on campus and creating a welcoming, safe and spirited environment for generations of Gophers to come.