Nash new AUJS chair
DANIEL Nash will take the reins at the Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS) on January 1 after being elected national chairperson last Sunday.
DANIEL Nash will take the reins at the Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS) on January 1 after being elected national chairperson last Sunday.
The 21-year-old won the election ahead of AUJS Victoria president Dana Harel and the president of AUJS at the University of Sydney, Joel Einstein, in a contested election at
the student group’s annual general meeting at Shalom College in Sydney.
“There is a lot of work to do to invigorate Jewish students about the community and get them involved in student life, so I’m very excited,” Nash, who is completing arts and law degrees at Monash University, said.
Nash’s first job is to help outgoing chairperson Jonathan [Jono] Lazarus find a replacement for AUJS executive director Mark Fischer, who plans to leave at the end of the year.
“I will get involved to help Jono because we have a lot of plans to rejuvenate current programs so they can be more attractive in 2012 and beyond, and I would like to be a part of the whole process,” Nash said.
Lazarus welcomed Nash’s appointment. “We all think on the executive that he is in a good position to take over AUJS because he is young, energetic and has a good vision going forward,” the current chairperson said.
“Traditionally, because of the work load of uni students we only take on the role of president for a year, and so I’m stepping down as of January 1.
“It’s been a fantastic year because we have had more than 500 new members, three sold-out conferences and the biggest AGM the organisation has had in at least a decade,” Lazarus said.
As part of the AGM, the presidents from AUJS campuses across Australia delivered reports, including Einstein, who revealed that nearly a quarter of his members at the University of Sydney aren’t Jewish.
“This isn’t out of the ordinary,” Lazarus said. “We don’t discriminate, and anyone who wants to sign up and support Israel and AUJS is welcome to join.”
JOSHUA LEVI
Image: New AUJS chair Daniel Nash pictured with AUJS Victoria president Dana Harel.
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