Making a Difference

Alumni Profile: Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff ’12

The lightbulb went off for Dan Rosenzweig- Ziff ’12 during a gap year he took after high school. Already interested in journalism after his time at Newton South High School, Dan participated in Kivunim, a program focused on academic study, travel, exploration and growth that develops and deepens students’ Jewish identity as engaged global citizens.

It was during that year, based in Jerusalem, that Dan perfected his Hebrew and started learning Arabic. More importantly, he became deeply interested in international studies, which he was able to connect to his love of journalism.

“Kivunim really made me question and become interested in the stories that we tell and the stories that we hear about one another,” he says. “You and I can experience the same thing and have a completely different story about what happened. That drew my interest in the storytelling aspect of journalism.”

That experience at Kivunim carried over to Northwestern University, where Dan majored in journalism and international studies, deepened his knowledge of Arabic

and studied in Jordan, living with a host family and taking classes entirely in Arabic. After graduating in spring 2021, he received a grant from the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student Program. He is spending the year in Germany learning and writing about Syrian refugees.

“I’m interested in migration and the people specifically affected by it, the Middle East and journalism,” he says. “Germany has the most Syrian refugees in Europe. This program allows me to meld all my different interests.”

The Fulbright program allows for individuals to craft their own program. Dan is spending the year doing research and reporting on Syrian refugees and freelancing for several outlets. In 2015-2016, Dan says, hundreds of thousands of refugees came to Germany and the coverage was extensive. However, he noticed that there have not been as many stories lately, and he wanted to change that.

“That’s a lot of people who are making their lives here,” he notes. “A lot of things could go wrong and a lot of things could go right, and I just want to talk to them.”

Dan’s main goal is to gain a greater understanding of Syrian refugees in Germany and to their experiences. He also is happy that he gets to utilize his knowledge of Arabic while learning German.

“Throughout college, jobs and my internships, I’ve enjoyed covering these complicated policy-governing programs that are in the news and making them more digestible through stories about people,” he says. “That’s what I’m trying to do here. Here’s this huge world event. There are all these programs, all this discussion, and there are only going to be more refugees every year. I want to understand from the refugees what their experiences have been like.”

There are no classes, so Dan’s program is completely self-paced. For example, every Wednesday, he visits a German language café at a refugee center.

“Going every week and hearing different people’s experiences, that’s proving way, way more valuable than taking classes,” Dan offers. “It’s been incredible talking to people and hearing the struggles they have, what it’s like to be here and just navigating the whole system.”

While he plans to return to the U.S. after his program ends, Dan hopes to be back overseas at some point to work as a foreign correspondent. Before then, his goal is to work in a newsroom and serve as a beat reporter.

Dan has Schechter to thank for his ability to handle the freedom that the Fulbright program affords him.

“Something you learn at Schechter is how to juggle all of these different things and switch your mind not only to different subjects, but also different languages throughout the day,” he says. “That’s definitely something that I do now.”

Dan started Schechter in Kindergarten. His older brother, Lev, graduated from Schechter in 2008, and his other brother, Max Kinchen, graduated in 2003. He especially appreciated the tight-knit group of friends that he gained from his time at the school.

“It’s rare for the rest of your life where you get a small group of people that you feel very comfortable with by the end of eighth-grade as I did,” he says.

Dan also feels that learning about refugees is something that’s important for Schechter students. This was the case in the fall, when students in Grades 6-8 participated in a Yom Iyun עיון)‏ ‏,(יום a day of learning focused on refugees. The event began with a panel of speakers who have been involved with assisting refugee families in our community and also provided an opportunity for students to focus on the refugee experience in Social Studies, Jewish Studies and Havurah.

“It’s hard to imagine not being near any of your friends, not knowing any of the language, not knowing the culture, not knowing anything about the world you’re now living in. Even one person can make a difference." he says. “You can’t solve everything, but I think we have the ability to make a difference in people’s lives, and that doesn’t have to happen just on these days when you learn about the refugees of the world. There are people in Boston who could use help, and I think that if students are interested, they should seek that out.”

Spring/Summer 2022 | Schechter Stories