鈥淢y twelve-year-old sister, Lara, has a severe genetic disorder called Rett Syndrome. When she was born, I always wanted to spend time with her and help her eat, walk, and have fun. As I became older, I also tried to help with her studies.

鈥淒uring high school, I realized that I could make a greater impact on Lara鈥檚 life. As she cannot talk or use her hands, Lara relies on assistive technology where her eyes function as a computer mouse. To make better progress in school, Lara would try to play online educational games, but existing online math games are not made for kids with disabilities. With my new passion for computer science, I decided to try coding games to meet her specific needs, but I soon realized that I was not technically able to accomplish my goals.

鈥淎fter my first year at Cornell, I felt I had developed enough engineering skills to restart the project. With an initial team of six Cornell students, we spent six months researching and experimenting with game features and website designs. By winter 2020, I built a team of 15 and developed a plan for the website: .

鈥淎I-Learners is an e-learning platform that helps kids with severe disabilities succeed academically by making learning easier, personalized, and accessible. We help kids enjoy playing math games and their teachers, parents, and caregivers by providing additional support for their kids.

鈥淢y personal goal is to help Lara and her friends to become better mathematicians, and now already seeing her focus on multiplication, which her progress report identified as a weakness, has been our biggest reward for designing the website.鈥� 鈥� Adele Smolansky, Cornell University 鈥�23

Adele Smolansky is a recipient of the 2021 黑料传送门 Campus Leadership Award. Learn more about Hillel scholarships for Jewish students.

鈥淚鈥檓 Jewish and Latina. I feel like I have the best of both worlds. Being Jewish and Spanish has influenced who I am 鈥� my personality, the foods I like, my values. I grew up in a traditional Modern Orthodox home in Hollywood, Fla. I attended Jewish private school my whole life, spent almost every weekend at synagogue for Shabbat and was active in NCSY. During my senior of high school, I was recruited for the varsity fencing team at Cornell University. I was worried about my rooming situation. I wanted to room with someone who understood me, and luckily I found a roommate who is also a Hispanic Jew. I was also worried about religious life on campus. Would I be able to be as observant as I was at home? But Cornell Hillel gave me a sense of comfort. I learned th黑料传送门 organized Shabbat services and dinner every week. I met other students and staff who were like me. And that gave me a sense of comfort. My involvement with Hillel has maximized my experience as a Jewish student on campus.鈥� 鈥� Esther Bentolila, Cornell University