Club Approvals Released; Hareni and AMC Not Recognized
On Nov. 10, all clubs approved as student organizations received an email confirming their acceptance. Several clubs received no such communication — including Hareni, the LGBTQ club formed after years of litigation, and the AMC club — effectively denying them recognition for the 2025–26 academic year.
Under this year’s framework, club applications were either approved, merged, or rejected. Some clubs were consolidated: one finance club president told The Commentator that all finance-related groups were merged into a single umbrella organization called “Business and Entrepreneurial Societies,” though he was not informed who would lead it or how events would be structured.
Dean Sara Asher told students in an email sent on the same day that each application was reviewed by the YU roshei yeshiva as well as the Values in Action Committee. Applications were evaluated based on “learning outcomes, leadership, service and impact, and alignment with YU's mission and Torah values.”
Asked why certain clubs did not receive approval, Dean Rebecca Cypess told The Commentator that those applications “did not meet the goals and aspirations of our student organization initiative.” She added that members of the Values in Action Committee are available to meet with students to discuss the decision-making process.
When asked if the Values in Action Committee was a part of the Project Yamim initiative, Cypess told The Commentator that the committee has existed for several years. It is composed of “staff representatives of the colleges, the yeshiva, and Student Life,” and “exists to ensure communication and alignment among those units,” she said. Anyone looking to set up a meeting with the committee should reach out to her, she added.
The revised club framework was first announced on Aug. 27, when the Office of Student Life informed students that all clubs would need to reapply for recognition. The announcement, released two days after the rollout of Project Yamim, led to confusion about whether the new system was tied to the initiative. At a subsequent town hall, OSL Director Jonathan Schwab clarified that the club criteria had been discussed “for many years” before the announcement of Project Yamin and were not created as part of the project.
Hareni emerged after nearly five years of litigation between YU and the YU Pride Alliance, which sought official recognition beginning in 2020. After years of court rulings and appeals, the parties settled in March 2025, establishing Hareni as a student-run club operating under guidelines set by YU’s senior roshei yeshiva. The agreement collapsed less than two months later, on May 9, after both sides accused each other of violating its terms.
The AMC club was founded in 2022. The club hosted events at cinemas where students watched movies approved by OSL, free of charge. The club’s WhatsApp group had more than 850 members, making it one of the largest organizations on campus.
Both Hareni and AMC club presidents declined to comment.
Those whose clubs were approved said they were eager to finally get started.
“I feel like this is a moment we’ve all been waiting for,” Emma Halpern (SSSB ’26), president of the Asset and Wealth Management Society, told The Commentator. “The AWM Society is excited to officially begin running events through OSL again as a registered club. The start of the year came with a lot of uncertainty as many club presidents were unsure of what Project Yamim would look like, but I think everyone is glad to finally get things off the ground.”
Some students expressed support for the new framework but criticized the lack of clarity in its rollout.
“I believe that the goal of the new club framework — and of Project Yamim — to re-instill in our university the values so deeply rooted in what YU is, is reinvigorating our mission,” Noam Schechter (YC ’27) told The Commentator. “However, I strongly believe that the process must be done with clear communication to make it clear to the students what is happening, and why.”
“The fact that the AMC club and Hareni club weren’t approved shows that the Yamim project is making big changes to YU,” Yishai Gross (YC ‘28) told The Commentator. “These clubs were important to many people, so getting rid of them definitely shakes things up a bit.”
As of publication, OSL has not yet published a list of approved clubs.
Photo Caption: YU’s Zysman Hall
Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons
