The university will cover the rental cost of the Jewish Chaplaincy’s townhouse and reserve an additional location for worship for the 2010-2011 academic year, as part of a push by members of the Jewish community to overcome budgetary constraints and space concerns.

In the past, the chaplaincy relied on alumni benefactors and friends to pay the house’s rent, according to outgoing Jewish Chaplaincy Director Rabbi Harold White. This year, the Office of the President and representatives of Campus Ministry helped to secure the costs and provide a larger worship space once weekly at Car Barn for next year.

“The president’s office has stepped up to the plate,” White said.

The solution is temporary, but White said he felt reassured by the university’s efforts.

“Campus Ministry has given [the Jewish Chaplaincy] assurance that there will be a constructive search for a [permanent] space. Hopefully it will occur next year – space is very tight around this university,” he said.

The Jewish Chaplaincy’s need for university involvement this year reflects longstanding worries about adequate accommodation of the on-campus Jewish community’s needs, according to a statement to The Hoya written by the Jewish Student Association board.

“While all other chaplaincies at Georgetown have been given rent-free, permanent and centrally located space to meet their religious needs, the Jewish Chaplaincy has been forced to pay staggering rent for an inconvenient and inadequate worship space off campus,” the statement read.

Since 1970, the Jewish Chaplaincy’s townhouse has been used for prayer services, seders and other events. Currently, the Jewish Chaplaincy is the only religious organization that does not utilize on-campus space due to specific requirements, such as the need for a kosher kitchen, according to White. Because of this, the chaplaincy pays rent for a university-owned townhouse.

“We’re not only talking about a religious center [such as] a chapel, we’re also speaking about social needs – lectures, meetings – because Judaism is not just a religion, it’s a civilization,” White said.

When White first arrived at Georgetown 41 years ago, he said Jewish students comprised about 1 percent of the student body. Today, he estimated the Jewish population includes about 12 to 14 percent of undergraduates.

The JSA board added that the dearth of suitable space could dissuade prospective Jewish students from attending Georgetown, even if the number of Jewish students at Georgetown has increased over the years.

Director of Campus Ministry Fr. Kevin O’Brien, S.J. said that he hopes the Office of Campus Ministry will be able to find a workable solution in the upcoming year.

“In the long term, Campus Ministry will continue working with our Jewish Community to find a sustainable way to address the long-term space needs of our Jewish chaplaincy. And as we do with all of our chaplaincies, we will continue to work with the Office of Advancement to identify funding that will help us meet these needs,” said O’Brien.

Kelley Kidd (SFS ’13), a member of the JSA said, “I would really like to have a space next year. . I’ve seen how much work they have put into it and I feel it will all work out.”

– Hoya Staff Writer Eamon O’Connor contributed to this report.