My name is Theodore Joseph Beyda, but everyone calls me Teddy. I’m 19 years old, Jewish, and live in Brooklyn, NY with my parents my four brothers and sister. The reason I’m 19 years old and not 18 like most college freshmen is because after finishing high school I spent one year in Israel studying at a yeshiva where I was able to further advance my Jewish studies. I am an Orthodox Jew and my dad is a rabbi, so I am pretty firm in my Jewish beliefs and ideals. Over my life I’ve lived in the same community of Orthodox Jews mostly coming from Syria and Egypt. Living in such a tightly knit community and then spending a year abroad without my family has made me appreciate my family and community that I live in all the more so and has ingrained family and community as a core value to me.
As a college student I am expecting a completely new experience than what I have been accustomed to over my first 19 years of life. I am expecting a lot of free time to do that which I enjoy while at the same time balancing the assigned work for all my classes, and on top of that any jobs that I may choose to take on as well. With all those come a large sense of responsibility, one which I haven’t had in the past but I hope and feel like I’m certainly capable of thriving in, especially given all the support that the Baruch Honors program has to offer.
I can relate to how import of your beliefs and community are to your life. The fact that you used your gap year to study at yeshiva shows your dedication for the things that you are passionate about.
In the first few weeks of college, I thought we had a lot of free time compared to high school, and similar to you, I hoped to find a way to balance my hobbies, schoolwork, and possibly a job. It’s definitely overwhelming to think about and would require a lot of effort to work towards. But, I hope we both succeed.
Taking a leap year much have been such an exciting experience in your life. Coming to college has been a rewarding experience but the free time aspect I cannot relate to.
Teddy, I can really relate to how dedicated you are to your religion. I think that it is awesome that you took that year to go abroad and i’m sure that you had some great experiences! I hope that everything goes well for you and all of us here at Baruch!