Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

Rebecca Reed Kantrowitz Is Passionate About Student Success, Interfaith Engagement

Tuesday, November 7, 2023, By John Boccacino
Share

When Rebecca Reed Kantrowitz came to Syracuse University in the 1980s after earning a master’s degree in education, she served as a residence hall director. It was an experience that launched her career in higher education, a profession that has taken her from Syracuse to the University of California, Berkeley, Hamilton College and back again.

Rebecca Reed Kantrowitz, associate dean, Hendricks Chapel.

Inspired by the dynamic and diverse campus climate, Kantrowitz returned to Syracuse in 2002 as the director of residence life, and she has been proud to call the University home for the last 21 years.

Today, Kantrowitz serves as associate dean of Hendricks Chapel, supporting the work being done by the chaplaincies, religious and spiritual life groups and the Student Assembly of Interfaith Leaders, and she also oversees both the Student Opportunity Fund and University Food Pantries.

Her core values of supporting student success and student development perfectly intertwine with the interfaith opportunities Hendricks Chapel offers as the spiritual heart of the University.

“Syracuse University is just a wonderful place. It’s a very dynamic, diverse, ever-changing institution, and I’ve felt that way throughout my life,” Kantrowitz says. “It’s a unique and wonderful community and a great place for students to thrive. On a college campus, you have this ability to help shape a person’s journey and provide them the support they need. That’s especially true with my work with the food pantries and the Student Opportunity Fund, where we’re focused on how we can get students connected to the resources they need so they walk out of the Chapel feeling whole again.”

The Hendricks Chapel Food Pantry has two locations—one on the lower level of Hendricks Chapel and a South Campus location at the Carriage House (161 Farm Acre Rd.). Also included is Pete’s Giving Garden off Skytop Road, a partnership between Sustainability Management and the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics food studies and nutrition programs.

Since its creation a decade ago, the food pantry has served as an invaluable resource for students facing food insecurity. The number of visitors has climbed from five to 10 per week initially to more than 200 visitors per week this year. On average, Kantrowitz says around 1,000 students utilize the food pantries annually.

  • 01
    What is the benefit of this resource on campus?

    “The food pantry is a special and precious resource for so many of our students. Most are upperclass and graduate students and many are international students. We try to make visiting the food pantry a welcoming, friendly, comfortable and easy place to access. If you come to see us and have a need, we’re going to help you with that need, no questions asked.”

  • 02
    Are there stigmas students may be facing when it comes to admitting they are facing food insecurity?

    “We work hard to make sure it’s not a transactional resource. If you come into Hendricks Chapel and you need the pantry, you’ll get a friendly face and a volunteer who will talk with you. All of our chaplains, if they see students in line for the pantry, will come talk with them and make them feel welcome. Some of our volunteers write encouraging notes and put them into the bags that students will take. This year, we’re producing recipe cards, because some of our students don’t know how to cook or they’ve never had to cook before. We’re trying to make it as easy as possible. People need to realize this could happen to anybody.”

  • 03
    What are some of your favorite aspects of the job?

    “It’s very life-giving and peaceful to be surrounded by chaplains. I have so much respect for the work they do, the many hats they wear and how dynamic and diverse our chaplain group is. And yet they are really closely connected to one another. Many of them are good friends. Even though they have very differing opinions about their faith, they come together. Being able to spend time with this thoughtful group of people is very enriching. Our small but mighty chapel staff works very hard, goes the extra mile and cares deeply about this campus community.”

  • Author

John Boccacino

  • Recent
  • Calling All Alumni Entrepreneurs: Apply for ’CUSE50 Awards
    Tuesday, June 24, 2025, By John Boccacino
  • Swinging Into Summer: Syracuse International Jazz Fest Returns With Star Power, Student Talent and a Soulful Campus Finale
    Tuesday, June 24, 2025, By Kathleen Haley
  • Iran Escalation: Experts Available This Week
    Tuesday, June 24, 2025, By Vanessa Marquette
  • Retiring University Professor and Decorated Public Servant Sean O’Keefe G’78 Reflects on a Legacy of Service
    Tuesday, June 24, 2025, By John Boccacino
  • SCOTUS Win for Combat Veterans Backed by Syracuse Law Clinic
    Monday, June 23, 2025, By Vanessa Marquette

More In Campus & Community

Retiring University Professor and Decorated Public Servant Sean O’Keefe G’78 Reflects on a Legacy of Service

For most of his time as a public servant, Sean O’Keefe G’78 adhered to a few guiding principles: Step up when someone calls upon you to serve. Be open to anything. Challenge yourself. Those values helped O’Keefe navigate a career…

Jorge Morales ’26 Named a 2025 Beinecke Scholar

Jorge Morales ’26, a double major in history and anthropology in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs with a minor in English and textual studies in the College of Arts and Sciences, has been awarded the highly competitive…

Registration Open for Esports Campus Takeover Hosted by University and Gen.G

Syracuse University and global esports and gaming organization Gen.G have opened general registration at campustakeover.gg for its first Campus Takeover Sept. 20-21. The two-day conference will bring students and administrators to Syracuse to highlight career opportunities within the esports industry…

2 Whitman Students Earn Prestigious AWESOME Scholarship

For the first time in the 12-year history of the program, both nominees from the Whitman School of Management have been selected as recipients of the 2025 AWESOME Excellence in Education Scholarship, a prestigious honor awarded to top-performing undergraduate women…

Whitman’s Johan Wiklund Named a Top Scholar Globally for Business Research Publications

The Whitman School of Management’s Distinguished Professor Johan Wiklund was recently listed as one of the most prolific business and economic research scholars globally, according to “What We Know About the Science of Science in Business and Economics? Insights From…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2025 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.