On Yom Kippur, he donned a white suit. On Hanukkah, he lit menorahs. On Fridays, he observed prayer with Jewish students.

But Tuvia Abramson announced last week that he will retire at the end of the academic year after 12 years of fundraising, leading religious services and advising Jewish students as the executive director of Hillel. The 66-year-old director said he has been planning to retire since August to pursue other endeavors.

Born in Israel, Abramson served in its military and then completed his undergraduate degree at Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Abramson said his Israeli background aided his leadership at Penn State.

"I never felt like a minority because I grew up as part of the majority," he said. "I appreciated Judaism more. It's not just religion but a way of life. I never knew a lot about the religion until I came to the U.S."

In the 1980s, Abramson traveled to the United States as an emissary in a Jewish community. Then, he went to the University of Minnesota, where he completed a master's degree in higher education and later served as its Hillel director.

In 1994, the national Hillel organization asked Abramson to come to Happy Valley, and Abramson accepted this position because it sounded like a challenge.

"We had one secretary and owed three months of telephone bills," he said. "It was one of the more challenging places to work, and I felt the need for a change here."

Now, Hillel employs two program directors and has offices, a meeting room and a kosher kitchen in the Pasquerilla Center.

"We've come a long ways," Abramson said.

At Penn State, Abramson also served as the Jewish chaplain to the State Correctional Institution at Rockview, wrote monthly editorials for the Centre Daily Times and provided guidance for Penn State's 4,000 Jewish students.

Hillel member Meredith Levine said Abramson put a lot of effort into his job.

"He's very dedicated," Levine (senior-biobehavioral health) said. "He's raised a lot of money for Hillel."

Larry Rosenberg, chairman of the Hillel board of directors, said he felt pleased with Abramson's service to the organization.

"We're very happy with how he developed the program," he said. "He's shown strong leadership in working with the board and with students."

Hillel's board of directors plan to work with the national organization and hire a replacement by late next winter, Rosenberg said.

In retirement, Abramson said he would like to spend more time writing, taking photographs and performing Israeli folk dances. At this point, he's not sure whether he'll move back to Israel or Minnesota or remain in his home in State College.

"My retirement feels pretty bittersweet," he said. "I've done what I want, but there's still more I could do."