Transformimg Jewish Lives
Jewish Futures Conference at the GA
Joining the Jewish Future!
Participants at this year's Jewish Federations of North America's General Assembly (GA) in New Orleans had a unique opportunity to imagine and shape the future of Jewish education and the Jewish community.
On November 8th, the GA hosted the first-ever Jewish Futures Conference. This extraordinary event brought together visionary thinkers, passionate leaders, and fresh voices to chart a course for the future of Jewish learning and life. "The goal of the conference," stated Harlene Appelman, Executive Director of the Covenant Foundation, one of the event's co-sponsors, "is to excite and stimulate thinking about the potential of creative and thoughtful Jewish education." The conference did this, according to David Bryfman of New York's Jewish Education Project, a co-sponsor, "by providing a space to dream, learn, and engage in purposeful conversation. At a time when the Jewish community is at a crossroads, this is an ideal opportunity to showcase some of the best thinking in the Jewish educational world."
The Jewish Futures Conference was keynoted by several provocative speakers, including Ori Brafman, acclaimed author of The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations, and Laurie Karr, a marketing and branding expert on families and youth, who will explore the social, cultural, and technological trends that are shaping our world. Their talks were followed by a GA first: presentations on the implications of these trends for Jewish learning and life by several speakers being chosen from an open video competition. "The competition is a way to ensure that emerging voices are given the respect and space they deserve," stated Bryfman. "In today's world, ideas can come from all angles - established organizations and young people alike."
Participants in the conference also had a chance to add their own ideas to the mix. There were opportunities to discuss how to bring new ideas to fruition in their own communities during roundtable discussions which will conclude the conference. As with the mix of presenters, the aim was to attract a diverse group of participants. "We believe that the conference was valuable for anyone who is involved in trying to enrich the Jewish present and future, and especially worthwhile for those who are themselves involved in transformational learning initiatives or have a major role in allocating resources for Jewish education," said Jonathan Woocher, Director of JESNA's Lippman Kanfer Institute, also a co-sponsor of the conference.
Bringing the Jewish Futures Conference to the General Assembly enhanced and broadened this premier event on the Jewish communal calendar. "Our goal is to open the GA to new audiences through innovative and forward thinking programming like this conference," stated JFNA's Andrea Fram Plotkin, one of the key organizers of the event. "We will be successful if participants made connections with stimulating ideas and other people and left inspired to try something new in their organization or community," added Bryfman.
Full coverage of the Jewish Futures Conference is available at www.jewishfutures.net.
The Jewish Futures Conference is sponsored by Jewish Education Project, The Covenant Foundation, JESNA's Lippman Kanfer Institute and The Jewish Federations of North America.
For general information and media relations contact: Rika Levin, Chief Marketing Officer, JESNA at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 212-284-6703.
We would like to thank the Lippman Kanfer Family Foundation, the Covenant Foundation, and the Mandell L. and Madeleine H. Berman Foundation for their generous financial contributions to this conference.
Summit Reflections from the URJ Biennial
From RJ.org:
by Dr. Jonathan Woocher
It was an honor for me to have been invited to kick off the Education Summit at the recent URJ Biennial, and gratifying to hear from so many participants that my remarks struck a responsive chord. That response, the huge number of people that attended the Summit, and the enthusiasm with which the Campaign for Youth Engagement was launched the next day all provided proof positive for the central thesis of my talk: a revolution in Jewish education is already underway; our job is to clearly articulate its premises, draw out its implications, support its vanguard, and spread its fruits as widely as we can to learners and educators across North America.
Not a small challenge, but based on the energy and ideas I saw and heard at the Biennial, an achievable one. Perhaps the greatest privilege of the work I now do is that I get to meet, learn from, and conspire with so many other “revolutionaries.” I can tell you: they are everywhere throughout the Jewish education world. They are parents, they are youth, they are educators, they are institutional leaders, they are funders. What they all have in common is recognizing that we can do better – much better – than we are doing today, and that we need to.
Read the full article at RJ.org...
Jewish Education is Dead; Long Live Jewish Education -- Thoughts on Jonathan Woocher's Keynote
From RJ.org: News & Views for Reform Jews:
by Rabbi Paul Kipnes
originally published on Or Am I
I wish I had coined that phrase: “Jewish Education is Dead; Long Live Jewish Education.” But in truth, this is the title of the talk by Dr. Jonathan Woocher, the Chief Ideas Officer of JESNA, the Jewish Educational Service of North America. Dr. Woocher, whom I have followed through his writings for years, spoke at the Union for Reform Judaism’s Education Summit 2011, as part of the URJ Biennial Convention 2011. (Yada yada yada.)
To quote one of my tweets: “I was so inspired by Dr. Woocher’s talk that I could barely breathe.” Dr. Woocher, in his own piercingly insightful way, challenged us to allow old paradigms about Jewish education to quietly go to sleep, as we embrace new realities and new paradigms for the Jewish present and future. His talk, combining the best of technology including real time polling and engaging videos, offered a compelling critique of the present and a glance into the future of Jewish education.
Read the full post at RJ.org...
Tapestry of Jewish Learning Celebrates 10 Years on January 28th and 29th
From The Jewish Outlook:
On January 28 when Carol Dochen, Tapestry of Jewish Learning Chair, gets up on stage, welcomes the audience, unveils the new and dynamic logo and the lights go down, the audience will quiet, and on stage will appear Sophie Tucker, Better Midler and Barbra Streisand. Queens of Jewish performance—or in this case, drag queens.
This year’s attendees will be treated to what Tapestry Committee member (and performer) Brandon Poland calls “a little fun drag show.” “Well,” he amends, “there’s nothing little about drag.”
The drag show is just one of the new and exciting parts of this year’s event. It’s the tenth anniversary of Tapestry but the adult Jewish learning event has hardly become old hat. Instead this year’s program features some of the most exciting guests so far. After the queens go backstage, the first night, known as “One Night Shtick” will feature two outstanding comedians Jeff Applebaum and Cory Kahaney.
Read the full article in The Jewish Outlook...
Back to the (Jewish) Future
From eJewishPhilanthropy:
[Earlier this month, I was named one of the two winners of the 2011 Jewish Futures Competition, sponsored by the Jewish Education Project and JESNA's Lippman Kanfer Institute. As part of the competition, my winning video was shown at the Jewish Futures Conference held at the GA in Denver this past week, and I also presented my venture (tenpartners.org) and my view of the Jewish Future. Here are my remarks.]
I’ve been asked to give my view of the Jewish Future. Now I’m not a prophet but it seems to me that at least with regard to young lay leadership the Jewish Future does not look good.Read the full article in eJewishPhilanthropy...
Simple Truths about Innovation
From eJewishPhilanthropy:
In the general discourse surrounding innovation in the Jewish world, two dichotomies have emerged as simple truths.
First, creativity and innovation are the domain of young people (generally conceived of as under 30 or perhaps under 36).
Second, so called legacy institutions are unable to be innovative as this is the market of young upstart organizations and renegade individuals.Read the full article at eJewishPhilanthropy...
Steve Jobs, Apple, and Jewish Education: Can we Imagine the I-Thou Phone?
From eJewishPhilanthropy:
The untimely death of Steve Jobs, the entrepreneurial innovator and leader of Apple, has prompted me to think about the implications of his incredible success for Jewish education. Steve Jobs captured the imagination and ethos of an entire generation in ways that should be instructive for the sacred activity of Jewish learning. Jonathan Woocher, Chief Ideas office at JESNA, recently posted a blog entitledReinventing Jewish Education in which he calls for a paradigm shift in our approach to Jewish education. In the first paragraph he suggests an analogy that, “Jewish education today is using a walkman, while the world is listening to iPods.” What is it about the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad that warrants a Jewish educational response?
The iPhone and the iPad, in particular, have produced an unprecedented level of connectivity to the world beyond our individual experience, at the same time enabling personal choice and the capacity for multi-tasking. I have often felt that the emphasis on “i” was powerful but problematic. These devices do focus on the individual user and the choices he or she can make in connecting to the digital world. Yet, somehow I felt that we were missing the opportunity for the “thou” of Buber’s I-thou relationship to be accessed as well. From the perspective of Jewish education, helping people find ways to deepen their connection to other people, to God, and to our tradition, to move from the narcissism of the “i” centered existence to the encounter with the Other, is at the center of the educational mission. Could we develop an i-thou phone, combining Apple’s ingenious design with a theological, ethical purpose?Read the full article at eJewishPhilanthropy...
Re-Inventing Jewish Education: Reconfiguring a Fractured Landscape
From eJewishPhilanthropy:
For several weeks I have followed with fascination the debate over Jonathan Woocher’s recent article, “Reinventing Jewish Education.” Jonathan outlines several important paradigm shifts that need to occur in order to re-focus and strengthen the field. In particular, Jonathan advocates a holistic, learner-centered approach. His prescient comments were reinforced for me on the subway last week…
I ran into a friend on the platform who mentioned that despite his attachment to his local synagogue, he opted to pull his kids out of supplementary school. Instead, he banded together with two other families, hired a young rabbinical student, and set up weekly, intimate, in-depth, classes. His family craved deeper educational engagement – which his model could achieve – and at a more affordable price-tag. Nevertheless, he continues to maintain his synagogue membership and engages with the institution in other ways.Read the full article in eJewishPhilanthropy...