Transformimg Jewish Lives
Creating a Jewish Culture of Inclusivity
From eJewishPhilanthropy:
by Lynn Schusterman
cross-posted at HuffPost Religion
This past summer, I had the opportunity to spend time with nearly 60 Teach For America corps members taking part in our Foundation's REALITY Israel Experience, a program that enables corps members to travel to Israel to explore the values that undergird their commitment to public service.
When I asked these passionate young people what motivated them to apply for the program, I heard a wide variety of responses, some inspiring, some empowering, some soulful – and one in particular that was heartbreaking.
Read the full article in eJewishPhilanthropy...
What would make day schools more attractive to non-Orthodox parents?
From eJewishPhilanthropy:
This week on the AVI CHAI blog, the AVI CHAI and Steinhardt Foundations posed the question: What would make day schools more attractive to non-Orthodox parents?
In addition to the discussion on this forum, the question was also explored on: Mixed Multitudes, eJewishPhilanthropy, Metroimma, InterfaithFamily as well as via Facebook and Twitter.
Read the full article at eJewishPhilanthropy...
Black-Jewish history not as tidy as often presented
From Jweekly:
This month, students across the United States commemorate Black History Month. But at one Bay Area Jewish day school, every month is black history month.
Students at this Jewish day school — where I spent a semester observing U.S. history classes — spent much of the school year learning about the role African Americans have had in shaping our nation's history. Their studies also took a Jewish twist as they learned about a special bond between black and Jewish communities. It sounds like an appropriate lesson for a Jewish school.
There's only one problem: It's not good history.
Read the full article in Jweekly...
Kansas city Matmidim program appeals to observant families
From The Kansas City Jewish Chronicle:
From its inception, the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy has been known for its pluralism. The Kansas City Jewish community couldn’t possibly support Jewish schools for different movements, so HBHA was designed as a community day school when it was created 45 years ago.
But that didn’t always serve the needs of the Orthodox Jewish community. In the past many families left town in search of the proper education for their children or sent them away to boarding schools in Memphis, Tenn., Chicago or New York. Two years ago, after being approached by members in the community, school officials decided to try to find a way to provide the type of Jewish education these families requested.Read the full article in The Kansas City Jewish Chronicle...
The Jewish Week Talks to Occupy Judaism Leaders
From The Jewish Week:
The one name attached more than any other to Occupy Judaism, the Jewish presence at Occupy Wall Street and related protests around the country, is that of Daniel Sieradski, a 32-year-old Jewish activist and expert in digital media.
It was Sieradski who organized a Shabbat potluck dinner near Zuccotti Park, the site of Occupy Wall Street, at the very end of September. It was Sieradski who pulled things together for a Yom Kippur service that drew as many as 1,500 people; who ordered a pop-up sukkah for the protest and who made plans this week for a Simchat Torah celebration.Read the full article at The Jewish Week...
Jewish Food Educators Meet at the Hazon Food Conference
From The Jew and the Carrot, a blog of The Jewish Daily Forward:
Innovative Jewish education projects around the country are helping students of all ages to understand the connections between Jewish tradition and contemporary food issues. But what about the educators? How can these innovative professional and lay leaders, often working and teaching in isolation, create a community and come together to collaborate and work on common challenges?
Enter the Jewish Food Education Network. For the last two years, JFEN has encouraged its members to connect with each other, both face-to-face and virtually. Through weekly network listservs and occasional conference calls, the network has had the opportunity to connect and strategize on how to bring the connections between Jewish life and contemporary food issues to their classrooms. But virtual experiences, have their limitations.
Read the full article at The Jew and the Carrot...Jewish LGBT organizations stake claim in SF
From the Bay Area Reporter:
San Francisco's Jewish LGBT community is filled with pride this year as it appears that the city by the Bay is emerging as a hub of LGBT Jewish leadership nationally and internationally.
Keshet opened its new office doors June 1 and in May A Wider Bridge was named an UpStarter by UpStart Bay Area.
Read the full article at the Bay Area Reporter...
New group of UpStarters spans a wide landscape
From Jweekly:
Bringing together entrepreneurs, educators and innovators, UpStart Bay Area is a nonprofit with a unique vision: a Jewish community that encourages new ideas the same way the tech industry does. To that end, UpStart Bay Area each year selects a new cohort of innovative, young organizations that are breaking new ground in the Jewish community.
This year, UpStart has granted financial support and resources to four very different groups: Amir, A Wider Bridge, Urban Adamah, and The Kitchen. Selected last week, each group will receive professional training and support in executive leadership, business development and program design.
Read the full article at Jweekly...
Alienation From Israel Hitting Liberal Seminaries
From The Jewish Week:
A second-year rabbinical student at the Jewish Theological Seminary says her year-in-Israel experience, as part of her academic training, has been “enriching and incredibly painful” in terms of what she sees of Israel’s relationship with the Palestinians.
“The Israel I see does not seem to reflect so many of the Jewish values that my family and community raised me with,” she wrote in an e-mail to The Jewish Week.Read the full story at The Jewish Week...
Introducing the 2011 Summer of Change
From eJewishPhilanthropy:
The past decade has seen a remarkable growth and revitalization of Jewish life across Europe. New initiatives are emerging in countries all over the continent, and people are connecting and reconnecting to Jewish life – culturally and spiritually. Social entrepreneurs are creating new realities, focusing on education, arts & culture and community building, and introducing new ways of expressing Judaism, ways that are inclusive, open and accessible, reaching people who were previously unaffiliated to the established communities.
Paideia, ROI Community and JHub have played an integral part in these important developments and work together towards a shared vision of a vital and vibrant Jewish culture in Europe. The time has now come to reflect, celebrate and to continue building: reflect on the changes taking place in Europe through the lens of Jewish thought, to celebrate those who are making change happen and to renew the visions of developing Jewish life in Europe during the next decades.Read the full article at eJewishPhilanthropy...