Transformimg Jewish Lives
Central Agencies and Bureaus of Jewish Education
Quick Bytes: Recent Mergers of Bureaus of Jewish Education Featured
Increased demands for greater efficiency and effectiveness are leading a growing number of North American Jewish organizations to consider merging or consolidating operations. Over the past 10 years day schools, complementary schools, community centers, cultural organizations, social service organizations, and federations have merged or consolidated. In addition, some "functional" community federations have created community consortia to share certain services (e.g., purchasing utilities and supplies, financial management, benefits coordination, etc.) with other communal agencies in order to enhance service delivery, consolidate infrastructure and resources, and reduce costs. The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), which has been monitoring and facilitating information sharing about these ventures, expects the number of mergers and consolidations to increas ...
- Research Reports and Studies
Recent Mergers of Bureaus of Jewish Education Featured
This webinar, facilitated by JESNA Education Consultant Steven Kraus, is a follow-up discussion to the Quick Bytes newsletter on the same topic (see the newsletter in our archives). Click on the link above to view the full recording of this session (total running time: 54 minutes).
- Interactive Resources - Webinars
- Audio
- Video
Representative Practices: Mergers, Consolidations, Strategic Alliances and Efficiencies in the Federation Movement Featured
This report from JFNA provides examples of mergers, consolidations and strategic alliances that occurred between Federations and agencies in eight different communities since 2003. You may also wish to review our January 2012 publication Quick Bytes: Recent Mergers of Bureaus of Jewish Education.
Download the report here:
- Research Reports and Studies
Adat Noar
Adat Noar, Youth Programming from the BJE of Orange County, is the Bureau's flagship youth program. It engages close to 200 9th grade students each year in exploring and defining their Jewish identities. Through a combination of Sunday afternoon classes and five weekend retreats at Brandeis-Bardin camp, students experience the best that Judaism has to offer and form a true "community of youth."
- Programs and Initiatives
ADCA Webinar 1: "Leading Without Authority"
During 2010 JESNA will facilitate a set of webinars for central agency executives and selected senior staff that will focus on the challenges implicit in implementing the WOW project as a case study in leading systemic community educational change.
Successfully implementing the WOW project requires that central agencies utilize a range of capabilities that relate to effective change leadership generally (i.e., whether for WOW or for other agency initiatives). The need for central agencies and their executives to further develop a number of these capabilities has been noted on previous webinars.
This webinar is the first in a series of six. The topic is Positioning the Central Agency as a “Leader”: Building the Necessary Relationships. The webinar may be viewed below in its entirety; due to file-size restrictions, is has been broken into 8 clip ...
- Interactive Resources - Webinars
ADCA Webinar 2: "The Current Situation in Complementary Education"
#2 in the ADCA webinar series, this webinar features an in-depth assessment and conversation around the current situation in complementary education, facilitated by Jon Woocher, Chief Ideas Officer at JESNA. Due to file size restrictions, this video has been broken down into 6 clips of approximately 9 minutes each, which can be viewed here in order.
Before viewing, you may wish to view the first offering in this webinar series, "Leading Without Authority."
ADCA Webinar: Accessing Government Funding
A webinar for the members of ADCA (Association of Directors of Central Agencies for Jewish Education) about accessing government funding, with guest speaker Rabbi Dr. Marty Schloss, Director, Division of Day School Education at the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York.
Watch the full webinar here,
Or download the presentation and audio files:
ADCA - Accessing Government Funding Presentation (2.22 MB)
CAJE (Greater Kansas City) Learning for Life
In the fall of 2000, the Coalition established Learning for Life: An Informal Educational Initiative to provide resources to strengthen and expand traditional youth director positions and informal educational programming. With the help of private donors, an allocation from the Jewish Federation and a yearly grant from the Jewish Community Foundation, Learning for Life provides significant funding for five years (2000-2005) to seven local congregations, the Jewish Community Center and the University of Kansas Hillel.
These resources also help ensure that informal Jewish education professionals are trained, knowledgeable and committed to working with adolescents and young adults. The initiative requires that grant recipients allocate a portion of funds to professional development.
- Organizations - Central Agencies
- Programs and Initiatives
Center for Jewish Education of the Jewish Federation of Rockland County
The Center for Jewish Education of the Jewish Federation of Rockland County is the center of Jewish Education for Rockland County. Online resources include listings if professional development programs and county wide educational programs.
- Organizations - Central Agencies
Complementary School Mergers
This webinar, facilitated by JESNA Education Consultant Steven Kraus, is a follow-up discussion to the Quick Bytes newsletter on the same topic (see the newsletter in our archives here). You may view the webinar by clicking on the link above (total running time: 59 minutes). You may also wish to download these PowerPoint Presentations from the session:
Complementary School Mergers Quick Bytes- transitions (736.5 kB)
Concierges for Jewish Education, BJE Los Angeles
The Bureau of Jewish Education's concierges for Jewish Education can help you navigate the wealth of opportunities available and help you find the right match for your family. Call one of them today and take advantage of this complimentary resource. Whatever your child's age, they can help you make the Jewish community connections that suit your family best.
- Organizations - Central Agencies
Continuing Professional Education Opportunities from the BJE Los Angeles
The BJE in Los Angeles offers various opportunities for Jewish Educators to advance their professional knowledge.
- Events
- Programs and Initiatives
Creating change in a complex system: A new perspective on the role of Central Agencies for Jewish education
This paper offers first a historical analysis of the role of central agencies for Jewish education in America, followed by a model of how central agencies today can best position themselves as communal change agents.
Creating change in a complex system: A new perspective on the role of Central Agencies for Jewish ed (147.8 kB)
- Articles
- Journals
Educator Growth and Development Opportunities from CAJE Miami
A convenient listing of Professional Development Opportunities in the Miami area.
- Organizations - Central Agencies
- Events - Event Listings
Grants and Funding Page from Baltimore's Center for Jewish Education
Currently sponsored programs include:
- Community Fund for Israel Experiences
- Crane Medical Benefit Credit
- Crane Professional Development Grants
- Baltimore - Ashkelon Educational Grants
- Sign Language Interpreter Fund
- Special Education Enhancement Projects
- Jewish Education Enhancement Projects
- Organizations - Central Agencies
- Programs and Initiatives
Growing Jewish Education in Challenging Times: A Roundtable Series with JESNA's Lippman Kanfer Institute & eJewishPhilanthropy
Quality Jewish education is our most powerful tool for ensuring a vibrant Jewish future. But, it can't have an impact on those who don't participate.
What can we do to make Jewish education more attractive, accessible and affordable, even under current conditions of economic pressure on both "providers" and "consumers"? How do the challenges of expanding educational participation play out today in specific arenas - day school, "complementary" education, camp, Israel education - and for specific critical populations - families with young children, teens, young adults, etc.? What new approaches are being tried and where are there signs of success? What has yet to be tried, but ought to be? Leaders from a wide range of settings and representing a variety of perspectives were invited to address these questions in a Roundtable series of essays that appeared over several weeks on ...
- Articles
Hebrew High, Colorado Agency for Jewish Education
Hebrew High is a community-wide, extracurricular program for Jewish students in grades 8-12.
For more than 30 years, the Colorado Agency for Jewish Education has connected Jewish teenagers to our collective heritage and to each other. Now, CAJE Hebrew High is evolving to bring new, cutting edge experiences to our community’s youth.
- Programs and Initiatives
Individual Professional Development Plans, BJE of Boston
The BJE has prepared a Professional Development Plan form for Educators tol help their staff nurture the growth of Jewish Educators.
- Organizations - Central Agencies
International Journal of Jewish Education Research
An initiative of the School of Education and the Lookstein Center of Bar-Ilan University.
IJJER aims to portray and explore Jewish education as a multifaceted, heuristic and dynamic phenomenon from a variety of disciplinary, geographical, cultural, religious and historical perspectives and contexts.
IJJER aims to provide an interdisciplinary, international and multi-language platform where past and present forms and aspects of Jewish education are examined through research.
- Journals
Israel Education at the Community Foundation for Jewish Education of Metropolitan Chicago
Community Foundation for Jewish Education of Metropolitan Chicago offers a variety of programs aimed to significantly bolster Israel education among adolescents, teens, and adults.
- Organizations - Central Agencies