Lay Leaders' Breakfasts

The Greater Boston Jewish Community is blessed with lay leaders who have strengthened Jewish Education in recent years. We are about to launch a monthly series of breakfast meetings for Education Lay Leaders in area congregations. These sessions are designed to help you manage the complex and rewarding tasks of Jewish Education. Important issues continue to emerge and we are reminded that good educational systems are always evolving and benefit from constant reflection and hard work.

These sessions are about the "how to" of committee meetings and the all important times in-between committee meetings. They are about the desires to drive education agendas and the realities of complex institutions. Our consultation work with congregations is almost always with one site at a time. These sessions are an opportunity to listen to one another, and to think together about the processes ...

LAYING IN ROADS: ENGAGING JEWS IN THEIR 20s AND 30s THROUGH LAY LEADERSHIP

As the Jewish community evolves it is imperative that organizations keep up with the dynamic rate of change if they want to survive. Lay leadership is one area where this change is sorely needed. This thesis examines two programs at Jewish agencies in New York City that are actively engaging young professionals and grooming them for participation with the organization and board leadership: Observership through UJA-Federation of New York and Global Circle, an initiative of American Jewish World Service. Through an in depth look at these programs, including interviews with participants, program directors, and professionals, the thesis identifies factors that brought the participants to the program and led to their future involvement choices. It offers recommendations for organizations that are interested in engaging young professionals onto their boards.

Download the report here ...

National Jewish Population Survey 2000

This portrait of American Jews emerges from the National Jewish Population Survey (NJPS) 2000-01, a representative survey of the Jewish population in the United States sponsored by United Jewish Communities and the Jewish federation system. This report presents findings on several demographic topics; Jewish connections and engagement; intermarriage; and three special topics, the elderly, immigrants and those living below the poverty line. In coming months, UJC will issue a series of specialized reports on these and other topics, such as synagogue affiliation and denominations, Jewish practice, philanthropy and volunteerism, Jewish college students, marriage and families, and regional differences among Jews.

This report and other documents associated with NJPS 2000-01 are available on the UJC website, www.ujc.org/njps. The NJPS electronic d ...

Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education (PEJE)

The Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education (PEJE) is a national partnership of philanthropists concerned with increasing the number of children who receive a quality day school education. Its mission is to develop philanthropic leadership devoted to enhancing the future of Jewish day schools, to advocate for Jewish day schools by stimulating the development of new day schools and promoting day school education in the general Jewish community and by promoting excellence in Jewish day school education; the site includes resources and publications for Jewish day schools and information about its grant and expertise delivery programs.

Project Day School Excellence (PDSE)

Project Day School Excellence (PDSE) is a professional development initiative that serves to benefit Jewish Day Schools in Greater Miami through a comprehensive approach to teacher learning. PDSE is grounded in the assumption that the purpose of all professional development is to impact and improve student learning. Extensive research by the larger staff development community has proven that workshops and seminars with no structured follow-up and coaching is a waste of human and financial resources. With PDSE, CAJE has moved away from workshops that may have minimal impact on classroom instruction and student learning needs. It is a new model of professional development for our community’s day schools that considers the student and faculty learning needs in the design of professional development. The program incorporates the critical need for Instructional Coaching, which supports ...

The Center for Leadership Initiatives Resource Gallery

A list of resources from the Center for Leadership Initiatives, a U.S. based operating foundation dedicated to supporting current and emerging leaders in the Jewish world. The uniqueness of CLI lies in its ability to network key individuals and to listen to the needs they express in their leadership positions. The resource gallery includes links to resources information about the Jewish communal sector and links to Jewish texts, creative forum ideas and facilitation methodologies, reflections on leadership development, and tools and tips for non-profits.