Today is January 23, 2020 /
Today is January 23, 2020 /
I applaud the incredibly generous gifts supporting Jewish education today. Tens of million of dollars have been directed to many institutions to enhance Jewish literacy and the educational skills of dedicated professionals. It is a landmark time for Jewish education in North America. My concern, though, is that it is not enough. Jewish literacy and better educational Continue Reading »
The favorite part of my week is our staff meetings. I wonder how other organizations begin their staff meetings. Do they jump into business? There is always so much to do. Do they begin with a D’var Torah? Is it pro forma or does the D’var Torah impact the staff meeting? Do they offer a heartfelt prayer to Continue Reading »
Published in The Jewish Week, January 11, 2017 by Hannah Dreyfus How do you keep today’s Jewish teens engaged? Keep them happy, urges David Bryfman, chief innovation officer at the Jewish Education Project. While in the past, Jewish education has stressed the transmission of knowledge, skills and literacy, that approach “no longer works,” said Bryfman. Continue Reading »
Several weeks ago, while visiting the US, I attended a Shabbat dinner of 15 very intelligent and kind adults, including Jewish professionals and rabbis. The conversation quickly moved to politics. Everyone assumed we were all voting for Donald Trump. Opinions were strong and unequivocal. I felt very unwelcome. Recently I attended several conferences in the Continue Reading »
Republished in San Diego Jewish World, October 14, 2016 by Toby Klein Greenwald In Becoming a Soulful Educator, by Rabbi Aryeh Ben David, every chapter has “aha” moments and statements that you will want to frame and hang on your wall, and he is liberal in attributing ideas to those who have inspired him—Rav Avraham Continue Reading »
Published in The New York Jewish Week, August 23, 2016 by Sandee Brawarsky Aryeh Ben David founded Ayeka: Center for Soulful Jewish Education in 2008. Before that, the Scarsdale native who moved to Israel in 1987 taught at the Pardes Institute for 20 years, serving as director of spiritual education. He is the author of Continue Reading »
For years, Jewish education has been searching for a means to inspire, to innovate, and redefine the standard curriculum to engage the next generation of Jews. Schools across the Jewish spectrum have received constant pressure to re-package and teach classic content in a style that speaks to the students. The fast-pace of today’s technology is Continue Reading »
Dasee Berkowitz’s first Yom Kippur as a young mother got her thinking. To more easily take part in the lengthy synagogue service, her son, then only a few months old, was wrapped upon her body in a sling. But when it came time for the traditional symbolic chest beating during which Jews confess their sins, Continue Reading »
If I invited you to do a Jewish program for Passover — and asked you to please bring a mattress, a bottle of wine, and some kind of aphrodisiac — you would probably look at me askance. Maybe even consider having me investigated. But what do we do on Passover Seder night? We drink 4 glasses Continue Reading »
