JPRO19: What Connects Us

For individuals working in Jewish organizations in the U.S. and Canada, JPRO is the leading professional association working to ensure that the field attracts, develops, and retains the talent needed to thrive. JPRO Network maximizes the potential of the 80,000 professionals who are a part of this field, nurturing, sustaining, and developing them so that Jewish engagement and education efforts fieldwide are elevated. Every Jewish communal enterprise depends on highly motivated, well-trained professionals who feel valued and are positioned to do excellent work.

The JPRO WellAdvised program is an amazing opportunity to connect with a person who is thoughtful and dedicated to work in our field with a perspective different than that of the people with whom we directly work. The hour can jump-start a new idea or reinvigorate the energy dedicated to an existing endeavor.
– JPRO WellAdvised participant

This August, JPRO19: What Connects Us—the seminal conference for hundreds of Jewish communal professionals—will be a catalyst to connect and to reimagine what thriving Jewish institutions will look like, who will lead them, and what impact they will collectively have on the world in the 21st Century. Along with networking and learning opportunities, skill-building workshops and master classes, and immersive experiences throughout Detroit, JPRO19 will feature four themes of great relevance and interest to professionals in the field: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Building Resilient Communities; Designing Workplaces for the Future; and Civil Discourse in Complex Times.

The session was incredibly insightful. It will help me change the way I manage both myself and my team; and thereby will help increase our effectiveness and impact. It was wonderful to be in a room with colleagues from across the Jewish organizational world. And the facilitator was herself so amazing; on top of the content she modeled some excellent facilitation techniques.
– Participant in JPRO Management course in New York

In the spirit of a network that shares knowledge, the conference’s Steal This Stage* (supported by The AVI CHAI Foundation and UpStart) will highlight some of the biggest ideas and boldest work coming from Jewish institutions and communities across North America. Each presenter will have up to 5 minutes to present their “big idea.” At the conclusion of the conference, all JPRO19 attendees will get access to the ideas so they can be “stolen” and implemented within their organizations or community. Do you have a big idea or innovation that you want to share with your colleagues? Tell JPRO about it here by May 17—you might be selected to share it on the Steal This Stage during JPRO19 in Detroit.  

Building on the network’s 120-year history, JPRO19 is indicative of its continued growth. Over the last 18 months, JPRO expanded programming and strengthened its organization. New programs such as WellAdvised and JPRO Master Classes exceeded projections and generated enthusiastic feedback. The number of JPRO affiliated organizations—those who have joined the network and thereby extended membership to their employees—has nearly tripled, from 95 to more than 250, and JPRO has surpassed 5,000 affiliated staff members. The future of Jewish communities relies on vibrant institutions — and on the talented, dedicated professionals who build and sustain them. JPRO is a key part of this support system, advancing connection across communities, organization sizes and types, professional roles, generations, and the diverse identities and backgrounds of professionals, strengthening the connective tissue of the sector as a whole.

* The Steal This concept was “stolen” from 100Kin10, a network preparing 100,000 excellent science, tech, engineering, and math teachers in the US by 2021 and addressing the underlying reasons for the STEM teacher shortage.

The William Davidson Foundation is supporting this year’s conference. JPRO is partnering with the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit to bring JPRO19 to Detroit. The Jim Joseph Foundation, the Max and Marjorie Fisher Foundation, and many others are also supporting JPRO19.