From the Jim Joseph Foundation

Timely Resources and Programs to Meet the Moment

June 29th, 2020

These resources are geared primarily toward educators and other professionals in the field to support their work and leadership during this challenging time.

Upcoming and Timely:

  • Reboot’s campaign “PlastOver: An Exodus From Plastic Waste” offers resources to help “take the first step out of slavery to our plastic-driven economy by committing to eliminate your use of single-use plastic for the duration of the Passover holiday.”
  • Hadar offers a Pre-Pesach virtual Beit Midrash over the next few weeks. Whether you have a full hour or just 15 minutes to spare, there are options for all schedules and learning backgrounds.
  • The Jewish Educator Portal has curated “an exciting blend of Passover resources to help your students connect with the Exodus.”
  • The Pardes Daily offers offers quick and engaging learning opportunities to prepare for Pesach.
  • M² The Institute for Experiential Jewish Education offers Days of Gratitude, a six month gratitude experience centered around Jewish holidays each month.

With Education and Engagement in Mind:

  • Pardes offers different professional development opportunities for Jewish educators during the summer to help them “grow as educators, deepen their impact on students, and remain inspired.”
  • With travel to Israel is still on hold, Makom continues to develop new ways of learning about and from Israel, including its “new and exciting set of educational resources in the form of a project we call Zimrat Ha’aretz: Makom’s New Israeli Playlist.
  • New research from the Benenson Strategy Group offers insights on the kinds of virtual programming Jewish young adults are seeking out right now.
  • Prizmah’s Reshet groups enable day school faculty, educators, and lay leaders to network with peers and colleagues. Choose from groups Judaic Administrator, Learning Specialist, Orthodox Women Leadership, and more.
  • The Jewish Education Project launched The Jewish Educator Portal, filled with curated content and resources, ongoing professional development, and a mechanism to create community by holding their own convenings and gatherings.
  • Hebrew at the Center offers a full menu of online resources for Hebrew teachers and leaders to specifically help prepare schools and the field for the continued uncertainty.
  • Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion has a resource guide with tips and best practices for “Teaching in Relationship Online.”
  • The Jewish Teen Education and Engagement Funder Collaborative (FC) launched NewRealityResources.com to aggregate timely content and offerings for Jewish youth professionals and educators who work with Jewish teens.
  • The iCenter offers materials and links to live experiences to help educators continue Israel education.
  • The Jewish New Teacher Project has a list of free ed-tech resources for schools that have moved to online learning and ‘low-tech’ ideas for home learning.
  • Facing History and Ourselves has “readings and resources to start important conversations with your students about the coronavirus outbreak, and to explore questions about community, responsibility, decision-making and upstanding that are relevant in this moment.”
  • CASJE has curated a set of resources that look at how changes as a result of COVID-19 are testing education in a variety of settings, including K-12 schooling, after-school learning, early childhood education, and higher education.
  • Torrey Trust, Ph.D. at University of Massachusetts Amherst has a presentation available on “Teaching Remotely in Times of Need.”
  • Moving Traditions has a thoughtful “Blessing for B’nai Mitzvah Impacted by the Coronavirus.”

Helping Leaders Navigate Crises:

For Self-Care:

  • The COVID Grief Network, an international mutual aid network, offers free 1:1 and group grief support and builds long-term community for young adults in their 20s and 30s who are grieving the illness or death of someone to COVID-19.
  • JPRO and Jewish Federations of North America offer Rise, an initiative to help out-of-work Jewish community professionals financial resources, career resources and personal resilience resources.
  • Maharat and Yeshivat Chovevei Torah “have partnered to launch an exciting new program: Mind the Gap: A Mini Sabbatical designed for Jewish professionals who are headed to or in-between jobs in the Jewish communal sector, with the goals of deepening knowledge of Jewish content and strengthening leadership skills.” You can share the names and email addresses of potential candidates at [email protected]