2009
ISSUE 72 |
5
I
n a bold effort to increase the number of
future educators and to improve the quality
of professional preparation and Jewish educa-
tion they receive, HUC-JIR has been granted
$3.7 million from the Jim Joseph Foundation.
Nearly $12 million in grants from
the Jim Joseph Foundation
(
JJF) are going to HUC-JIR,
The Jewish Theological
Seminary (JTS), and
Yeshiva University (YU),
the three leading training
institutions for Jewish
educators.
The initial grants, to
be administered over a five-
year period, will be used as
financial aid for students pursuing
education degrees or certification in programs
that prepare them to work with Jewish youth
and young adults, and to assist each institu-
tion in planning new and enhanced programs
that will attract more educators to the field.
The grants represent the launch of a long-
term investment the foundation plans to make
in these three grand institutions and model the
benefits of interdenominational cooperation
and partnership in developing innovative pro-
grams, strengthening recruitment and
marketing, and embracing educational tech-
nology and distance learning.
Rabbi David Ellenson says, “The Jim
Joseph Foundation’s history-making grant
is imbued with a commitment to inter-
denominational collaboration that
charts a new and constructive direction
in partnership between the Reform,
Conservative, and Orthodox Move-
ments in North America. This grant
addresses some of the most glaring needs in
the American Jewish community. JJF under-
stands that attracting and educating quality
Jewish educators in our institutions is critical
to instilling in today’s Jewish youth a strong
Jewish identity and maintaining a
vibrant American Jewish com-
munity.
Increasing the
quantity and quality of
Jewish educators, and giv-
ing them the tools to do
their jobs effectively, will
have a profound and im-
mediate impact on Jewish
life.”
“
Jewish education is the
key to the Jewish future, and out-
standing Jewish educators are the key
to making sure that children, youth and
adults have the kinds of educational experi-
ences that will prepare them to create that
future,” adds Dr. Michael Zeldin, Director of
HUC-JIR’s Rhea Hirsch School of Educa-
tion. “We are committed to maintaining the
excellence of the professional preparation we
provide while greatly expanding the pathways
available for Jewish young adults who want to
make a difference in the world through Jew-
ish education, both in and out of the
classroom.”
“
The immediate impact of this historic
grant,” Zeldin continues, “is that HUC-JIR
will be able to grant full-tuition scholarships
to students who study Jewish education full-
time at the Hebrew Union College. We
believe that this will help us expand the num-
ber of highly qualified students we are able to
prepare to become Jewish educators.”
The grants will provide $700,000 to
each institution for each of the next five aca-
demic years for scholarships for future
educators. The remaining grant funds will be
divided among the institutions to be
used in the 2009-2010 academic
year for planning purposes. The
three institutions will work to
foster best practices and col-
laborate on projects when
possible to ensure creative new
directions and a renewed com-
mitment to the education of future
Jewish educators.
In addition, the foundation has agreed to
explore support for inter-institutional collab-
orations that evidence promise for directly
augmenting the educational enterprise across
institutions. Two potential areas for such de-
velopment are new technologies for distance
learning and marketing of Jewish educa-
tion as a desirable professional career.
Unique to the grants is also the
unprecedented collaboration this
partnership represents. To facilitate
this cooperation, JJF will convene a
steering committee comprised of
the leadership of the three institu-
HUC-JIR RECEIVES HISTORIC,
INTERDENOMINATIONAL GRANT
OF
$3.7 MILLION FROM THE
JIM JOSEPH FOUNDATION
TO ADVANCE JEWISH EDUCATION
Jean Bloch Rosensaft
