“A truly transformative experience”: Executive MA Students Encounter Israel

27 students from the Hebrew Union College School of Education’s Executive Masters program in Jewish Education (EMA) traveled to Israel in January for a winter seminar. The program brought the students into relationship with diverse voices, to broaden and deepen their understanding of Israeli society and their role as Israel educators.

The EMA Israel Seminar, supported by generous funding from several foundations and donors, including the Jim Joseph Foundation and another prominent national foundation, is a core experience of the master’s degree. It gives these midcareer educational leaders – who range in age from range from their late-20s to their mid-60s, many who have spent years working in the field – the opportunity to engage with Israel directly, with empathy, curiosity, and deep connection.

This year’s seminar, the first held since the October 7 attacks, was led by faculty Jeremy Leigh, M.A., Lecturer in Jewish History and Israel Studies, and Lesley Litman, Ed.D. , School of Education Faculty and Coordinator of Faculty Instructional Support. “We are so proud of our students who came together as a group, choosing to be in Israel at a time when many other groups have cancelled,” Litman said. “They experienced the heartbreak of Israel’s post-October 7 reality in all its permutations and love from Israelis they encountered who were so deeply appreciative of their presence.”

Student Lauren Sharp Bernstein, Youth Engagement Coordinator at Temple Sinai Congregation of Toronto, said the decision about whether to go to Israel “was a difficult one” for her, but she added, “once I arrived and really saw the people, listened to their stories, and witnessed their realities, it became abundantly clear that this journey was essential for my healing as both a Jewish individual and an educator.”

“I suspect our trip to Israel felt different in some ways than previous EMA trips,” said Rabbi Courtney Berman, another EMA student who participated in the seminar. Reflecting on her first experience having to run to a safe room during a red alert in the middle of the night, Berman said, “Before this trip, I had never heard the sirens anywhere other than on the news. The impacts of this war on Israelis have been immense, and that is something we as Diaspora Jews should have an awareness of and also respect.”

During a stop in Tel Aviv-Yafo, the group delved into the meaning of Zionism and the realities of contemporary Israel, with the day culminating in a powerful ceremony of lighting Chanukah candles in Hostage Square – where Israelis who happened to be in the square joined in spontaneously.  Students also paid their respects to fallen soldiers by visiting Har Herzl cemetery, where the freshly decorated graves tell the unique stories of each soldier’s hobbies, passions, and personalities. In addition, as Litman noted, the eight-day itinerary also took participants “to places that they have likely never been, even if they have lived in Israel for significant periods of time,” including the Bedouin city of Rahat, the Arab city of Kfar Qasim, and the Gaza Envelope. “The seminar is meant to be challenging both for people who are familiar with Israel and for those who are there for the first time,” Litman said.

Student Jessica Smiley, Director of Engagement and Youth Education at Kol Tikvah in Parkland, Florida, called the seminar “a truly transformative experience,” noting that “every day was filled with new discoveries, from exploring historic sites to immersing in the vibrant culture and creating meaningful experiences. This journey deepened my understanding and connection to my heritage in ways I never imagined,” she said. “I felt my passion for education and leadership growing with every moment there.”

“Being able to see the country and talk to people on the ground about life after October 7 gave me a renewed perspective into how we should be teaching Israel education back in my community,” said student Myriam Rofrano, Assistant Director of the Religious School at Congregation B’nai Israel of Boca Raton, Florida. “I was so excited to make this journey with these amazing educators, and to be challenged through tough but meaningful conversations.”

Dr. Kathy Schwartz, Director of the EMA program, said, “It was a remarkable experience to travel to Israel with these students, some making their first journey while others layered it on multiple previous experiences. The opportunity to process their own thoughts and emotions on top of accepting the responsibility to convey the stories they heard created a powerful mix of internalizing the bravery, sadness, ingenuity, hope and resilience of the Israeli people,” she said.

“The students returned home with a more sophisticated and nuanced understanding of the literature, land and people that animate Jewish Peoplehood and Israel Education in today’s reality,” Schwartz said. “I truly believe going to Israel at this moment in time with this cohort will leave a lasting mark on their lives and leadership.”

EMA student Lauren Reeves, Director of Education at the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, Illinois, said “being in Israel brought together our identities as learners, as educators, and as Jews.” Compared with her previous visits to Israel, she said, the Hebrew Union College program gave her “a deeper understanding of the land and the people” in the country. “I’m excited to bring that understanding to my students in what I teach and how I teach it when I return as a more thoughtful and nuanced Reform Jewish educator.”

Focusing on a specific element of the seminar that will be helpful to her work in Israel education, Reeves said spending time in Kfar Qasim “opened my eyes to the Arab Israeli experience. As 20% of the population, Arabs are a huge part of the story of Israel — who Israel is, and who Israel could be.” Reeves recalled one detail from that visit that stuck with her: a comment from a high school instructor who teaches both Jewish and Arab students, who told the group, “We have to be real with our students. Knowing is the first step to understanding.”

Student Susanna Grant agreed, saying “we have an obligation to care about those in the land of Israel who are not Jews…, which means I have a duty as a Jewish educator to teach about all the voices of Israel, not just the ones that resound within me.” She continued, “My unabashed love for Israel means I have a responsibility to Israel, to the future of our homeland and our people, to provide our students with a full education, to hear dissonant voices in Israel, and all this within the context of their entire religious school education.”

The returning students have each now crafted a vision for Israel education, designed for this moment in history, with the sophistication drawn from synthesizing the visit with their reading and coursework in the EMA program. “The seminar combines an essential and emotional learning journey that only being present in Israel with Israelis can provide, combined with the sophisticated, reflective process of an academic program led by HUC’s faculty,” said Miriam Heller Stern, Ph.D., Director of the School of Education. “We know this experience will influence the leadership trajectories, program design, and curricular priorities of these midcareer leaders in profound ways.”

You can also read about our Los Angeles winter intensive on Israel Education in North America, and our New York winter intensive on “Toxic Polarization.”