Zooming alone We are thankfully in the midst of some re-openings, however, our situation will not revert to more innocent times or change radically soon. So, we will need to adjust our thinking and reconfigure options for the most probable scenarios of the ways in which we come together since online gatherings are here to stay. How will it be possible to develop real and meaningful connections when limited to on-screen interactions? When content alone is not enough Many organ

In my memory, there has never been so much Jewish content available online, for free. Podcasts, interviews, seminars, webinars, zoom rooms, concerts, and lectures (did I cover everything?) are just a click away. Many synagogues are successfully navigating uncharted waters by developing engaging online content. Others are still struggling with the technological challenges. The big question is whether this new mode of participating in Jewish content will take up residence in ou

We live in a visual world, right? So why not go with that? My morning commute is peppered with the various church signs I pass on my way to work. I wonder who actually writes these pithy things.  Is there a team of writers in a back room somewhere brainstorming a year’s worth of compelling sayings to post outside on the church lawn? Do they mail a smattering of weekly messages to the church elders who get to select which ones to post on their outdoor billboard sign? Seriously

Here’s what I learned about engaging lay people from an Evangelical minister during a holiday dinner party: a faith community’s goals should be reflected in its paths toward leadership. Last week I sat diagonally across an intense yet energetic, full-of-spirit kind of guy who gives greatly of his time in his church, and who has subsequently become a minister. In that role, he leads study groups and connects closely with church members, taking on their stories and their pain,

How can your Jewish community maximize campers’ experiences when they arrive home? Summer camp is exhilarating for our Jewish teens. For most, living Judaism 24/7 and not as an ‘add-on’ activity that so often happens on the home front is a powerful experience.  The ways in which it’s different are probably obvious but some still deserve mentioning: Weeks at camp have the rhythm of Shabbat They’re socializing in a “Jewish bubble” surrounded by staff and friends who are all Jew

Judaism = Community This season, when so many emotions surge through us, it is comforting to be within a community. That’s part of the grand design, for Jews to be together to usher in the New Year. We collectively hear the shofar’s urgency of now and decide that this year, things will be different….we’ll be different. But one thing is stubbornly the same and I need to write about it. For those who were not part of a synagogue community last year, has their situation changed?

Fresh and Appetizing! Fortune magazine recently published The Food Issue and I was struck by how the CEO’s of major food corporations are facing head-on the huge loss of market share and consumers. I mean large corporations: Campbell’s Soup, ConAgra, and Hersheys just to name a few. A top analyst in the business stated that the top 25 companies have lost about $18 billion in market share just in the past few years: “I would think of them like melting icebergs, every year they

I promise, keep reading, and you’ll get to my five suggestions. But first, some advice…..for a student named Rachel. Here are some things about Rachel that you should know: She absolutely loves working with kids, and has done so for the past several summers at a Jewish camp. The kids love her, parents rave about her as well, plus she has a lot of patience. In addition, everyone says that ‘she’s a natural’. And naturally, she’s thinking of majoring in elementary education. If

All Teens Welcome What might other faith communities teach us, as Jewish educators, about engaging large numbers of teens in religious activities? We clearly have what to learn, as more and more teens are opting out of Jewish learning past the age of 13, just as they’re beginning their adolescent journeys. Recently, The Jewish Education Project hosted a webinar called “Interfaith Teen Engagement Exchange” with a team from the Christ Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis.  The pu

How to Bring Camp Home Soon, thousands of Jewish teens will arrive to their home communities, having spent an amazing immersive experience in a Jewish summer camp. These teens, armed with new enthusiasm for Jewish life, should be able to transition successfully into their Jewish life at home, sharing their experiences with peers, their families, the synagogue, and maybe even the Jewish community as a whole. Summer camp is exhilarating for our Jewish teens. For most, living Ju

Teens need to be with other teens. Lots of them. Some time ago, I wrote a post called What I learned about marketing from working at a Jewish Community High School. The “Aha, yes, you got it right” e-mails never came,  but I wrote that post mostly for myself anyway. It was a way to help me clarify some of the challenges inherent in my part of the Jewish world, because getting buy-in from Jewish teens was just too impossible of a job and I needed to explore why that was so. We

Judaism: Where’s the cool? Over 70 seniors recently graduated from a supplementary Jewish community high school. Why was attending cool for them, and not for their friends? Why are they, who have continued this far in an educational program past the age of Confirmation cut-off, in the minority? I know, it seems everyone is on this question now. They made this choice, and they’re not odd, nerdy, or weird…so, what’s the deal here? We’ll get to that issue later. In thinking abou

The WordPress.com team sends me a summary e-mail at the end of the year (complete with fireworks!) that help me learn about what you find interesting to read about Jewish teens. There is a list of the most viewed blogs–can you think of a better motivator?  Even in my very, very small niche world, this list gets compared (ready?) to the number of climbers of Mount Everest! See below. Here’s an excerpt: 600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest last year. This blog got about 8,

What clock do these teens use? I’ll paint the picture. Last night I chatted with a group of three 9th grade teenage boys, hanging out in the synagogue lobby, waiting for a ride home after attending a community pluralistic supplementary Jewish high school program in suburbia. What I didn’t know, is that right in front of me, was such a rich representation of Jewish teen life. Typical teens. Phones in hand, either texting or waiting for one. Yet they were so willing to answer m

The largest collection of open-ocean animals found in an aquarium Who is in your Jewish community? Really, start to define who you consider a part of your community. Do you get a static or lively impression? Are there people of all ages and religious movements in your community? Or is it limited to who belongs where you belong? What I’ve written about here, is that often “membership” dictates who is in your community. Whether it’s synagogue or JCC, ‘belonging’ seems to define

From the 1950’s, but great teachers create impact no matter the year This summer I’m working with an intern through a program that combines work experience with college preparation. Great idea, no? I’m fortunate that this person has also been a part of our school for years, and is somewhat familiar with the world of blogging (and has his own gaming site blog!). I asked him about his experience in our Jewish community high school, and to be a guest blogger. “Something I really

The more things change, the more …..well, you can fill in the blank here. This is on my mind as we approach the summer and thousands of Jewish teens anxiously await the beginning of Jewish camp. I thought that by now there would be some changes in the synagogue world.  I’m not even talking about broad, sweeping, systemic change.  Or the changes suggested by some 15 teens a few months ago. Incredibly, I have been hoping for one small specific change ever since I was about 10 y

The title of this post offers you some tips, however first, I’d like to ask you for some advice…..to a student named Rachel. Here are some things about Rachel that you should know: She absolutely loves working with kids, and has done so for the past several summers at a Jewish camp. The kids love her, parents rave about her as well, plus she has a lot of patience. In addition, everyone says that ‘she’s a natural’. And naturally, she’s thinking of majoring in elementary educat

Is it the consummate Jewish nebbish, portrayed here by Woody Allen? The words “You’re soooo0 Jewish”, said in that tone of voice, from one Jewish teenager to another, is not meant as a compliment. So, what does it mean? Really, take a minute. What would it mean to you? To this teenager, it meant that his Jewish friend was taking Judaism seriously, too seriously. Not only was he Jewish, he was acting Jewish. Forget that being ‘so Jewish’ is a little like being a human. You eit

I just came back from visiting a synagogue with an enviable number of teens in their Confirmation Program. What number, you ask, counts as being worthy of envy? About FORTY. I was talking to them about continuing their Jewish education and framing it in the context of choices they make. For example, I asked and the majority answered, that they play sports or a musical instrument. I asked them if faced with a choice about whether to practice scales, do drills, or go to the mov