CONFERENCES
SEMINARS & FELLOWSHIPS
EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVES

Early Childhood Educators Annual Conference
Open to all teachers at BJE-affiliated ECE sites, the conference provides a day of learning, networking, and fun. A keynote speaker and breakout workshops connect teachers with one another, drawing on diverse approaches to early childhood education.

Contact Ellen Brosbe, 415.751.6983 x 153. Yom Keshet Conference
Jewish educators, youth-program staff, and lay leaders gather to explore lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues in Jewish education. This annual, one-day conference features text study and hands-on workshops, with a special focus on gender identity and transgender issues.

Co-sponsored by Jewish Mosaic. Visit www.jewishmosaic.org for more information. National Conferences

• RAVSAK: The Jewish Community Day School Network Conference
  January 20-23, 2008
  Houston, TX

• Jewish Educators Assembly Conference
  January 27-30, 2008
  Skokie, IL

• National Association of Temple Educators (NATE) Conference
  March 7-9, 2008
  Boulder, CO

• Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education Conference (PEJE)
  April 6-8, 2008
  Boston, MA

• The Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education Conference (CAJE)
  August 10-14, 2008
  University of Vermont, Burlington
  The Consortium for the Future of the Jewish Family (formerly The Whizin Institute)
  Conference-within-a-conference at CAJE

The ATID Fellows
A professional development program in family education designed for early childhood educators, the Atid Fellows includes ten educators, representing seven early childhood centers. The fellows will become the idea-champions, cheerleaders and designers for family education at each of their sites.

After attending the Conference of the Consortium for the Future of the Jewish Family, a summer immersion in family education, the group will meet for monthly seminars.

Atid Fellows:

Congregation Emanu-El: Heather Harrell, Susan Aronow
Congregation Beth Sholom: Jenny Richardson, Tracy Rice
JCCSF: Carol DeNola
Osher Marin JCC: Tamar Foster, Melody Horowitz
Peninsula JCC: Brigitte Hayat
Palo Alto JCC: Debbie Katz Klein
The Shalom School: Marina Lynn

To learn more, contact Vicky Kelman, the director of the program, 415.751.6983 x 105.

The Atid Fellows is funded by the Jewish Community Endowment Fund of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties. Jewish Everyday Moments in Pre-School (JEMS)
JEMS is a selective professional development program for early childhood educators working in Jewish preschools. It recognizes teachers' needs to increase their Jewish knowledge and apply it in the classroom. The group meets monthly to explore the big ideas in early childhood and Jewish education.

Contact Ellen Brosbe, 415.751.6983 x 153. Jewish Service Learning Certificate

The Jewish Studies Program of SF State, Bureau of Jewish Education, and spark: Partnership for Service are launching a Certificate Program in Jewish Service Learning to strengthen Bay Area's commitment to community service, volunteerism, and Jewish education.

SF State, recently named "one of the nation's premier university centers for community engagement" will offer the Certificate through their College of Extended Learning.

Over a two-semester course of study, Jewish community professionals will learn the latest best practices in service learning, the Jewish mandates of service and education, and enjoy personalized mentoring as they develop service learning programs in their own organizations.

Whether Jewish teens in a synagogue or community center setting, young adults interested in finding ways to give back (and learn as they do), or seniors with an interest in deepening their community work, the Jewish Community Service Learning certificate will help produce scores of involved, knowledgeable volunteers.

The newest Jewish Service Learning Certificate cohort begins in August 2008.

To find out more about the program, contact BJE Jewish Service Learning Project Director Joel Snyder 415.751.6983 x 126 to learn more.

Support for JSL Graduate Certificate is provided by the the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund, the Koret Foundation, the Bureau of Jewish Education, and SFSU Jewish Studies Program. Mandel Teacher Educator Institute (MTEI)
The project that has transformed teacher learning across the country has finally arrived in the Bay Area.

A two-and-a-half-year professional development initiative, MTEI is designed to create a cadre of teachers of teachers. These educators will work with their institutions to design and implement innovative learning opportunities for teachers, making schools better places for both teachers and students.

The selected group of teams from synagogue schools, early childhood centers, and day schools, across denomination and region, have been meeting in seminars, retreats, and work-groups since June 2006.

Click to see a list of schools and individuals involved in Bay Area MTEI.

To learn more, contact Vicky Kelman, Jewish Family Education Project Director at 415.751.6983 x 105 or Gail Dorph, MTEI National Director at 415.384.0845.

Bay Area Mandel Teacher Educator Institute is funded by the Mandel Foundation and The Richard & Rhoda Goldman Fund and is a dynamic collaboration between the funders and the Bureau of Jewish Education. Museum Fellows
A partnership between the Contemporary Jewish Museum (CJM) and the BJE, this program is designed to bring art into the classroom and classrooms to art. Seven synagogue schools have nominated a teacher and a class to experience a deep relationship with Jewish art and visual culture through extended, specially designed visits at the CJM, along with enriching programs before and after the visits. Teachers participate in seminars at the museum to prepare them for these unique learning opportunities.

Contact Vicky Kelman, 415.751.6983 x 105. Shofar: A Call to Leadership for Educators of Jewish Teens

Building upon the success of the (ti-ke-a) Fellowship, this 12-month professional development program is designed for educators of Jewish teens, who wish to deepen their knowledge base, skill sets, and professionalism within the field of Jewish Education. During the 2007 calendar year, the pilot class of Shofar Fellows participated in retreats, educational seminars, and an Israel seminar.

The Bureau of Jewish Education and the Center for Jewish Living and Learning congratulate the first class of Shofar Fellows on their completion of the Shofar Fellowship and their continued work and learning as Jewish Teen Educators:

• Devra Aarons - Berkeley Midrasha
• Morgan Blum - Holocaust Center of Northern CA
• Jennifer Condon - Peninsula Temple Beth El
• Zephira Derblich-Milea - Shalom Bayit
• Taylor Epstein - Jewish Family & Children's Services
• Ariana Estoque - Congregation Emanu-El
• Erica Hymen - Bureau of Jewish Education
• Debra Phillips - Temple Isaiah
• Adam Reingold - Peninsula JCC
• Darren Schwartz - JCCSF
• Jamie Simon - Camp Tawonga
• Cynthia White - United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, Northern CA Region

Future plans for another Shofar Fellowship are under consideration. For further details, contact Toby Rubin at 415.751.6983 x 116.

The Shofar Fellowship is a project of the Bureau of Jewish Education of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties and the Center for Jewish Living and Learning. The project is funded in part by the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund; the SF-based Jewish Community Federation; the Jim Joseph Foundation; and the Jewish Community Federation of the Greater East Bay.

Bay Area Jewish Service Learning Initiative
The Bay Area Jewish Service Learning Project helps educators of teens and young adults to combine Jewish study with community service projects.

Contact Project Director Joel Snyder, 415.751.6983 x 113 to learn more.

In collaboration with spark: Partnership for Service, funded by the Richard & Rhoda Goldman Fund. Israel Education Initiative
Provides opportunities for educators to broaden their knowledge, deepen their engagement, and instill a strong bond with Israel - all essential to creating an enduring Jewish identity and a strong sense of Jewish peoplehood among their students.

The Initiative offers professional development, seminars in Israel, Living Bridge connections, cultural activities, curricular material, speakers, exhibits, and other learning opportunities.

Visit http://www.israelcentersf.org/education/index.asp for details.