JEWISH EDUCATION SERVICE OF NORTH AMERICA INC

JESNA concluded this past year with a number of notable achievements:·        Communities participating in the WOW! Project began to roll out the new programs that were developed through its unique community-wide planning process.  For example, Columbus OH launched its Mosaic Learning Lab, an innovative “badge” model that allows third and fourth grade students from two pilot congregations to learn at their own pace, involves families in the learning activities, and puts teachers in the role of mentors who guide their students through learningexperiences in and out of the classroom. The seven congregations in MetroWest’s E3 initiative have applied design theory to launch innovation projects in each of their communities, and function collaborative as an incubator/community of practice to learn together and support each others’ initiatives.  The first of Toronto’s initial WOW projects (including a new downtown community and expansion of Jewish educational engagement of teens in public schools)  have had a ‘soft launch’ – with incubation and capacity-building (including program design, business planning, and marketing) are continuing for up to a dozen additional intiiatives that will roll out in the coming year.  One of the newest communities, Southern Arizona, held a community summit that mobilized the community around teen engagement, and have already begun planning for a community-wide online portal and concierge.         The Lippman Kanfer Institute, in partnership with The Jewish Education Project, and with the support of the UJA Federation of New York, mounted the third Jewish Futures Conference on the theme “Community and the Cloud.”  The conference, held at Columbia University, attracted close to 450 leaders, educators and activists who participated in person, with many more watching online.     JESNA’s Jewish Education Change Network grew to include nearly 900 educators, parents, volunteer and professional leaders, financial supporters, advocates, and learners.  Its Ning, webinars, collection of resources, and bi-weekly digest have made it a potent marketplace for encountering new ideas and engaging with colleagues. JESNA continued to employ cutting-edge technologies to disseminate knowledge and educational resources through a variety of vehicles including the Sosland Online Resource Center, online publications, over 30 webinars and virtual meetings that reached many hundreds of educators and education leaders on a wide range of topics, and social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter.  JESNA’s most recent addition to this lineup is the InnovationXChangeTM, an interactive online compendium of new program models and resources.   JESNA worked with the Avi Chai Foundation and The Jewish Education Project to provide support and guidance to dozens of day schools across North America seeking to introduce online and blended learning through the DigitalJLearning project.  Due to the program’s great success in its initial year, nineteen additional day schools joined in the 2012-2013 academic year. JESNA continued to expand the reach and impact of its long-term Lainer-Masa Fellows program by adding American students studying at the University of Haifa to its current programs at the Hebrew University and Tel Aviv University.JESNA used its capabilities as both a thought leader and an on-the-ground consultant to help strength the Jewish educational work of our two largest religious movements, Reform and Conservative Judaism, including keynoting a Jewish Education Summit for the Union for Reform Judaism and helping a Conservative Jewish leadership Commission convened by the United Synagogue develop a new design for Conservative Jewish learning.