How welcoming the stranger and saving a life will really make the world a better place: A Rabbi’s call to action by Rabbi Rachel Ain As a rabbi at a Conservative synagogue one of the challenges I face is in figuring out how to welcome people who are unaffiliated and lacking in Jewish background, knowledge, and communal connection. As a congregation we consider which barriers we should lower in order to attract people to our community and we think about the factors that will make our community a place that a novice would want to see as their spiritual address. … [Read more...]
Celebrating Our Journeys: My Spiritual Path to Reform Jewish Leadership
Posted on June 20, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment
[eJP note: In honor of Women of Reform Judaism's (WRJ) Centennial Celebration, HUC-JIR students were invited to submit a 1000 word original essay for the WRJ/HUC-JIR Essay Competition on the topic, “Celebrating Our Journeys: My Spiritual Path to Reform Jewish Leadership.” WRJ received dozens of moving, well-written essays from each of the four HUC-JIR campuses and degree programs. According to WRJ, the decision was difficult, but a dedicated committee of WRJ staff, lay leaders, HUC-JIR alumni, and HUC-JIR faculty chose this essay as the competition winner.] by Jodie Gordon Gilda Radner once said, “I wanted a perfect ending. Now I’ve learned, the hard way, that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having … [Read more...]
40 Plus and Screwed: More on Less Young Adult Engagement
Posted on June 19, 2013 Written by 13 Comments
Building a sustainable community can’t be just about paying for buses full of young people in hopes they will make Jewish babies. by Michal Kohane You might ascribe the following comments to my advanced age, shifting moods, raging hormones. I admit. I am not a “young adult” by any current official definition of the term. At the same time, 4 of my 6 children are still in that age bracket, so I do have a vested interest in their Jewish connectedness, and anything we do in that realm of “young adult engagement”. I started writing this piece a while back but doubting its political correctness, (yes, and my moods), left it. Then last week, I sat at yet another meeting and someone, proudly sharing all the young adult activities their organization features in a big, respectful Jewish … [Read more...]
Analysis-Paralysis: Another Call for Action on Professional Leadership
Posted on June 19, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment
The community increasingly looks to their professional executives to envision, inspire and lead the change and those who hire executives realize that meaningful change will not occur without professional leaders who possess the vision, courage and skills to lead the process. by David Edell The recent articles about executive leadership raise several concerns for those who have been working on the issue. I spend my days with the people who are responsible for recruiting new executives and the professionals who are considering leadership opportunities and would like to add a “real time” perspective about the professional “pipeline” issue and its impact on the community to the discussion. The new study by Barry Rosenberg for JPPI (Jewish Leadership in North America - Changes in … [Read more...]
We’re Not Lost
Posted on June 18, 2013 Written by 6 Comments
by Misha Galperin Yehuda Kurtzer’s important and provocative essay, “Leadership and Change in the Land of the Lost” demands a conversation. It is the conversation of the hour, and, as he notes, many have already begun this important talk. As the CEOs of many large and well-established Jewish nonprofits near retirement, the question of who will succeed them is fraught with tension. We are not our grandparents or our parents. Our organizations must evolve and maintain relevance. The leaders of these organizations must do the same. Who will lead us next? I am probably one of the leaders Yehuda points to - if not to directly, then indirectly. I have been in the professional driver’s seat of a number of well-established Jewish organizations for the past several decades. It is work that I … [Read more...]
It’s Time to Move Beyond Overhead
Posted on June 18, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment
To the Donors of America: We write to correct a misconception about what matters when deciding which charity to support. The percent of charity expenses that go to administrative and fundraising costs - commonly referred to as "overhead" - is a poor measure of a charity’s performance. We ask you to pay attention to other factors of nonprofit performance: transparency, governance, leadership, and results. For years, each of our organizations has been working to increase the depth and breadth of the information we provide to donors in these areas so as to provide a much fuller picture of a charity’s performance. That is not to say that overhead has no role in ensuring charity accountability. At the extremes the overhead ratio can offer insight: it can be a valid data point for rooting … [Read more...]
