The Jewish New Teacher Project (JNTP) has announced the receipt of a $1,425,000 grant from Avi Chai Foundation. The grant, which covers a two year period, is focused on helping the organization to implement its long-term strategic plan to advance student learning in Jewish Day Schools, especially in New York and New Jersey.

The new grant is another stage of what has been a long and positive funding relationship between JNTP and Avi Chai who initially brought the Jewish New Teacher Project to Jewish day schools to address the high turnover of, and perceived lack of support for, new teachers in those schools. The goal was to offer new Jewish day school teachers mentoring support that would facilitate their acclimation to the demands of the job and thereby increase the likelihood that they would remain in the field while becoming better teachers.

The next step for the organization is to implement a plan that will put the organization onto firm financial ground for the future.” Towards that end, JNTP has also received support from the Jim Joseph Foundation, the Alan B. Slifka Foundation and UJA-Federation of New York.

The program focuses on the professional development of first and second year teachers of general and Judaic studies through intensive weekly mentoring from expert, talented teachers. JNTP mentors guide new teachers through a system of intensive on-the-job support, focusing on professional standards for excellence in teaching. The success of the program goes beyond support for new teachers to offer benefits to the mentors too. Mentors gain a deeper understanding of effective teaching and learning, develop common ways of thinking about instruction and considering student work, and acquire ideas and strategies for exemplary practice that can be applied to the whole school.