• Home
  • About
    • About
    • Policies
  • Submissions
    • Op-eds
    • News / Announcements
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

eJewish Philanthropy

Your Jewish Philanthropy Resource

  • News Bits
  • Jewish Education
  • Readers Forum
  • Research
  • Show Search
Hide Search
You are here: Home / The Blog / Is It Ever Too Early? Training Teens on Safety, Respect and Equity in the Workplace

Is It Ever Too Early? Training Teens on Safety, Respect and Equity in the Workplace

November 26, 2018 By eJP

[This article appears as part of a series presented by the SafetyRespectEquity Coalition about the work of Jewish organizations to prevent and address sexual harassment and gender discrimination. By pulling back the curtain on works in progress, the Coalition hopes to inspire others to begin their own crucial reform efforts. You can read the framing piece here.]

By Noga Hurwitz

My first exposure to leadership was in preschool when, at the age of five, I was asked to plan our graduation gala. I was thrilled. Possibilities for celebration feel endless when you are five. However, my selection to the role was accompanied by a stipulation. I couldn’t be “bossy” as a planner.

Mason Quintero, my co-president in BBYO who represents the Aleph Zadik Aleph (AZA), BBYO’s high school fraternity, grew up very differently. “For as long as I can remember, I was always told that I would do great things and have a lot of power. Even in elementary school people would make jokes about me employing them in the future,” Mason shared. “All that really stuck with me is the sentiment of having limitless potential without any barriers in front of me.”

The contrast between the experiences I had as a developing leader and the experiences that Mason had are stark and indicative of our communal mores. The societal messages we internalize as children often disempower women, and I learned early on by implication that there was a defined role for female leaders. Mason was given a different message. What this means is that children and teens, often unknowingly, are learning and adopting constrictive gender roles. This, in turn, adversely affects our leadership potential and future working relationships.

A strong work dynamic is rooted in mutual respect and opportunity. But if young men and women are not building these habits from childhood, why should they be expected to behave differently as adults? Today, conversations about leadership, workforce equality, and gender discrimination primarily exist in the adult world. It makes sense for adults to be engaging in conversations about healthy workplace culture since they comprise the majority of the workforce. However, sparking dialogue about building an equitable workforce only after becoming a professional is too late. Just like learning how to ride a bicycle takes experience and practice, cultivating respectful workplace relationships also requires time and effort.

I first felt fully empowered as a leader eight years after “graduating” preschool when I joined my youth organization, BBYO, at age 13. In my BBYO chapter, which is comprised of 70 high school girls[1], I was surrounded by inspirational young women who I could look to as role models and offered countless opportunities to lead.

For the past few years, I have developed many skills in an exclusively female environment and have been able to exercise my leadership among groups more representative of the modern workforce. In higher positions of leadership at BBYO, young men and women collaborate on projects and programs, and work together as counterparts in elected board positions. The ability to lead a diverse group of people is important as a teen leader and will undoubtedly continue to serve me throughout my career.

Now, as I spend my year travelling and meeting teen leaders from around the world, I strive to model and facilitate healthy working relationships. As I see more young women find their power, I see the confidence that seeps into every aspect of their lives. The more women who feel this way, the healthier and more evolved our workplaces will become.

Shaping a workforce in which individuals of all genders can work together respectfully and safely requires significant proactive effort. It is important for teenage girls and boys to know how to partner with one another, and for our society to encourage equal leadership regardless of gender. Building muscle memory for healthy working relationships is vital for the success of my generation, especially as we enter the workforce in just a few years. Beginning the conversation in adulthood is too late; it is the habits we train young people in today that will ensure safety, respect, and equity in the future.

[1]While the structure of BBYO is gendered, the organization welcomes Jewish teens of all genders and sexual orientations, as well as backgrounds, socio-economic status and those with a range of intellectual, emotional, and physical abilities.

Noga Hurwitz is the International President (N’siah) of BBYO, the world’s leading pluralistic Jewish teen movement. Representing the B’nai B’rith Girls (BBG), BBYO’s high school sorority, Hurwitz travels around the world and motivates Jewish teens to grow their local programs, strengthen their Jewish communities, and make a difference in the world. She leads her peers at a monumental time of growth for BBYO, with a membership base of over 21,000 teens across North America and an overall reach of tens of thousands of Jewish teens in more than 46 countries around the world.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: The Blog Tagged With: BBYO, Engaging Jewish Teens, SafetyRespectEquity Coalition

Click here to Email This Post Email This Post to friends or colleagues!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Dana Sheanin says

    November 26, 2018 at 5:24 pm

    Kol haKavod Noga!! Thanks for leading the way for so many of your peers. Our community needs your example.

Primary Sidebar

Join The Conversation

What's the best way to follow important issues affecting the Jewish philanthropic world? Our Daily Update keeps you on top of the latest news, trends and opinions shaping the landscape, providing an invaluable source for inspiration and learning.
Sign Up Now
For Email Marketing you can trust.

Continue The Conversation

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Recent Comments

  • Bruce Powell on An Invitation To Transparency: Reflections on an Open Salary Spreadsheet
  • Sara Rigler on Announcement: Catherine Reed named CEO of American Friends of Magen David Adom
  • Donna Burkat on The Blessings in 2020’s Losses
  • swindmueller on Where Do We Go From Here?
    Reflections On 2021
    A Jewish Response to These Uncertain Times
  • Alan Henkin on Where Do We Go From Here?
    Reflections On 2021
    A Jewish Response to These Uncertain Times

Most Read Recent Posts

  • Jewish Agency Accuses Evangelical Contractors of “Numerous Violations” but Denies They Evangelized New Immigrants
  • Breaking: Birthright Israel & Onward Israel Seek to Join Forces to Strengthen Jewish Diaspora Ties with Israel
  • An Invitation To Transparency: Reflections on an Open Salary Spreadsheet
  • Why One Zoom Class Has Generated a Following
  • The Blessings in 2020’s Losses

Categories

The Way Back Machine

Footer

What We Do

eJewish Philanthropy highlights news, resources and thought pieces on issues facing our Jewish philanthropic world in order to create dialogue and advance the conversation. Learn more.

Top 40 Philanthropy Blogs, Websites & Influencers in 2020

Copyright © 2021 · eJewish Philanthropy · All Rights Reserved