Northwestern University School of Continuing Studies and Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies are partnering to launch a new professional development program, the Certificate in Jewish Leadership. This new program combines Jewish scholarship with leading ideas from the contemporary business world to enhance the effectiveness of Jewish leaders.

Traditionally, programs for Jewish leadership have focused either on management skills or Jewish literacy. In this program, leadership training is taught within a distinctively Jewish context. Participants will learn to assess and improve their own leadership, to articulate vision and inspire and motivate stakeholders, to improve collaboration, to achieve organizational goals, to hone their communication skills, and to plan and execute for the future.

Students can apply to the program now. Classes begin in March 2012 and run through October 2012.

The Certificate program was developed for emerging leaders of nonprofit organizations, including those focused on social service, fundraising, education, culture and public policy advocacy. Experienced leaders of Jewish organizations and professionals working outside the Jewish community may also find the program offers benefits to their work through its focus on best practices in a Jewish context.

This unique program leverages faculty and expertise from both Northwestern and Spertus. Case studies will be drawn from contemporary business best practices and from Jewish texts that offer timeless insights on leadership and imbue the program with an authentic Jewish character, empowering leaders to draw insights from Jewish traditions.

The program’s format is designed with the needs of working adults in mind. Classes meet one evening per week on the Chicago campuses of Spertus and Northwestern. A unique and essential aspect of the program will be its focus on the mentoring of students by seasoned Jewish professional and lay leaders – lending their expertise to the students’ real-world challenges.

Additional information can be found on the Spertus website.