By David Kelsey
Joshua Venture Group (JVG) has announced the line-up of new fellows for their 2014-2016 fellows. It is heavily skewed towards Jewish education initiatives, and is comprised of all women fellows. Each fellow will receive more than $100,000 in funding over the next two years, as well as skill-building support. This organization formerly known as just Joshua Venture is what gave start-up capital to launch Heeb and JDub Records, among others. And while none of the recent cohorts have produced anything approaching the impact of a Matisyahu, JVG continues to tap a steady stream of projects that are innovative in their own way, even if the majority of them are most appealing to the already Jewishly committed.
But their lack of a broad impact is perhaps related to the gender problem facing American Liberal Jewry, explicitly revealed by the demographics of this new JVG cohort devoid of male participation. That Liberal Judaism has a problem retaining young male involvement is hardly a secret. And if this new JVG cohort is at all indicative of the current trend, it is apparently getting worse, not better. But apparently that depends on one’s perspective.
As the JTA noted,
This is the program’s first all-female cohort – something that happened not by design, but was a “pleasant surprise,” as Lisa Lepson, the group’s executive director put it.
An investment like this in female Jewish leadership is refreshing to see in our community, and we look forward to watching these women build a strong support network together alongside their impactful ventures,” Lepson said in a news release.
I don’t doubt that this was not a deliberate decision, and the organization did the right thing letting the chips fall where they deserved to land. Affirmative action for the sake of appearances will help nothing.
But Lepson’s spin that this situation is “refreshing” and a “pleasant surprise” should be emphatically rejected. For no amount of innovative projects are going to make a significant difference to the future of American Liberal Jewry if this paucity of male participation continues. We can debate what could or should be done, but apparently, we can’t even agree that the lack of male representation is a problem, never mind a dire one.
David Kelsey is the proprietor of Kelsey Media, an ad rep firm focused on the online, digital Jewish media niche. He has been on the business side of Heeb since 2001.
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JP says
September 23, 2014 at 2:40 pmOne data point does not make a trend. What were the numbers last time or the time before that? And perhaps more importantly what does the pool from which these individual were drawn from look like? And what did it look like last time?
Jonah Halper says
September 23, 2014 at 3:03 pmDavid, your post relies on the following premise:
“But their lack of a broad impact is perhaps related to the gender problem facing American Liberal Jewry, explicitly revealed by the demographics of this new JVG cohort devoid of male participation.”
I fail to see the connection between the gender of a startup founder and the impact of their initiatives. You make the claim but don’t back it up with any evidence of it.
Would love to understand your premise, especially when you go on to claim…
“For no amount of innovative projects are going to make a significant difference to the future of American Liberal Jewry if this paucity of male participation continues.”
Until you can make your case, please avoid taking digs at the expense of JVG (or any organization). Right now, the only thing that should be “emphatically rejected” is this post.
Jeff Eyges says
September 23, 2014 at 4:45 pmI don’t begin to see how this is a “dig” at JVG. David goes out of his way to state:
“I don’t doubt that this was not a deliberate decision, and the organization did the right thing letting the chips fall where they deserved to land.”
Also, if there is a demonstrable lack of male participation in Liberal Judaism, and if the funders are seeing a paucity of male applicants, I think the correlation is obvious.
Matt Bar says
September 23, 2014 at 6:48 pmThis article reads like a Facebook post.
Julie Shaffer says
September 23, 2014 at 8:19 pmDavid,
Joshua Venture Group (JVG) invests in visionary leaders and groundbreaking ideas to enrich the fabric of Jewish life. Over the years, we have continuously refined the application process for our fellowship and engaged in a selection process with rigor, thoughtfulness, and deep integrity. This year’s applicants, like in past years, included a significant number, albeit a minority, of men but ultimately the best candidates were women. When we look at the dearth of women currently in CEO or executive director positions in Jewish communal life, we are pleased to be cultivating female Jewish leaders through the Dual Investment Program. As the board chair and member of the selection committee, I am proud that JVG is supporting these women and their exciting ventures which we believe will satisfy core needs to deepen and diversify the experiences of Jewish life for both males and females across the spectrum of Jewish communities.
-Julie Shaffer, Board Chair, Joshua Venture Group