by David Bryfman
For many years now I have worked in both formal and informal Jewish educational settings determined to win the battle to engage every Jewish teenager in a meaningful Jewish journey post-bar or bat mitzvah. There are many days when this is rewarding, but unfortunately, there are many more days when this is often frustrating and disheartening. My assumption for many years was that if there was very little good stuff out there to engage Jewish teens, then there must be an inadequate number of good people doing this work. Besides the arrogance and naivete? of this statement, I eventually learned that my primary assumption was flawed. As I continually discover, there are often great people out there trying to do very important work, but it is often something else that prevents them from realizing their potential.
And so Project InCiTE was conceived with the single framing question: How could we develop a program that would unleash the full potential of Jewish teen professionals?
We provided coaches, worked with institutions, and infused high-quality Israel resources and experiences – all of which were significant components of Project InCiTE. Yet before any of this occurred, we had to focus our attention on the very essence of what it was we wanted to achieve. We were dissatisfied with the status quo of inadequate Jewish teen engagement, and somehow we needed to break the cycle of the same old experiences being offered to an ever-changing population of Jewish teens.
While “innovation” had become a buzzword in the Jewish community, we realized it was far more complex and complicated than many others had recognized. Most importantly, we learned we could actually teach creativity and innovation; thus, our partnership with SIT – Systematic Inventive Thinking was born. In what we believe to have been the first attempt of its kind in the Jewish world, we took individuals within institutions and trained them in skills and capacities to become perpetual agents of creativity and innovation wherever they may end up. The success of Project InCiTE will not just be measured by the projects conceived during this fellowship – but through the impact that everyone touched by this experience carries with him or her at every point along his or her journeys.
David Bryfman is currently Director of the New Center for Collaborative Leadership at The Jewish Education Project (formerly the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York-SAJES). David recently completed his PhD in Education and Jewish Studies at NYU focusing on the development of Jewish adolescent identity development and experiential Jewish education. He is also a graduate of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship Program. Prior to moving to New York, David worked in formal and informal Jewish educational institutions in Australia, Israel, and North America. David is also currently an educational consultant for The iCenter. In his spare time David also enjoys (sort of) running marathons.
10 Things We’ve Learned About Innovation will roll out over the next few weeks.
Click here to view in original PDF format Click here for a full History of Project InCiTE
Project InCiTE is a partnership between The Jewish Education Project (formerly The Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York) and The iCenter, in collaboration with Makom.
Anyone who has worked with David in any capacity knows that he can accomplish just about anything he puts his mind to! Having said that, I have come to believe that there is much confusion about what post-b’nai mitzvah “retention” really means in our communities, and that we often miss the boat by celebrating as success the number of students who stay enrolled in the programs we offer for post-b’nai mitzvah students, rather than focusing on the enduring depth and relevance of the connection we have made. Jewish learning experiences in the earlier years (for the students and their families as well) have to be a far more compelling in order to address the reality of their lives in a powerful way. From life to text to life, as Franz Rosensweig has said.
I was introduced to SIT as a Jim Joseph Foundation Fellow. Excited and energized by their approach, we invited them to work with the BabagaNewz/Behrman House team. We arranged to brainstorm for this year with SIT and found their input extremely valuable. Our hope is that you will see signs of our work with them as you notice innovations on our site and that these innovations will inspire educators to find new ways to reach their students.
Lisa Micley
Director of Education
BabagaNewz