Toronto wins top prize for Israeli partnership

By Raquel Kaplan Goldberg--
Toronto’s partnership with Eilat-Eilot has borne much fruit by beginning the transformation of the area from a totally tourist based economy to a centre for post-secondary education. Now Toronto has received first-prize laurels for its internship program at a Partnership 2000 conference in New Jersey over the Victoria Day weekend.

The Partnership 2000 (P2K) program twins North American communities with those in Israel. In addition to the Awards of Excellence ceremony, the conference included an opportunity for the 45 partnerships from around the world to share best practices.

Toronto’s strategic model of partnership, presented by co-chairs Morley Brown and Brian Schachter, was singled out by Jewish Agency for Israel chairman Zeev Bielski as one that other communities should be emulating. It was considered the best of its kind in North America.

The three-year-old internship program, in which high school graduates from Toronto volunteer for a minimum of six weeks in Eilat-Eilot, is one of Partnership 2000’s ‘living bridge initiatives.’ “We’re bridging the gap between us and the community that we partner with, and building that bridge people-to-people,” explains Michal Kaye, director of the Israel Volunteer Programs Centre, under whose auspices the internships are arranged.

“We’re honoured to have won the prize for our community ­ it really relates to the hard work that has gone into it by both lay and professional leadership,” says Schachter. “We took the kids out for dinner while we were in Israel recently and just listening to them talk, we could hear the connections that are being formed. That's the real reason we’re doing this ­to help the present and build for the future, and we saw that happen.”
Participants, who are supported by a partnership team in Eilat, work in a variety of fields thanks to the close relationship between Toronto and Eilat-Eilot. “It gives us access to all kinds of amazing volunteer positions that we wouldn't have otherwise,” explains Brown. “We’ve placed interns with the mayor’s office and at Eilat’s coral reef, with others running sports programs, teaching English, and volunteering with the fire department.”

The program is part of a comprehensive development strategy underlying Toronto's partnership with Eilat-Eilot that also includes scholarships for higher education and new dormitories at the Eilat campus of Ben Gurion University, enrichment opportunities for gifted students and unique programs for weaker ones, and vocational training centres. As well, UJA Federation of Greater Toronto helped fund the Collier Centre, a community centre where interns now run after-school programs for the children of Eilat.

Ultimately, Kaye would like to see as many of the volunteers as possible working in UJA Federation-affiliated programs in Eilat “so they can understand where their money is going and get to know the people they are helping, and so the Eilat is will be able to connect the commitment of our community with actual faces.”

Toronto's Jewish community responds to the needs of Sderot

By Daniel Horowitz
UJA Federation--
As word reached Toronto last month that Qassam rockets were being fired regularly at the southern Israeli city of Sderot, UJA Federation immediately swung into action by sending a million dollars to the city. The money is allowing Sderot¹s children to be treated to a one-week respite from the rocket fire at summer camps in safer sections of the country. UIA Federations Canada also committed one million dollars to this initiative.

The camps were made possible by the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), UJA Federation’s overseas partner.

“We will also have trauma counseling at the camps, to help the children deal with the impossible conditions they are living under,” says the Jewish Agency’s Yael Raz.

“It’s very rewarding to see that so many miles away, our Toronto community understands and feels so much compassion for all the pain the children of Sderot are experiencing,” notes David Koschitzky, vice-chair, UJA Federation.

JAFI, with the assistance of UJA Federation of Greater Toronto and other Canadian Federations, is providing other crisis assistance for beleaguered Israelis as well.

Soon after the rockets began to fall, close to 3,000 youngsters were taken out of danger and brought to amusement parks and other locations for fun activities in central Israel ­ leaving the trauma behind for a short time.

Fifty-two buses brought these children to Israel’s best-loved water parks and other popular attractions. Twenty-five newly arrived young people from Ethiopia were also taken to a day of fun and 250 youngsters enjoyed Israel’s soccer cup finals.

The complex logistics for these massive operations were handled by Jewish Agency personnel, who risked their lives day in and day out. Working closely with the local municipalities, they recruited thousands of children and made sure that there were enough accompanying counselors to provide proper supervision at all times.

About three weeks ago, JAFI produced yet another activity in record-breaking time, in which 671 Sderot and perimeter community members were brought to Jerusalem to see a performance of the Chinese Circus.
“Parents, children, singles, new immigrants and senior citizens enjoyed the fantastic antics of the circus performers. It was a pleasure to finally see joy on the faces of these people,” says Ofer Baram, JAFI’s public sector manager in the Southern District. “We immediately secured additional tickets from the Israel Festival to keep up with the demand. It was incredible.”

The Jewish Agency, upon learning that a number of bomb shelters were in disastrous condition, provided necessities such as essential sanitary supplies, cleaning materials, fans, emergency lighting, bottled water and canned goods. At two bomb shelters, one of which serves as a youth club in a predominately Ethiopian neighbourhood, the Jewish Agency bought refrigerators and board games in the event that the residents need to stay there for an extended period of time.

Toronto among the top North American centres for Jewish education, says expert

By Howard English
UJA FEDERATION
When it comes to Jewish education enrolment, Toronto is a North American leader, according to a noted Jewish education specialist.

In the following comprehensive interview with Jewish Toronto, Rabbi Josh Elkin, executive director of the Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education (PEJE), reviewed a wide range of Jewish education issues. PEJE is a collaborative initiative of schools and major philanthropic partners, designed to strengthen Jewish day school education in North America.

Q. Even though the niche of PEJE is day school education, it’s a reality that many parents are opting for other forms of Jewish education – both formal and informal. How do you feel about that?

A. I’m a big believer that we have to have all the settings for Jewish education being the best that they can possibly be. In the global sense, I want them to be successful, We have to keep as many people as possible connected to their roots. The trend that I see is people coming forward to improve every part of the Jewish education equation. I applaud all these efforts even as I affirm PEJE’s niche, which is day schools. I am very happy with a marketplace that is increasingly competitive.

Q. How would describe the evolution of day schools across North America in the 10 years since PEJE was founded?

A. When we started 10 years ago, we were focused exclusively on seed funds for new schools. During our initial five years, we provided seed money and coaching to 60 schools, including Heschel in Toronto and the Paul Penna Day School. We’ve certainly seen the proliferation of schools and we’ve brought schools to many cities or regions that didn’t have them. Over the last decade, we’ve seen the subject of day school becoming more front and centre in communities across North America.

Q. How does Toronto’s Jewish school enrolment of roughly 11,000 day school students and 6,000 children in supplementary education compare with other North American cities?

A. The proportion of Toronto children enrolled in day school is at the top of North America. The United States was busy at the beginning of the 20th century, cultivating a melting pot philosophy. As a result of that ethos, the day school movement got off to a slow start. Canada never had that philosophy. It was more of a cultural mosaic. In Canada, sending children to Jewish schools was what parents did.

Q. Yet for many parents, Jewish schooling is not an option. Why do you think that’s the case?

A. Among the challenges that we have is to tackle perceptions that day schools are ghettoizing and they are of inferior quality. Based on everything we read, the issue of ghettoization and ambivalence about Judaism comes up more often than not. We have to focus on adult learning. We have to focus on pre-school programs. We have to help people fall in love with Judaism. The irony is that sometimes people of other faiths are more ready to make a strong case for faith based education.

Q. Let’s discuss the question of Jewish school quality. What is your assessment of the quality of Jewish education overall?

A. Based on all the data we have, the day schools are doing an outstanding job. The overall picture is a very positive one, but we have to be able to recognize that, in an increasingly competitive world, the only way schools can go is to sharpen their blades when it comes to education quality. If you were to ask me what is the most important characteristic that day schools need to cultivate, I would say it’s the ability to reflect on their own performance.

Q. Any final thoughts on the state of Jewish education in North America?

A. Epi [Dr. Seymour Epstein, UJA Federation Senior Vice President, Jewish Education & Identity] once said that Jewish education is the strategic plan of the Jewish people. If it hadn’t been for Jewish education, we wouldn’t be here today. The kind of community support for Jewish education demonstrated by Toronto shows that the Toronto Jewish community understands the future and the road to the future.