Shifting Focus from Programs to Relationships

 

This summer, over 200 people from 75 congregations and early childhood centers began to shift their focus from program creation to relationship building at The Jewish Education Project Summer Institute.  Attendees included educational directors, teachers, clergy and lay people from teams in our Coalition of Innovating Congregations (including veteran and new LOMED teams, and Express Innovation participants), Gateways to Engagement (early childhood), as well as educators from select non-coalition congregations.  The mix of participants from across initiatives and across departmental area (early childhood professionals, congregational educators, and teen professionals were all in attendance) provided a unique opportunity for educators to connect with others within the same initiative, a related initiative, or with professionals addressing other points along a family’s educational journey.  The program included dynamic interactive workshops led by Dr. Ron Wolfson and other leading educators and our staff, text studies, group discussions both within teams and cross-team, a musical performance by Stereo Sinai, and directed team reflection.   Participants developed skills and tools to help them focus on the theme of “connections before commitment” and new models of building genuine relationships first, in order to lead parents to make a real commitment to educational programs for their family.

 

Learn more about the Coalition of Innovating Congregations and the Summer Institute at www.innovatingcongregations.org .