Empowered Judaism: How to Build Vibrant Jewish Communities
Practical skills workshops with leaders from independent minyanim, synagogues and Jewish organizations
Please save the date for a new Mechon Hadar symposium on April 25, 2010, from 12pm – 4pm:
(Click here to see content from our 2008 conference)
Are you a leader of an independent minyan? Click here to register for the full weekend conference.
Date: Sunday April 25, 2010, 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Location: Central Synagogue, 123 East 55th Street 10022
Cost: $18
Light brunch included
Join us for this unique event which will bring together the shared wisdom of clergy, independent minyan leaders and lay and Jewish communal professionals who are dedicated to building vibrant Jewish communities.
Learn at workshops which offer best practices in Jewish communal life, or teach by signing up to offer an hour-long workshop on your area of expertise.
Likely topics to include:
New Melodies in Prayer
Gabbai Training: Managing Difficult Scenarios
Transforming synagogue Davening culture
Halakhic Decision-making
How to Teach Davening
Building singing communities
Pedagogy skills
Technology
New models for Hebrew school
Innovations in children’s services
Facilitation
Grassroots Fundraising
Giving an Excellent Dvar Torah/Public Speaking
Community Organizing
Volunteer Management
Experience new approaches from fellow leaders, share your expertise, and connect with others who share your passion for Jewish communal life.
If you’re interested in offering a workshop on any of the topics above or others, please email Alyssa Frank, Director of Community Engagement, at frank@mechonhadar.org with your name and community.
RSVP to Alyssa Frank at frank@mechonhadar.org
We hope you will join us.
2008 Conference
Mechon Hadar, in conjunction with the Charles R. Bronfman Chair in Jewish Communal Innovation at Brandeis University, and with the support of a grant from the Samuel Bronfman Foundation, conducted a daylong mini-conference on Independent Minyanim and Contemporary Jewish Life. Below you can find audio files of the sessions, as well as some written pieces of the presenters.
9am Welcome and Introduction
Yehuda Kurtzer, Brandeis University/Washington Square Minyan
Opening Plenary: Creation Myths: Reflections of Minyan Founders & Leaders
* Yair Furstenberg, Hebrew University/Shalom Hartman Institute/Minyan Shivyoni Baka
* Amanda M
ilstein, Kol Zimrah
* Erin Thaler, Atlanta Chevre Minyan
10am Institutional Frameworks
• Tribes, Networks and Cohorts
* Tobin Belzer, USC
* Beth Cousens, Hillel International
* Nicole Samuel, Brandeis University/Cambridge Minyan
Respondent: Shawn Landres, Jumpstart
• Rabbis, Leadership and Questions of Authority: A Rabbinic Roundtable
Moderator: Elizabeth Kessler Sacks, Mechon Hadar
* Sharon Cohen Anisfeld, Hebrew College
* Marc Baker, Gann Academy/Washington Square Minyan
* Yehuda Kurtzer, Brandeis University/Washington Square Minyan
* Ethan Tucker, Drisha Institute/Mechon Hadar
11:30am Ideological Frameworks
• Minyanim and Jewish Communal Relationships: A Roundtable
Moderator: Jon Levisohn, Brandeis University/Yedid Nefesh
* Suzanne Kling, PEJE/Washington Square Minyan
* Felicia Herman, Natan
* Carrie Bornstein, Mayyim Hayyim/Washington Square Minyan
* Bernie Steinberg, Harvard Hillel/Kennedy School of Government
• Minyanim, Halacha, and Modern Orthodoxy
* Elitzur Bar-Asher, Harvard University/Minyan Urim: "Taking Halakhic Responsibility: A Case-Study"
* Michal Bar-Asher Siegal, Yale University/Minyan Urim: "Women's Involvement in the Halakhic Process"
* Shira Zeliger, Brandeis University/Minyan Tehillah: "Educating an Orthodox Feminist: Male and Female"
Respondent: Jeffrey S. Gurock, Yeshiva University
1pm Lunch and Keynote Address
Moderator: Michelle Shain, Brandeis University
"The Groomed and the Bloomed: Varied Paths to Engagement in Independent Minyanim" Steven M. Cohen, HUC
Click here to see Steven Cohen's powerpoint presentation.
2pm Program Sessions 3: Leaders and Followers
• Independent Minyanim and Havurot: A Dialogue on Precedents and Parallels
Click here to read Joe Reimer's presentation.
Moderator: Deborah Skolnick Einhorn, Brandeis University/Washington Square Minyan/Minyan Shaleym
* Sherry Israel, National Havurah Committee/Newton Centre Minyan
* Joe Reimer, Brandeis University
* Elie Kaunfer, Mechon Hadar
• Independent Minyanim and Synagogues: Partnerships and Divergences
Moderator: Dan Werlin, Forest Hills Minyan
* Bill Hamilton, Kehillath Israel
* Judith Hauptman, JTS/Ohel Ayalah
* Hayim Herring, STAR: Synagogue Transformation and Renewal/Darchei Noam (MN)
* Jaime Goldberg, PicoEgal
3:15pm Closing Plenary: Minyanim and the Contexts of Contemporary Jewish Life 
Moderator: Emily Shapiro Katz, Tauber Jewish Studies Program/Mission Minyan
* Jonathan Sarna, Brandeis University
* Art Green, Hebrew College
* Sylvia Barack Fishman, Brandeis University
* Elie Kaunfer, Mechon Hadar
Read about the conference in the JTA.
