Three Tracks of Post B’nei Mitzvah Engagement
Three Tracks of Post B’nei Mitzvah Engagement:
1. Madrichim Teen Teaching Program - Weekly
2. Monday Evening Teen Program - Weekly
3. Teen Travel Opportunities – Annually
Our teens are invited to participate in as many tracks as they like!
Click here to view the 2024-2025 Teen Program Calendar (Updates coming soon!)
1. Madrichim Teen Teaching Program
We welcome all post B’nei Mitzvah students to serve as teen teachers on Sunday mornings or Monday, Tuesday or Thursday afternoons. Teen teachers are empowered to work directly with teachers and serve as role models and run activities for our K-7 students. All madrichim are given a staff hoodie sweatshirt and provided a $180 annual teaching stipend at the end of the year. Recently, we have welcomed over 70 teens annually as madrichim and together they have transformed our Religious School experience. Teen teaching is also well suited for listing on college resumes!
2. Monday Evening Teen Program
Our education program seeks to build upon the pre-b’nei mitzvah experience by exploring Judaism on a more mature and nuanced level. 8th-12th grade students will join weekly in our core education program on Monday evenings from 6:15-7:25 pm. Dinner is included. Each student will attend one core class taught by a member of our clergy. An enrichment cooking course will be offered by semester and will run 7:30-8:15pm ($36 sign-up to reserve your child's spot in our kitchen).
Our core classes are structured as:
- 8th Grade: Jewish Theology and Contemporary Jewish Issues - with Rabbi Jaffe
- 9th Grade: Israel and Comparative Religions - with Rabbi Linzer
- 10th Grade: Judaism and Public Policy – Including Confirmation – with Rabbi Londy
*participation in the 10th grade Monday Evening Education Program is a prerequisite for participating in Confirmation - 11-12th Grade: Preparing Your Jewish Toolkit for College – with Cantor Stark & Rabbinic Intern Margeaux Dressner-Wolberg
3. Teen Travel Opportunities
We love the experience of traveling with our teens and learning on the go! Our trips are structured as follows:
- 8th-9th grades: Overnight trip in NYC - March 8-9, 2025
- 10th grade: Washington DC Social Policy Trip - January 10-13, 2025
- 11th-12th grades: Two year rotation:
o Jewish West Coast Los Angeles Trip - January 29-February 2, 2025
o Civil Rights Trip to Alabama and Georgia (2025-26)
Participation in other teen engagement tracks is not a prerequisite towards teen travel opportunities.
