Our typical approach is to say, “Let’s give it a try and see what happens.”
This bias towards action welcomes mistakes and failures, recognizing them as essential aspects of the innovation process — and it means that we’ve been able to test and launch many projects in a short period of time, helping us hone our skillset.
The Jewish Learning Fellowship (JLF) is a cohort-based Jewish learning program for college students, which our team grew from one class of 20 students at NYU to over 25,000 on 150+ campuses. JLF teaches young people and the professional staff who work with them how to gather for Torah study and communal participation. JLF is now the largest Jewish educational provider on North American college campuses, and the only pluralistic one of its kind.
Learn more about JLF at www.jewishlearningfellowship.org
Base is a movement of rabbinic couples creating pluralistic Jewish communities in their homes. Base couples open their homes to build community for young Jewish adults through hospitality, learning, and service. Base is now operated by Moishe House and exists in 15+ locations across the country.
Learn more about Base at www.basemovement.org
Atra: Center for Rabbinic Innovation, elevates the ability of rabbinic and spiritual leaders to lead with vision and effectively meet the ever-evolving needs of the Jewish people. Atra trains and supports rabbis to practice their art ‘bkhol atar v’atar’ — in every place imaginable.
Learn more at www.atrarabbis.org
As the COVID 19 Pandemic unfolded, OOI launched a project in collaboration with BINA: The Jewish Movement for Social Change, Judaism Unbound, 929 English, The Oshman Family JCC in Palo Alto, and jewishLIVE to produce original essays and videos reflecting on our unprecedented time.
The result was the print volume Torah in a Time of Plague, which won the 2022 National jewish Book Award for Jewish thought. And, the site the Plagues Project with 30 original videos offering further provocations and conversation on from scholars and thinkers across an array of disciplines.
IYUN is a cohort-based Jewish learning experience for adults facilitated by local educators. Modeled on the success of the Jewish Learning Fellowship (JLF), IYUN builds Jewish community and a love of Torah study for adults, by initiating them into a cohort of peers who explore life’s big questions through the lens of Torah. IYUN is not just a literacy program, but a method to build content-rich Jewish community and a catalyst to transform Jewish communal life through the study of Torah.
Learn more at iyun.us
Civic Spirit educates, inspires, and empowers schools across faith traditions to enhance civic belonging, knowledge, and responsibility in their student and faculty communities. Civic Spirit takes a three-pronged approach to education for engaged citizenship, consisting of (1) professional development for teachers, (2) high-level academic classes for students, and (3) a community-based “action civics” project for the school.
Civic Spirit is now operating independently! Learn more at civicspirit.org
The CUNY Hillel MSW Fellowship has become a program of UJA-Federation of New York in partnership with the CUNY Hillels.
The Fellowship was begun in 2018 to serve the niche needs of Jewish students and their friends on CUNY (City University of New York) campuses, who disproportionately are affected by depression, anxiety, food insecurity, homelessness, and delayed graduation, as compared nationally. The partnership included fundraising support, staff training, MSW placement services, and resource development. MSW Interns placed at local campuses are poised to build student relationships with a unique focus on holistic student wellbeing, including food insecurity and healthy eating, making a monthly/weekly budget, healthy relationships, boundaries, and breakups, sexual health and sexual abuse, depression, anxiety, and seeking help, and more.