Taglit-Birthright Israel: Shorashim and PELIE bring Jewish Educators to Israel

CHICAGO – For the first time, Jewish educators who teach complementary (part-time) Jewish education will have the opportunity to spend 10 all-expenses-paid days in Israel, thanks to Taglit-Birthright Israel: Shorashim - Teacher Trek, a program created with the help of the Partnership for Effective Learning and Innovative Education (PELIE). Teacher Trek is an effort to build a deep connection between Jewish educators and the State of Israel, by allowing teachers to experience Israel’s geography, natural beauty and history first hand. The ultimate goal is to transfer this strengthened connection to Jewish students across the United States.

American teachers of complementary (part-time) Jewish education, ages 18 to 29 (an exception to Taglit-Birthright Israel’s normal eligibility restrictions will be made for participants over age 26), who have not yet been to Israel, are invited to apply for the trip, which is scheduled for mid June, 2011. Up to forty teachers will be selected to travel with a group of Israeli counterparts.

“We will work with the teachers so they can transfer all they experienced and felt in Israel back into their classrooms,” said Adena Raub. “Teachers will feel a connection and a sense of belonging with Israel as a country, its people and its traditions, which will shape and enrich their work as teachers.” Raub was once a Jewish educator and is now the Information Manager at PELIE, a champion for complementary Jewish education, which advocates for successful educational experiences and invests in the replication of good programs.

“This is an incredible opportunity to bridge the gap between thousands of students in complementary Jewish education programs and the contagious power of the Israel experience,” said Adam Stewart, Executive Director of Shorashim, “Additionally, the ability of teachers to have an intense and meaningful encounter with Israeli peers during the full 10 days of the program will create a living connection to Israel, one that will hopefully inspire creative programming a collaboration for years to come.”

Once back in the States, PELIE will work with the teachers to form a virtual community among the teachers who traveled together and may hold events that will enable the teachers to share ways they have brought Israel to their students and their students’ reaction to the lessons.

Online registration for Teacher Trek opens on Feb. 14 for those who have been waitlisted by a Taglit-Birthright Israel trip in the past, and February 15th for new applicants. For more information or to register, visit http://www.israelwithisraelis.com/teacher-trek or call 312-267-0677.

About Taglit-Birthright Israel
This trip is a gift from Taglit-Birthright Israel, which provides the gift of first time, peer group, educational trips to Israel for Jewish young adults ages 18 to 26. Taglit-Birthright Israel’s founders created this program to send thousands of young Jewish adults from all over the world to Israel as a gift in order to diminish the growing division between Israel and Jewish communities around the world; to strengthen the sense of solidarity among world Jewry; and to strengthen participants’ personal Jewish identity and connection to the Jewish people.

About PELIE
The Partnership for Effective Learning and Innovative Education (PELIE) works to improve and transform complementary (part-time) Jewish education in America. It attracts additional funders to the field, thus increasing the financial resources available to implement education models that work and utilize methods that will enhance the way in which children engage in part-time Jewish education. PELIE, a champion for complementary Jewish education, advocates for successful educational experiences and invests in the replication of good programs. PELIE, which is headquartered in Manhattan, was founded in 2008. For more information about PELIE, visit www.pelie.org or call 212-284-6879.

About Shorashim
Shorashim – a major provider of Taglit-Birthright Israel programs - is a nonprofit organization devoted to building bridges between Jews in Israel and around the world. Our programs are designed to bring to life the dynamic power of Jewish peoplehood through shared history (roots), culture, and values. We use the creative spirit of Israel and its people to engage children and young adults in the lifelong process of building and maintaining a Jewish identity. We are committed to a pluralistic Jewish community, which celebrates diversity and tolerance among Jewish people and the world.