The Partnership reflects a relationship between

• this agency and other UJC agencies;
• this agency and Jewish educational leadership;
• UJC and other financial investors;
  and most importantly, it represents a dynamic partnership between
• Jewish Learning and Life.

Advancing and enhancing. The Partnership recognizes that fine educational programs already exist in our community. We hope to bring educational expertise and other resources to improve upon them in partnership with the current providers. We also plan to introduce new initiatives that will reach beyond traditional methods and into target groups that are under-engaged in Jewish life.

Jewish educational experiences. We are surrounded by Jewish teachable moments. In the classroom learners encounter not only facts, but opportunities to create community. Every other interaction in life also contains the potential for Jewish learning and living. The Partnership honors and invests in every Jewish experience – formal and informal, intellectual and experiential.

MetroWest community. Our commitment is to every Jewish soul in MetroWest: all children, all teens, and all families. Our focus is on the learner and guiding the learner through his/her Jewish journey in a manner that demonstrates the pride of Jewish community, the preciousness of Jewish Peoplehood, and the power of Jewish destiny.

In Our View…
Jewish learning is the oxygen of life.
We are surrounded by teachable moments.
Our focus is on the learner.
Our mandate is the entire community.
Family is the fundamental building block of Jewish identity, values and practice.
We will support life-long Jewish learning to inform meaningful Jewish life.
What happens in MetroWest can have incalculable impact elsewhere and everywhere.

EARLY CHILDHOOD AND FAMILY ENGAGEMENT
Teach the child, reach the family.
Most young people leave organized Jewish life after their Bar/Bat-Mitzvah or Confirmation never to return … until they bring a small Jewish soul back with them as they register for an early childhood program. The Partnership works with our community and our early childhood educators to recognize the enormous opportunity presented by each new Jewish family that entrusts us with their child. As much as we interact with the child, we also recognize the powerful potential to (re-)engage the family in Jewish life and to develop educational and family-oriented initiatives to capitalize on this moment. The Partnership engages early childhood educational leaders in this new direction and develops an appreciation among young families for Jewish experiences that will inspire them to continue their Jewish journey beyond the pre-school years of their children into Jewish summer camps, day schools and congregational schools.

PRE-TEENS AND TEENS
The meaningful integration of formal and informal Jewish educational experiences.
Every interaction between learner and educator should be purposeful. Teachers are beginning to understand the power of anchoring knowledge through meaningful activities inside and outside the classroom. Camp counselors and youth group leaders are beginning to appreciate that they can imbue their activities with appropriate content and become influential Jewish educators. The Partnership continues to train MetroWest educators to take their places in scores of congregational schools, and develops training opportunities for them to provide comprehensive Jewish educational experiences, both “formal and informal.” The Partnership guides youth leaders in developing Jewish content and skills to deepen their interactions with young people.  The Partnership will model the dynamic integration of academic and experiential Jewish learning in a transformed high school program that will collaborate with similar programs throughout MetroWest. The Partnership will reach out to teens who are under-engaged in Jewish life and provide relevant opportunities for them to encounter and to shape their Jewish identities through community service, Israel experiences and the arts. Over time, MetroWest will be a national exemplar in bringing Jewish learning to life for pre-teens and teens.

Robert Lichtman is The Partnership’s founding Executive Director. Bob has held many Jewish professional leadership positions, including those at UJA-Federation of New York, Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life, and JESNA (Jewish Education Service of North America). This position at The Partnership marks Bob’s return to MetroWest since he previously served on the federation’s executive staff from 1985-1993.

The Partnership is a wholly-owned subsidiary of UJC MetroWest in recognition of the fact that The Partnership’s mission is a central component of the federation that just created it. As a non-profit agency of UJC and a beneficiary of its UJA campaign, The Partnership for Jewish Learning and Life is governed by its own Board of Trustees that meets formally 4 - 5 times per year, and informally as needs or opportunities determine. The Board is relatively small, up to only 15 people to guide its overall mission with wisdom and to sustain it financially. The size of the Board allows it to work nimbly and without the encumbrances of additional layers.