opinions & letters
Making a Moonshot Philanthropic Bet
on Philadelphia’s Jewish Community
Zev Eleff
I n November, the Collaborative for Applied Studies
in Jewish Education convened a meeting of national
Jewish professional learning providers in Washington,
D.C. The scores of participants studied CASJE’s recent
findings on the value of professional development in
the Jewish arena, particularly in the field of Jewish
education. We swapped notes on how to best deploy continuing
education. Some, me included, hypothesized that more
substantive and creative professional development
would do much to rebuild the Jewish nonprofit profes-
sional pipeline.

doses of professional development, often free of
charge. But they also relayed that they could use more
of it and would like to see more creative, research-
based offerings.

New Jewish professionals (some that just started
their careers and others who recently transitioned
from other professional places) tell a different story,
one that better foretells the sustainability of our Jewish
nonprofit sector.

Most in this group work in non-classroom settings:
They’re situated in informal education, human service
agencies or administrative positions. Their organiza-
tions don’t provide the same amounts of in-service
programs deployed in school settings. Three-quarters
The constellation of Philadelphia-based Jewish
nonprofits stands at a transformative moment.

I departed the CASJE conference with two takeaways.

First, there’s a risk-taking moonshot-level philanthropic
bet to be made on Jewish professional development,
how creative and better continuing education can be
leveraged to better staff and animate programming
and services for the Jewish community. Second, it
ought to happen in Philadelphia.

The constellation of Philadelphia-based Jewish
nonprofits stands at a transformative moment. Over
the past two years, many of our local organizations
have hired new leaders.

For example, 16 Jewish nonprofit CEOs attended a
meeting in January convened at Gratz College and
in coordination with Jewish Learning Venture. Three-
quarters of the leaders present were recent hires with
a mandate to grow their institutions.

What about the value of professional development in
our agencies?
With the support of 25 organizations, Gratz College
recently surveyed 115 Jewish professionals, every
subset but congregational rabbis.

Two-thirds of the respondents boasted more than 10
years of working experience in the field. Most of this
group — a high quotient of day school and synagogue
educators — reported that all or most of their work
requires Jewish content knowledge or expertise in
the Jewish community. The majority possess gradu-
ate degrees in Jewish education, Jewish professional
studies or received rabbinical ordination.

In concert with the findings from CASJE, this veteran
cohort — again, mostly educators — receives steady
take part in continuing education outside of Jewish
professional studies, but just 15% participate in profes-
sional development that might be characterized as
Jewish education or Jewish professional studies.

What explains this group’s low participation in Jewish
professional development?
Just 30% of their work, they say, requires Jewish
content knowledge. In follow-up questions, the same
professionals indicated that their job would benefit
from deeper Jewish content and that substantive
Jewish professional development, if made available
and at low costs, would help them increase their capac-
ities in the workplace.

The throughline is the urgent need for skills-based
professional development offerings that improve the
sacred work of Jewish nonprofits. From board manage-
ment to text-based learning. From mental health
awareness to Hebrew education, and then to program
evaluation best practices.

A transformative investment in Jewish professional
development for Philadelphia’s Jewish nonprofit sector
would test the impact of continuing education on the
wider community.

Months ago in these pages, I wrote about
Philadelphia’s “broken Jewish education pipeline.” I
tabulated more than a dozen recent Jewish population
studies and showed that Philadelphia’s enrollment
numbers, compared with its peer communities, ranked
at the bottom in every Jewish educational setting: from
early childhood to high school, from youth group to
camp. I’d wager we would find similar low figures for
engagement with Jewish adults.

Hence the moonshot. Our local heads of school and
Jewish nonprofit CEOs represent a new generation of
leadership, ready to put our people in the very best
position to succeed. Together, they want Philadelphia
to emerge as a model Jewish community. They have
already made a bet on themselves and their colleagues.

To support them, we’ll need to further uptrain and
sometimes reskill our teams to better serve and
support our communities. The data suggests it’s a risk
worth taking. ■
Zev Eleff is the president of Gratz College and a
professor of American Jewish history.

letters Jew Hatred Pervasive in City
Jew-hatred in Philadelphia exists from the top down
(“AJC CEO, Philadelphia Leaders Meet to Address
Antisemitism,” March 2).

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney has for two consec-
utive years sponsored official events that by their
very nature legitimize Jew-hatred: The city’s partic-
ipation in the United Nation’s so-called “Day of
Solidarity With the Palestinian People,” replete with
fist-brandishing posters and terrorist PLO flags –
part-and-parcel of a movement to undo and destroy
the Jewish state of Israel and endanger Israel’s seven
million Jews.

Kenney’s departments, including the School District
of Philadelphia, have promoted Jew-hatred and/or
have sought to erase Jewish history and heritage.

Our organization has documented multiple examples
of these in two detailed reports. Government-
sanctioned Jew-hatred gives the attacks an official
imprimatur and funds all or part of the attacks –
making them more impactful.

It was nice of Philadelphia City Council to pass a
resolution against antisemitism – though without
addressing the city’s own attacks against Jewry it is
rather meaningless.

Steve Feldman, executive director, Greater Philadelphia
Chapter Zionist Organization of America
SEND US LETTERS
Letters should be related to articles that have run in the print or online
editions of the JE, and may be edited for space and clarity prior to publi-
cation. Please include your first and last name, as well your town/neigh-
borhood of residence. Send letters to letters@jewishexponent.com.

JEWISHEXPONENT.COM 15