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Study is greater [than practice alone]
for it leads to good deeds.
- Babylonian Talmud, Kiddushin 40b
The Jewish Civics Initiative (JCI) was created by PANIM in 1994. JCI is a year-long service-learning experience for Jewish teenagers under the sponsorship of a community-based Jewish educational institution. At the present, more than 30 agencies – including congregational schools, community Hebrew highs, youth groups, and day schools participate in the JCI program, representing 15 states and an estimated number of nearly 1,000 students.
The objectives of JCI since its inception
have been to:
- To deepen the commitment to the Judaic imperative for civic and social responsibility and to the Jewish community’s role in American public life and in world affairs;
- To provide a greater appreciation for the enduring wisdom of Jewish texts and values through the examination of their relevance to a variety of social and political issues.
- To stimulate leadership, activism and advocacy on the social issues that challenge our communities, our nation and the world so that our alumni can become agents for positive change in society.
- To facilitate the involvement of Jewish students in Judaically and educationally framed service activities that benefit the general and/or Jewish community.
JCI is comprised of:
PANIM’s staff is available to assist communities with planning and implementing each of these components. As a part of the JCI program, PANIM provides training to teachers as well as year-round consultation to staff in participating communities. We recommend that JCI teachers take advantage of our additional professional development opportunities including:
- The National Educators’ Institute for Jewish Service Learning, taking place each summer. The NEI brings together educators from around the country in a week-long training designed to prepare you to create and teach Jewish service-learning programs in your community.
- Conference calls where educators share best practices and discuss relevant topics in Jewish service-learning.
- Training seminars organized in partnership with local agencies. If you are interested in running a teacher training seminar in your community, please contact Rachel Meytin at rmeytin@bbyo.org.
Enrich your JCI program by Registering for a Panim el Panim seminar!
As part of your JCI program, bring your class on a Panim el Panim seminar in Washington, DC, or a Panim el Panim State Capital seminar. These 4-day seminars bring together several different community delegations and offer a Service and Advocacy Track and a Politics in Action Track. The seminar includes:
- briefings with leading policy makers and/or advocacy experts
- limud (Jewish learning) sessions
- community service projects that model the social change projects students might implement in their home communities.
The Panim el Panim Seminar energizes teens to take the knowledge they gain from their Jewish Civics Initiative course and put it into action while exploring the nation's capital.
“I enjoyed the chance to make new friends at the Panim el Panim seminar as part of my JCI class, studying the connection between Jewish texts and the environment. Meeting my Congresswoman was great!” Josh Goldstein - San Jose, CA
To find out more about Panim el Panim seminars, and for recruitment ideas, click here.
JCI Class
The JCI course is based on PANIM’s new service-learning resource: Just: Judaism. Action. Social Change. Incorporating the most innovative teaching strategies that effectively engage young adults, the curriculum provides a Jewish values lens through which students are encouraged to explore a wide range of contemporary social and political issues.
The curriculum and materials can be found at www.justaction.org. You may also order a hard copy of the guide
At www.justaction.org, educators can access and submit lessons to a lesson plan bank and view sample syllabi for different Jewish educational contexts.
PANIM has two additional texts available, designed for use in JCI classes. Our original JCI curriculum, Jewish Civics: A Tikkun Olam/World Repair Manual has engaged hundreds of teenagers since 1994. For those classes of students with a stronger facility with Jewish texts, we also offer Jews, Judaism, and Civic Responsibility, a second curriculum originally designed for Jewish Day School students. All of these resources and more are available to order.
A Sampling of Service Projects from the 2007-2008 school year:
- At the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater VA, JCI students organized Darfest, a musical event designed to raise money to end the genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan. Several hundred people attended, four bands played, representatives from the Lost Boys of Sudan spoke, and thousands of dollars were raised.
- JCI students at Temple Beth Shalom in Needham, MA, contacted the Greater Boston Area Food Bank to see what needs they might be able to meet. They learned that the food bank supplies have been significantly depleted. They created a Hunger Shabbat which integrated awareness of local hunger issues into a food drive. They also took the opportunity to share their JCI experiences with their congregation.
- In California, JCI students at Los Angeles Hebrew High School coordinated an advocacy and collection drive. They brought in four different organizations to the school to promote their organization and tell of ways students can get involved. That morning students also brought in donations to the organizations, such as new elementary school books and arts and crafts materials for children.
- The JCI Students from the Midrasha High School of Rhode Island participated in J-Serve for the first time this year. J-Serve fell on Earth day, so they did a series of projects on the environment. They started with a text study on the Environment and then cleaned up a park area by a highway. The kids were really energized and collected 6 large trash bags of trash, and 2 for recyclables. After they finished picking up the trash, the students participated in a letter-writing campaign to their senators and representatives regarding global warming. The JCI students had prepared letters ahead of time, spoke to the participants about the issues, and left room for them to sign, provide their contact info, and write a personal note.
- MetroWest (NJ) JCI teens met with senior citizens in Federation Housing three times, including on April 22 in connection with J-Serve 2007. During their visits the teens asked the seniors about their recollections about Israel: its founding, the early years, the wars, their travels there, etc; They also asked about their current lives and their personal histories. Each visit had a different theme and the final visit involved the youths' families meeting their adopted senior friends.
For more information on the Jewish Civics Initiative and JCI Seminars, please contact Lia Katz , Director of the Center for Jewish Service-Learning, at (301) 770-5070 ext. 202
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