Not Just a School
Your August 31 article that described the exciting, innovative approach of the Jewish Journey Project was right on target. But the article’s title (“Fun Times at Hebrew School”) is misleading in a key way. From its inception, this project was designed to be an alternative to the traditional “Hebrew school,” which really no longer meets families’ needs. In practice, JJP is a Jewish after-school program with all the richness and engaging activity of any other after-school program, not a “school” at all. While this might seem a small point, it is critical to understanding both the challenge of Jewish education today and the solution that JJP so refreshingly provides.
Gidon B. Isaacs Education Director, The Society for the Advancement of Judaism
New York, N.Y.
Why I became the Forward’s Editor-in-Chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
