Judaism 101 Classes

Introduction to Judaism - Addison-Penzak JCC of Silicon Valley

The Silicon Valley JCC in Los Gatos offers a one year Intro course that is a collaboration between 4 synagogues and the JCC, and is co-taught by the clergy from each sponsoring shul. Each synagogue uses the class as a step in the conversion process, although there is no expectation that class members will convert and the class is open to all. Typically the classes rotate between locations, though during spring 2020 the classes were held online. Classes begin with a half hour of Hebrew, taught by a local Hebrew instructor.

Advertising: Each organization publicized the course on its website, and handled its own marketing.

Program Cost: $180

Books used in the course:

Introduction to Judaism - Congregation Beth Israel, Hartford presented by Greater Hartford Reform Rabbis

The 18-week course is sponsored by Congregation Beth Israel, Hartford, and presented by 6 local Reform rabbis. Each teaches 3 sessions. There is also a "learning Hebrew" portion, before class each week. The congregation hopes to offer in person and on-line learning possibilities to reach as many students as possible.

Advertising: The program is advertised in regional and local papers.

Program Cost: $180

For more details contact Wendy Berg, Coordinator.

Exploring Judaism Class - Mishkan Chicago

This is the seventh year that Mishkan Chicago has offered Exploring Judaism. The 2022-2023 cohort had 54 participants. Classes were held every 2 weeks, and most people participated in-person. There was also an online option. The curriculum consists of 4 units: History, Spirituality, Lifecycles and Ethics. The class is geared towards people who didn’t grow up practicing or identifying with Judaism — whether they are studying to convert or looking to bring Judaism into their multi-faith home.

This is the seventh year that Mishkan Chicago has offered Exploring Judaism. The 2022-2023 cohort had 54 participants. Classes were held every 2 weeks, and most people participated in-person. There was also an online option. The curriculum consists of 4 units: History, Spirituality, Lifecycles and Ethics.

Marketing: Mishkan Chicago promoted the class via an email congregational newsletter, social media channels, and word of mouth. Each prospective student had a meeting with the rabbi leading the class before enrollment.

Format: There were 2 cohorts of the class: in-person and online. The virtual class enabled people who did not live in Chicago, or have a disability, or for whom it is more convenient to meet and learn online to participate in the program.

"It is a complete joy to be able to offer this program and bring so many people into the Jewish community.” - Rachel Cort, Executive Director

Looking Ahead: Mishkan Chicago has several ideas for strengthening the program in the future, including:

• Building in a more robust mentorship aspect to the program, where previous participants could mentor and serve as a resource to current students.
• Offering more follow-up programs aimed towards Jews by Choice and people who are considering conversion.

For more information contact Rachel Cort.

Community Wide Course: Judaism for Conversion Candidates - Rabbinical Association of Greater Kansas City

Judaism for Conversion Candidates - Simply KC magazine ad

The year-long 36-week course is taught on a rotating basis by rabbis from the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox movements and is intended to acquaint those considering conversion to Judaism with what it means to live Jewishly.

This program identifies potential Jews-by-choice and provides a meaningful and comprehensive forum to engage, educate and connect them to Judaism, and, guides them in learning how to create a Jewish home and live a Jewish life.

The class combines learning with doing – in addition to coursework, students take part in Shabbat and holiday celebrations. Future Jews by choice have the opportunity to study with rabbis, meet others exploring Judaism, and learn about Judaism and the Kansas City Jewish community. Students gain perspectives on a wide range of topics, presented from the perspective of all three major denominations within Judaism. Hands on extra-curricular activities enhance Jewish learning as students take part in a Shabbat worship service; Chanukah celebration; and Passover Seder and are provided with ritual kits that help them observe and celebrate Jewish holidays.

“By combining community resources students gain a much stronger and richer experience as they explore their spiritual journey.”
- Annette Fish, Administrator/Program Director

Each class includes a 30-minute Hebrew component. An optional 5-week extended Hebrew class was offered to those who wanted to continue their Hebrew learning.

Cost: The $250 class fee includes textbooks.

Format: For 2021-2022, classes were held via Zoom with some in-person activities, and was the largest increase in attendance in recent years. Meeting virtually allowed many students the opportunity to participate in the program who may not have been able to do so in the past due to distance, travel times, work schedules and family commitments.

Marketing: The class is promoted through print and digital advertising, including 2 local monthly Kansas City magazines, Google ads, the RAKC website, and social media. The magazines created the ads for the consortium, and did not charge extra for doing so.

Program Materials: Students are provided with Shabbat and holiday kits containing ritual items so that they become comfortable creating their at-home Shabbat and holiday celebrations. For ex: Shabbat kits include Shabbat how-to-book, Challah, Candles, small grape juice or wine, cloth to cover challah, Chanukah: Chanukiyah, candles, dreidel, gelt, Chanukah song sheet; Purim: hamantashan and gragger, Passover: Haggadah, Seder plate, matzah, and other Passover related items. These have become popular additions to the program.

View Course Flyer (PDF)

View Course Information (PDF)

For details contact Annette Fish, Administrator.

Conversion Class - Temple B’nai Israel, Monroe, LA

Temple B’nai Israel generally offers a conversion class every year, which is impressive for a small synagogue. This is a 10-month Conversion Class leading up to formal conversion to Judaism, led by the congregation’s part-time rabbi, Rabbi Judy Ginsburgh.

In 2021-2022 the class met 1-2 times a month, mostly on Zoom. Next year the rabbi hopes to have more classes in person. Some meetings were with the entire class, and some were private. The rabbi teaching the class helped students feel at home in the synagogue.

"As a Rabbi, I loved how excited these students get about learning and how they are sharing this learning and Jewish rituals with their families. I also like how all of them have already become active members of our Synagogue.”
- Rabbi Ginsburgh

She continues, “Our participants have enjoyed being included in Temple life right from the beginning of their learning process. One of our students will be taking over the volunteer job of librarian at the Temple and getting it all in order. Another will be volunteering to teach in our Sunday School. They have loved learning and plan to continue learning.”

Advertising: Local bulletins, flyers and social media were used to promote the class.

Program Materials: In addition to books, the rabbi mailed 4 activity kits to participants: Shabbat/Havdalah, Mezuzah/Home Blessing, Chanukah, and Purim.

Program Cost: $600

The synagogue was also able to include the students in more aspects of Temple life. This helps to make them more committed and involved Jews in the community.

“We are so grateful to NCEJ. We are such a small community and your support has allowed us to reach out to those in our community who are curious about Judaism and want to learn more”.

For more information contact Rabbi Judy Ginsburgh.

Jewish Cultural Conversion - Society for Humanistic Judaism (SHJ), Farmington Hills, MI

SHJ requested a grant from NCEJ to double the number of conversions it conducted annually. Most of the grant was used for online advertising and promotion of the program, with the remainder being used to update materials for participants to learn about and connect to Judaism during and after the conversion process. SHJ advertised on social media, and created a physical brochure to be distributed to newcomers.

"This program will live on for years after the grant period, thanks to the materials created; the full impact of the grant can’t yet be measured.” - Paul Golin, Executive Director

Society for Humanistic Judaism brochure - NCEJ Credit (PDF)

The program included the creation of professionally designed educational promotional materials. These included a digital and print brochure, a digital and print program resource booklet, advertisements placed on social media, and revamped online content describing Jewish cultural conversion. The ads resulted in a substantial increase in the number of inquiries as well as an increase in the number of people completing the program and becoming Jewish.

"We were able to serve people who felt connected to Judaism, who had long wanted to make their Jewish identity official, yet hadn’t until they became aware of a secular humanistic option - Thank you to NCEJ for making that possible.” - Paul Golin, Executive Director

View Society for Humanistic Judaism brochure (PDF)

View Society for Humanistic Judaism booklet (PDF)

For more information contact Paul Golin, Executive Director.

“Seeking Judaism” - Institute of Southern Jewish Life, Jackson, MS

The Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life (ISJL) is dedicated to serving even the smallest Jewish communities in the South, and welcoming individuals into Jewish life and culture. ISJL employs a staff rabbi who spends much of her time on the road, visiting places too small to have their own local Jewish clergy. NCEJ gave a grant in 2022 to help ISJL expand outreach to potential conversion students.

In 2022 there were 8 completed conversions, significantly more than in prior years.

Marketing: ISJL enhanced its marketing by acquiring Canva Pro and providing training for its entire team on its use. Marketing included:

• Instagram and Facebook posts introducing the rabbi and mentioning conversion opportunities
• Inviting a recent conversion student to contribute a featured article about embracing Judaism to the most recent print edition of ISJL’s print magazine Shalom Y’all
• ISJL's website also encourages newcomers to reach out: "Interested in learning more about Judaism? Reach out to our rabbi anytime! Email now".

"The exponential increase in conversion requests truly seems to correlate with our increased marketing efforts as supported by this grant.”
- Beth Kander-Dauphin

For more information contact Beth Kander-Dauphin, Chief Strategy Officer.

“Welcome to Judaism” - Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine

Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine (JCA) offered an introductory course in Spring 2023 called Welcome to Judaism, which was an overview of Jewish life, culture, holidays, foodways, and history. JCA used a variety of curriculum resources to supplement the textbook (Arthur Green's "Judaism's Ten Best Ideas"). Particular attention was paid to the interests, questions, and concerns of attendees, which included learning about Jewish life in Portland and in Maine, interest in mysticism/Kabbalah, and navigating interfaith family issues.

The course began and ended with sessions at the JCA, with intermediate sessions held out in the community and at local synagogues in order to familiarize participants with all of the local Jewish institutions.

"I enjoyed visiting the different synagogues because it really informed my mental picture about what being Jewish is really like.”
- student participant

"I really enjoyed that we spent time going to different synagogues and talking with people from outside the course. That helped make those spaces feel a lot more open and it was wonderful to get to ask questions of a range of different rabbis.”
- student participant

Marketing: The program was marketed via social media, the JCA website and newsletter, local synagogue newsletters, and the local public radio station, MPBN.

Using Public Radio to Bring In Participants:

"MPBN was incredibly helpful! Several attendees said they learned about the course on the radio; others saw it on social media or were referred by people who heard about it on the radio!”
- Molly Curren Rowles, Executive Director

Program materials: Textbook: Arthur Green’s “Judaism’s Ten Best Ideas”.

The grant also helped support a stipend for a rabbinical student to teach the class. In his prior career he focused on interfaith outreach. The executive director of the Alliance describes him as someone who is “passionate about connecting with those outside the Jewish community who are looking for an invitation in.”

For more information contact Molly Curren Rowles, Executive Director.

“Exploring the Jewish Experience” - Shabbat with Friends, New Mexico

Rabbi Dov Gartenberg is teaching a year-round course for adults on Jewish culture, practice, history, and ideas from a pluralistic perspective. A distinctive feature of the course is that individuals can join at any time over the year.

Program Cost: $18 / trimester; $54 for the full year.

Program Content: Recommended reading and resources are provided to enhance the experience of the program.

View Reading list (PDF)

View Course Information & Topics (PDF)

For more details contact Rabbi Dov Gartenberg.

Jewish Essentials Class - The Jewish Federation of Raleigh-Cary

Jewish Essentials activity take-home kit (funded in part by NCEJ)

Jewish Essentials is a 10-week class that provides an introduction to Judaism, with a focus on the holidays and lifecycle events. The class is primarily geared to potential converts, interfaith couples, and anyone else who wishes to learn more about Judaism in a structured setting. The class is taught by rabbis from all of the congregations in Wake County, NC. The Spring 2021 session was the third time that this class was offered online.

Jewish Essentials offers a pathway to people who are interested in conversion, providing basic education and access to local rabbis as a first step on their Jewish journey. It also offers education for interfaith couples, who may someday get married and raise Jewish children.

Advertising: The class was promoted through e-mail newsletters, Facebook posts and ads, newsletters from local congregations, a “ShopLocalRaleigh” website, and a mailing to potential participants.

Program Materials: In order to enhance the experience of the online version of the class, the Federation supplemented the textbook (“Living Judaism” by Wayne Dosick) with “Intro to Judaism” kits containing items that pertain to the content of the class. The kits included supplemental readings, a printed guide for holidays and Jewish vocabulary, candlesticks, candles, and other items.

"Students reported that the kits helped to bring connectedness to their online classmates and made them feel truly welcome.”
- Jorie Slodki

For more details contact Jorie Slodki, Grants and Content Manager.

Introduction to Judaism: An Exploration for Curious Minds - JCC Brooklyn

JCC Brooklyn's “Introduction to Judaism: An Exploration for Curious Learners” was designed for interfaith couples, adults raising Jewish children, spiritual seekers, individuals considering conversion, and others who wanted a meaningful adult learning experience. This course was suitable for individuals and couples from Jewish and other faith traditions and cultural backgrounds and those with no religious upbringing. This program reached at least 50 couples/individuals over the course of the year.

The course was an online, live weekly video conference class where students joined classmates for an engaging 16-session course offered in the fall and again in the spring. The program best-suited adults who wished to gain a deeper understanding of Jewish life and community in Brooklyn.

Introduction to Judaism: An Exploration for Curious Learners required participants to be present for live-session weekly classes offered through video conferencing. The course included small-group discussion and was supplemented by resources, readings, and videos.

Topics included the Jewish holidays, Shabbat, life cycle, theology and core beliefs, simple Hebrew vocabulary, prayer, Bible, history, Holocaust, Modern Israel, the American Jewish experience, and the tapestry of the Jewish people today. This program reached at least 50 couples/individuals over the course of the year.

Program Cost: Free

Strengthening Community: The JCC Brooklyn hopes to incorporate in person meetings to strengthen the sense of community.

For more details contact Ilona Zeltser.