Small Grants Creating Big Change in Jewish Education

July 24, 2026

From outdoor Jewish learning to teen-led electives and new family engagement models, JLearn’s BOOST Grants helped educators bring innovative ideas to life throughout the 2025-2026 school year.

The microgrants, which provide up to $5,000 for new initiatives, are designed to help schools and organizations test creative approaches that can grow into lasting programs. While each project looks different, they all share the same goal: making Jewish education more engaging, relevant, and meaningful for today’s learners.

“People still think Hebrew school is the same as it always was,” says Rabbi Elana Perry, Federation’s Director of JLearn. “These grants remind our community that Jewish education is constantly evolving. There are fresh, exciting ideas happening in classrooms across Atlanta every year.” She adds that “sometimes all it takes is a little boost to get something going.”

One educator reflected that the BOOST Grant “transformed our outdoor classroom from a beautiful space into an intentional Jewish learning environment.” Another shared that students became “active participants in community” rather than simply attending classes. Across every project, the goal was the same: helping Jewish learning feel joyful, relevant, and deeply connected to everyday life.

Here’s how a little boost helped educators create meaningful new opportunities for Jewish learners across our community:

• Outdoor Jewish learning connecting nature and Jewish values
  Jewish Kids Groups + Adamah ATL
• Teen-led electives designed and taught by madrichim
  Congregation Shearith Israel
• A religious school camp retreat bringing camp-style learning into the school year
  Temple Kol Emeth
• Hands-on Passover experiences engaging more than 300 students
  Temple Sinai
• New family Shabbat experiences for intown families
  Tish
• Immersive Hebrew learning for students from non-Hebrew-speaking homes
  Congregation Or VeShalom
• Innovative B’nai Mitzvah programs focused on leadership, personalization, and community
  Congregation Or Hadash and Tish

Together, these projects demonstrate that innovation doesn’t have to be large to make a lasting difference. One parent described Tish’s Together Shabbat as “one of the things my kids look forward to most,” while a participant in Temple Kol Emeth’s retreat shared that the experience gave them the confidence to attend their first overnight school trip later that year. Those are the kinds of ripple effects BOOST Grants are designed to create, strengthening Jewish identity, building community, and inspiring new possibilities for years to come.

Applications for the next round of JLearn BOOST Grants will reopen this October, giving educators another opportunity to bring creative ideas to life and continue shaping the future of Jewish education across Greater Atlanta.