Here comes 2022! I love how the secular new year gives us a chance to revisit the resolutions we wrestled with at Rosh Hashanah. Now, nearly six months later, I am taking a gentle look back at my August blog post which outlined Federation’s top priorities for 2021. They are all still Federation priorities, but the last 20 months and the last two weeks have taught us how quickly the virus can upend our progress. As our Yiddische sages said, “Mann Tracht, Un Gott Lacht,” — Man plans, G-d laughs.
As for planning, you’ll be interested to know that inside Federation all our professionals have adopted a business accountability and management model called EOS — Entrepreneurial Operating System. EOS disciplines us to establish goals and create scorecards to evaluate them with measurable inputs and outputs. So, through an EOS lens, I want to revisit our priority projects to see where we are, and where we are heading.
Israel Travel | (Uncertain)
People are hungry to travel to Israel, but Omicron has put a halt to it for now. We hope to move forward with our Men’s Journey, 40-Under-40, and other experiences in 2022.
Jewish Education Collaborative (JEC) | (Moving Forward)
JEC is doing bold work at Congregation Or Hadash to reimagine bar/bat mitzvah. Busy families at five local synagogues no longer battle traffic for midweek Hebrew as part of the Atlanta Hebrew Connection, where learning is done from home.
Gap Year Programs in Israel | (Thriving. Funding Renewed)
With generous funding from The Zalik Foundation, JumpSpark recruited twenty-five students from fifteen different Atlanta high schools who have received scholarships of $10,000 – $15,000 to attend a gap year program in Israel. They are thriving and sending incredible reports back home.
1440 Spring Street: A Center for Jewish Life | (Excitement Continues)
The building boom in Midtown makes our dream of turning 1440 Spring Street into a Center for Jewish Life very much alive. We envision a dynamic space where Jewish entrepreneurs and innovative nonprofits will interact and where cultural experiences will happen.
Toco Hills Housing Initiative |(Exploration Continues)
Exploration of the feasibility of building affordable apartments for older adults in Toco Hills continues.
Family Camp |(Happening)
An immersive family camp weekend for young families is planned for early April at Ramah Darom.
Tuition Assistance for Jewish Professionals | (In Effect)
Full-time Jewish professionals, clergy, and educators are now eligible to receive up to a 50 percent tuition reduction if their children are currently enrolled or have been accepted to an accredited Jewish high school in Atlanta. It has helped boost enrollment at our Jewish high schools and has been renewed for a second cohort of students.
Camp Scholarships | (Back for Summer 2022)
Camp scholarships helped send more than 1,000 kids Jewish camp in 2021. Applications for camp scholarships are open for summer 2022.
