Teens find core at community events

By Jenn Director Knudsen

article created on: 2009-03-15T00:00:00

Jonathan Emanuel believes Portland’s Jewish future rests on the often gangly shoulders of the city’s teens.

Emanuel affirms the post-b’nai mitzvah, pre-college set can jump-start his vision of an active, pluralistic Jewish teen community—one that would stay strong into the teens’ adulthood and influence the next generations to follow suit.

Emanuel, 35, Congregation Neveh Shalom’s youth director, teaches Wednesday Night and Sunday School classes, too. He also carves out time to tutor Hebrew.

Any energy reserve he pours into programs to bring together Portland’s teens from all stripes of Judaism to socialize, learn and engage in service learning and tikkun olam. To do this he collaborates with education directors Dorice Horenstein of Shaarie Torah, Ben Sandler of Congregation Beth Israel and Susan Bernstein of Neveh Shalom.

A somewhat recent Portland transplant from his hometown of Berkeley, Calif., Emanuel cites as his inspiration the East Bay’s “community high school” model.

There—as in other population centers, such as Seattle, Boston, San Diego—Jewish high school kids meet regularly outside their own synagogues, taking electives, sharing meals, going on retreats and collaborating on group projects.

“We had Chabad kids sitting next to Reform Jews, transcendental Jews and Jews of all colors,” he explained, referring to his own experiences growing up and teaching in community high schools.

Such “schools” may not be the answer here. Emanuel asserts, however, long-term, structured programs that encourage a community of Jewish teens could be.

Since spring 2008 he’s helmed quarterly Wednesday night events, each in a different locale, including the Mittleman Jewish Community Center and area synagogues.

Their focus? Gathering all teens to learn through fun.

On a recent Wednesday night prior to Tu B’Shevat, about 150 high schoolers converged on Congregation Shaarie Torah to put on the third of Emanuel and his team’s quarterly events. Rabbis and synagogue educators attended to show their support.

Participating teens first shared a kosher meal and then raucously filed into the sanctuary as smaller groups took turns upon the bima presenting research on environmental themes relating to Israel and green Jewish ideals.

One group of teens spoke of the importance of trees to Israel and that both trees and humankind are God’s creation. Other students noted Israel is home to the world’s first drip irrigation system and the biggest desalinization plant.

During the program, Senior Rabbi Michael Z. Cahana said it’s important Jewish teens recognize they have their own places of worship and are part of a bigger community.

Romi Goldner, 13, a Portland Jewish Academy eighth grader and active Shaarie Torah member, said at these quarterly events she “gets to know how other teens practice their religion in different ways and how religious they are.” She continued, “And then I get to meet new friends, and that’s always nice.”

And Shawn Rosenthal, a Neveh Shalom member and Arts and Communication Magnet Academy junior, said Emanuel invited him to attend these events. At first, Rosenthal wasn’t so sure.

“It actually turned out to be a way awesome experience,” said Rosenthal, 16, also an AZA youth group member. Now he hangs out with Jewish teens from all over town.

From the look and sound of things, Emanuel’s plan seems a slam dunk. Not so fast.

Some local Jewish educators and rabbis fear a community high school—or similar arrangement—would draw away students from individual synagogues’ established programs, potentially weakening their own community of teens.

Horenstein, Shaarie Torah’s education director who oversees a Wednesday night school of more than 20 kids in sixth through 12th grades, praises Emanuel’s goals but is uncertain how to meet them. Resources are limited citywide, let alone at her own school.

“Will I want to see that [a community high school-like program] every single Wednesday?” she asked rhetorically. “I cannot give a commitment. But,” she continued, “do I see that as a good step forward? Yes.”

Sandler, CBI’s education director whose midweek school instructs about 100 teens, says teaming with Emanuel specifically on programs that promote teens’ education and leadership skills is a positive step.

But he, like Bernstein of Neveh Shalom and Deborah Eisenbach-Budner, Havurah Shalom’s director of education, offers up alternatives to a community high school template such as weekend retreats, camps, even trips to Israel.

These lengthier programs would allow for greater bonding and learning time, Eisenbach-Budner said.

“But that takes a ton of work and investment” by educators, parents, congregations and other organizations, she said, adding, “You can’t take a pie that is already divided up and take an additional chunk out of it.”

Still, the Hebrew High ideal is gaining ground here.

“I think it would enhance the next generation,” said Shaarie Torah Rabbi Arthur Zuckerman. “I see 20- and 30-year-olds now, and they’re scattered all over the place.”

He added, “Portland is ready for community high school; I believe it’s long overdue.”

Despite the uphill battle, Emanuel is resolute in his goal to create a Portland Jewish teen community. He contends while the city needs it, the teens do even more.

At his regular event-planning meetings, often more than a dozen teens attend, representing up to five different synagogues.

“The kids want to be together. They love this community stuff,” Emanuel said. “I really think something is happening here; I just really want to pick up that ball and run with it.”

The next event will be held March 11 at an event combining Purim and Camp Darfur (see story page 21). For more information, contact Jonathan Emanuel at jemanuel@nevehshalom.org.

This story made possible by a grant from the Judith and Edwin Cohen Foundation.