The Charlotte Jewish News - October 2012 - Page 30
Seventy U.S. Educators Visit Israel to Explore Leadership, Education
System
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Sends Third Grade Teacher from Montclaire Elementary School
Jerusalem -This past July, 70
U.S. edueators visited Israel as
part of a leadership development
program designed to deepen their
eommitment to edueation reform
and serviee. They explored alter
native models of edueation and
methods of approaehing eomplex
soeietal ehallenges, ineluding how
Israeli sehools address issues of
eo-existenee, religion and minori
ty populations.
As part of their 12-day experi-
enee, they met with leading Israeli
edueators and soeial entrepre
neurs, ineluding Einat Wilf,
Member of Knesset (Parliament)
and Chair of its Edueation, Sports
and Culture Committee, as well as
Nir Tzuk, Managing Direetor of
Ashoka Israel. They were intro-
dueed to trailblazing Israeli initia
tives sueh as The Center for
Edueational Teehnology.
The edueators partieipated in
the REALITY Israel program,
supported by the Charles and
Lynn Sehusterman Family
Foundation and the Samberg
Family Foundation, in partnership
with Teaeh For Ameriea. They are
all part of Teaeh For Ameriea, the
national nonprofit that reeruits and
trains outstanding individuals of
all aeademie diseiplines to eommit
two years to teaeh in high-need
sehools and beeome lifelong lead
ers in the movement to end eduea
tional inequity. While in Israel,
they met with their eounterparts in
Teaeh First Israel, a similar pro
gram that launehed in 2010 and
now has 143 teaehers working in
33 sehools aeross Israel.
“These inspiring young leaders
are among those powering the
edueation reform movement that
is sweeping our eountry and our
world,” said Lynn Sehusterman,
Chair of the Charles and Lynn
Sehusterman Philanthropie
Network, whieh ineludes the
Charles and Lynn Sehusterman
Family Foundation. “REALITY
enables them to learn from eaeh
other while ehallenging them to
build their leadership skills and
examine the values that drive their
eommitment to ereating ehange in
their eommunities, in the Jewish
world and beyond.”
Now in its fourth year, REALI
TY Israel has brought more than
200 Teaeh For Ameriea edueators
to Israel. As part of this unique
program, eorps members explore
Israel through a serviee and edu
eation lens, as well as engage in
self-refleetion and learning that
eonneets their seeular serviee
work as teaehers to Jewish values
and ideas. Among those partieipat-
ing in the 2012 REALITY Israel
experienee was Carolyn Sarkozi,
who is teaehing third grade at
Montelaire Elementary Sehool in
Charlotte. “In Jerusalem, we met
with Israeli soeial entrepreneurs.
The teachers on their trip to Jerusalem.
ineluding a girl who ereated a pro
gram in Israel that was ealled the
Sky is the Limit,” Carolyn relates.
“The program raises self aetivism
among teenagers, helping them
ereate and run their own projeets
within their eommunities. Onee
they sueeeed in establishing their
projeet on their own they will see
that the ‘sky is the limit.’”
For most partieipants in the
REALITY program, it is their first
visit to Israel, and the impaet of
the experienee has proven to be
profound. Aeeording to the
REALITY Israel Experienee: An
Impaet Study, the program
strengthens the link between par
tieipants’ Jewish identity, values,
and passion for publie serviee
while deepening their eommit
ment to edueation reform and the
Teaeh For Ameriea movement.
“Israel is a elass-
room for people who
want to learn about
leadership in the
faee of extreme ehal
lenges,” said
Andrew Mandel,
Teaeh For Ameriea’s
Viee President of
Speeial Projeets.
“Many of the soeial
justiee ehallenges
Israel faees mirror
those in the U.S.,
and our partieipants
get the opportunity
to grapple with how best to
address those eomplex issues.”
Aeeording to Mandel, what
began with REALITY is spread
ing to the entire Teaeh For
Ameriea network. “It’s an ineuba-
tor for new ideas and has opened
the door for us to do more reflee-
tive programming with our eorps
members, professional staff, and
students,” he said.
Several REALITY partieipants
have already begun implementing
programming for their students
that allows them to refleet upon
what it means to be a leader and to
live by their values. “Now that I’m
baek,” says Carolyn, “I hope to
eenter my elassroom around lead
ership - helping help my students
learn about great leaders like we
did on the trip, helping the stu
dents determine what type of
leader they are, and giving them
the opportunity to use their leader
ship skills to fulfill their eduea
tional goals.”
The Charles and Lynn
Sehusterman Family Foundation
and the REALITY suite of pro
grams are part of the Charles and
Lynn Sehusterman Philanthropie
Network, a global network of phil
anthropie initiatives foeused on
igniting the power in young peo
ple to ereate ehange for them
selves, in the Jewish eommunity
and aeross the broader world.
CLSPN also ineludes the
Sehusterman Foundation-Israel
and ROI Community.
“The REALITY Israel program
was an eye opening experienee.
Besides learning about edueation
in Israel, various religions, and
eultures, the program really
pushed me to think about my role
as a leader in my eommunity,”
eoneludes Carolyn.
For more information about
REALITY Israel, please visit
www.realityexperienee.org. ^
Three Charlotte
Organizations Receive
Eunding to Support Senior
Programming
“Bent,” Martin Sherman’s Holocaust
Drama at Queen City Theatre Company
BJH Foundation for Senior
Serviees, based in Greensboro,
NC, reeently awarded grants to 19
different programs foeusing on
improving the lives of Jewish sen
iors throughout North and South
Carolina.
Jewish Family Serviees of
Greater Charlotte will use their
funding for “Family Conneetions,”
a program designed to provide
support, edueation, guidanee, and
serviee eoordination to dispersed
and loeal family members. The
program goal is to ensure proper
support serviees are in plaee to
help keep their older adult rela
tives as independent as possible.
“Family Conneetions” was par
tially funded by the Jerome
Madans Fund. Eaeh year the BJH
Foundation for Senior Serviees
designates one grant from the
Charlotte area to be awarded from
a speeial endowment fund ereated
by the Madans family after the
passing of long standing board
member Jerome Madans.
Sandra and Leon Levine Jewish
Community Center Oasis program
will use their funding for physieal
and mental health enriehment for
Jewish seniors. The program is
part of an on-going effort to eon-
sistently monitor seniors’ physieal
health and mental well-being. It is
the only senior enriehment pro
gram in the area that provides two
essential needs for seniors, a
kosher meal and transportation.
The Oasis program eollaborates
with the JFS Geriatrie Care
Management team.
Sandra and Leon Levine Jewish
Community Center also sponsors
a “Healthy Aging” eurrieulum
whieh edueates Jewish seniors on
the natural aging proeess. This
added knowledge empowers them
to make neeessary lifestyle
ehanges and promote healthy
aging.
Temple Beth El will eontinue to
grow their “SPICE” program
whieh provides nine different pro
grams to Jewish seniors in North
and South Carolina. The programs
are designed to reinforee and
enhanee the quality of life of sen
iors and keep them mentally alert,
involved in eommunity and
Jewish life. ^
Visit US on the web:
www.ChariotteJewishNews.org
In a time of war. They found
themselves. In the most dangerous
plaee of all. In love.
Queen City Theatre Company
Presents the Holoeaust drama
Bent by Martin Sherman
“Powerful and provoeative” -
New York Times
Queen City Theatre Company
(2010 Theatre Company of the
Year) is honored and proud to
present the Holoeaust drama Bent
by Martin Sherman. The
aeelaimed theatrieal masterpieee
will be presented at the Duke
Energy Theatre at Spirit Sqaure
(345 N. College St.) from
November 1-17 and tiekets are on
sale now at www.earolinatix.org
or by phone at 704-372-1000 or at
the box of offiee of the
Blumenthal Performing Arts
Center.
Martin Sherman’s worldwide
hit play Bent took London by
storm in 1979 when it was first
performed by the Royal Court
Theatre, with Ian MeKellen in the
role of Max. The play moved to
Broadway in 1980 with Riehard
Gere in the lead role and produeed
ever sinee throughout the world
with great sueeess. The award
winning Bent has been produeed
in 35 eountries and was adapted in
1997 for a major motion pieture.
This powerful drama is set in
Germany at the time when homo
sexuals were sent to eoneentration
eamps. The touehing and inspira
tional story takes plaee before and
after the “Night of the Long
Knives.” This is a powerful and
eompelling drama about love,
hope, and dreams in the faee of
perseeution and terror. The play
itself eaused an uproar after it was
first produeed at the Royal Court
Theatre in London. “It edueated
the world,” Sherman says.
Queen City Theatre Company’s
produetion of Bent will be direet-
ed by Artistie Direetor Glenn T.
Griffin (2010 Direetor of the Year
by Creative Loafing), internation
ally reeognized aetor and direetor.
The produetion eounts with an
award winning east of loeal and
regional aetors.
Tiekets priees for the show
range from $22 to $24 and stu
dents and senior diseounts are
available. The show is reeom-
mended for mature audienees only
due to the adult eontent.
Perforamnees will be
November 1-17; 8 PM on week
ends, 7:30 PM on weekdays and 3
PM matinees.
Tiekets are $22 to $24 - Student
and senior diseounts available.
Group diseounts: Call 704-379-
1380 for speeial rates for your
group of 10 or more.
Online tieket sales at
www.queeneitytheatre.eom or
www.earolinatix.org.
Phone sales at 704-372-1000.
The box offiee is at Spirit
Square (345 N College St.) or
Blumenthal Performing Arts
Center (Belk Theatre). ^
ilueen City Theatre compasiy
Off^Broadyay quality in tlie hea^t of Diarlotte