The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington (JFGW) has launched a new partnership with the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America (SHI NA). Developed as a strategic response to the current challenges facing American and Jewish civic societies within the unique dynamic of Greater Washington, the partnership will operate at the intersection of connection, change and leadership.
This partnership permits SHI NA and JFGW to develop and roll out a comprehensive set of unique educational offerings for the Jewish institutional network in the local community, a set of programs that capitalize on the Shalom Hartman Institute’s long-standing national programs and leadership networks and that enlist these leaders into this shared cross-communal strategy; a series of pilot programs
and educational experiences for Washington’s political movers; and multiple convenings and conferences that connect leadership networks from across the community, and serve as the necessary “punctuation” throughout the program year.
SHI NA tells eJP, “the Federation is unique in its position as being located in the center of American governmental policy making, but it is also similar to other regions in that it is still possible to serve as a convener in the marketplace of Jewish ideas, so long as it offers new and compelling thinking that is competitive and relevant intellectually, affectively, and spiritually. This partnership shows the Federation’s awareness that the breaking down of old silos (denominational, institutional, or otherwise) is creating unprecedented opportunity to build community across difference.”
“A critical component of this partnership will be a focus on civic engagement through a Jewish lens. We are eager to integrate Jewish traditions, debates and ideas to help contextualize and shape our current societal discussions for thought-leaders from various fields, creating connections between the Jewish content and the civic discourse in which so many Washingtonians are already involved,” added Gil Preuss, CEO of The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington.
The initiative will officially launch in the fall of 2018. According to SHI NA, this is one of their largest partnerships with a federation.
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