Pardes and Yeshivat Maharat Partner to Train Female Clergy-Educators

NEW PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM EXPANDS PARDES’S IMPACT AND COMMITMENT TO JEWISH EDUCATION FOR ALL

(JERUSALEM, Israel & BRONX, NY– May 8, 2018) The Pardes Center for Jewish Educators (www.pardes.org.il/) and Yeshivat Maharat (www.yeshivatmaharat.org/) announced a formal partnership to train outstanding women who are passionate about Jewish education and Jewish leadership.

Set to launch this fall, a new track of the Pardes Day School Educators Program (PEP) will host exceptional and committed Orthodox women from Yeshivat Maharat in a vibrant and innovative two-year teacher training program in Jerusalem; combining intensive text study at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies with a Master of Jewish Education from Hebrew College and Semikha from Yeshivat Maharat, the joint program will be a five-year endeavor in total.

Additionally, graduates of a new Yeshivat Maharat track of the Pardes Experiential Educators Program (PEEP) will earn a Certificate in Jewish Studies from Pardes and Semikha from Yeshivat Maharat. Those participants may also earn a Master of Arts in Jewish Education through the Davidson School of the Jewish Theological Seminary.

The PEP and PEEP Yeshivat Maharat programs are the newest addition to the many existing partnerships that Pardes has with educational institutions, such as Hebrew College, Yeshivat Chovevei Torah and the Davidson School at JTS. Pardes anticipates further partnerships with rabbinical seminaries of all denominations.

“Pardes is thrilled to expand its informal relationship with Yeshivat Maharat into an official partnership between the two institutions,” said Aviva Golbert, Acting Director of the Pardes Center for Jewish Educators. “Joining rabbinical seminaries of other denominations that collaborate with Pardes, the Yeshivat Maharat and Pardes joint program is a first-of-its-kind opportunity for passionate, invested Orthodox women leaders to become outstanding rabbinic educators.”

At Pardes, students will participate in core components of the Pardes Year Program, in addition to holistic education courses preparing them to become 21st-century Jewish educators. Students will also experience seminars on Jewish history, spirituality, conflict resolution, Jewish thought and Israel education; mentoring; career coaching, job placement assistance and alumni support.


The Yeshivat Maharat rabbinical program includes advanced study of Halakha, Talmud, Pastoral Counseling, Leadership and a range of advanced professional training classes and experiences, preparing students to enter Jewish communal leadership as clergy of synagogues, schools, campuses, camps, communal institutions and health care facilities.


“Together with Pardes, Yeshivat Maharat wants to ensure that women have the essential tools needed as educators and rabbinic leaders to impact communities and individuals,” said Rabba Sara Hurwitz, Co-Founder and President of Yeshivat Maharat. “In this case, the whole is indeed greater than the sum of its parts; Pardes together with Yeshivat Maharat will empower Orthodox female clergy to learn and hone their chosen craft of Jewish education.”


The Pardes Center for Jewish Educators-a branch of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies (www.pardes.org.il) in Jerusalem, trains and empowers Jewish studies teachers and experiential Jewish educators and leaders to serve as knowledgeable, skilled, reflective and passionate professionals in diverse Jewish settings.

Yeshivat Maharat educates, ordains and invests in passionate and committed Orthodox women who model a living, dynamic Judaism, inspiring and supporting individuals and communities in pulpits, schools, hospitals, colleges and community organizations.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Aviva Golbert

Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies

Cell: + 972-52-772-1838

Office: + 972-2-673-5210 x240

E-mail: aviva@pardes.org.il

 

Laura Shaw Frank

Director of Recruitment

Yeshivat Maharat

Office:  718-796-0590

Email:  laurashawfrank@yeshivatmaharat.org