Jerusalem, January 13, 2025 – In the aftermath of the October 7 attacks and during an ongoing war that has shaken Jewish communities worldwide, the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies has been awarded a $140,000 Signature Grant from The Covenant Foundation. The grant will fund the development of an Israel Educator Curriculum and fellowship program to train experiential Jewish educators to address the urgent need for nuanced, thoughtful Israel education.
As Jewish teens and young adults grapple with hard questions about Israel, many educators feel unprepared to guide their students through these complex conversations. Educators are being asked to bridge emotional divides and provide clarity, support, and a framework for understanding a deeply challenging reality. Pardes’s initiative will empower them to rise to this critical moment, offering tools to foster meaningful engagement, empathy, and critical thinking.
The initiative builds on Pardes’s ground-breaking Mahloket Matters methodology, which draws on Jewish texts to teach the art of constructive disagreement and deep listening. Co-directed by Ilana Gleicher-Bloom and Sefi Kraut, the project includes a modular curriculum and an eight-week fellowship program designed to reach 96 educators and, through them, impact over 9,600 young Jews.
Leon Morris, President of Pardes, noted, “This moment demands educators who can engage young Jews with honesty, nuance, and courage. With The Covenant Foundation’s support, Pardes will equip educators to navigate the hard questions and inspire connection to Israel, even in the face of complexity and discord.”
For over 50 years, Pardes has prepared Jewish leaders to address the challenges of their time with intellectual rigor, spiritual depth, and a commitment to pluralism. This initiative continues that legacy, meeting the urgent need for nuanced Israel education today.
About Pardes
The Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies (www.pardes.org.il) is an open, inclusive, diverse, and intellectually challenging Jewish learning community based in Jerusalem with programs worldwide. Pardes cultivates a life-long love of Jewish learning, the Jewish people and Israel. Pardes inspires engagement in Jewish life — as communal and spiritual leaders, educators, and active participants. The Pardes model has inspired almost five decades of Jewish leadership marked by openness, passion, Jewish literacy, knowledge, and inclusivity, and continues to inspire new possibilities for Jewish communities worldwide.