Bureau of Jewish Education’s Peninsula Havurah High offers unique educational experience

Tenth grader Arlie Krigel is taking a class in school—called “Flawed and Unflawed Heroes” —that he finds fascinating. In the class, Arlie has learned about controversial and exalted Jewish figures that have made a large impact on the world, such as Ayn Rand, Michael Milken and Flavius Josephus. For one hour every week while studying these historical icons, Arlie and his classmates are able to explore their own belief and value systems focused on what makes someone a hero. Arlie explains, “I’m learning so much about and through these notorious Jewish people that I had never even heard of before. The best thing about this school is that the teachers are so enthusiastic and the classes are really interesting.”

The school is the Bureau of Jewish Education’s Peninsula Havurah High (PHH), a two-semester per year supplementary Jewish education program for 9^th through 12^th graders in the South Peninsula. PHH creates an opportunity for students to form their own Jewish identities while providing formal and informal educational opportunities that expose participants to the variety and richness of Jewish life.

Every Wednesday evening, PHH students are exposed to cross-denominational learning with the goal of increasing their ability to identify themselves within the context of the larger Jewish world. By participating in community projects and leadership opportunities, teens learn the importance of being positive role models and how their actions are able to make positive changes in the world. The students welcome the informal atmosphere and appreciate the teen community that is naturally created through social interaction and the development of new friendships. The result is more connected, solidly grounded teens that often continue to be involved with the Jewish world while in college and beyond.

Lauren Hart, a 9^th grader at PHH, says of her experience, “PHH has had a big impact on my life and I look forward to going each week. It is a great way to meet other people who share being Jewish and it’s nice to have an environment for us to hang out. I really enjoy it, and I know that a lot of other people do as well!”

Run by the Bureau of Jewish Education of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin, and Sonoma Counties and supported by the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties, PHH is guided by an active Partner’s Council and is a collaborative effort of four South Peninsula synagogues: Congregations Beth Am, Kol Emeth, Etz Chayim and Keddem. The synagogues’ staffs serve as teachers for the program, which gives the students an opportunity to learn from many rabbis and educators in the community.

PHH’s curriculum is designed to take into account the diverse religious, educational, cultural and social climate in which Jewish teens find themselves. Classes help students gain a sense of community and identity through study of Jewish texts, history, philosophy, social and cultural issues, arts and the Hebrew language. They explore such diverse topics as what it means to be part of a community, Jewish feminism, Kabbalah, cooking, leadership, film and global Jewish issues. During the first hour of each session, each grade level is engaged in a specific core curriculum. The second hour offers students a choice of topics from various elective classes.

Robbie Heeger, a 10^th grader, confirms, “Peninsula Havurah High has provided me with a chance to get away from high school life and lose all of my worries from the day that I may have had. PHH provides a means to relax and let myself drain out the stresses of high school. Also, it is a great way to keep in touch with my camp and Jewish community friends.”

Shalhevet: Passing the torch from generation to generation

As a way to combat competing priorities that often cause 11^th and 12^th graders to discontinue their Jewish education after bar⁄bat mitzvah, PHH created a special course and trip entitled Shalhevet. The program includes a journey of Jewish history, beginning with the life of pre-WWII Polish Jewry through the Holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel. The class culminates in a two-week trip to Poland and Israel with a Holocaust survivor and an educator and includes walking through the gates of Auschwitz, visiting Polish synagogues and celebrating in Israel. The study⁄trip was the brainchild of two senior students’ parents who wanted their children to experience Poland and what it meant to be a Jew outside the United States. This year’s program, Shalhevet 2006, was a dynamic collaboration between the Holocaust Center of Northern California and the BJE.

Shelley Murveit, 2006 participant, says, “I definitely feel a lot more connected to my late grandparents and their families as a result of this experience. I feel like I can start to kind of understand what they went through, and it only makes me wish I had more time with them to talk about it. It has only confirmed further my plans to take Hebrew in college, study international relations and spend a year abroad in Israel during my junior year. I’m so glad I went on the trip.” And Sophia Alyssa Simpson explains of her experience this past spring, “What has changed as a result of Shalhevet? Everything! My outlook on life, my friendships, my relationship with my family and those around me. How grateful I am to have been able to be a part of such a wonderful group of people, and how lucky I feel to have learned about the Holocaust.”

PHH principal Claire Mikowski elaborates, “The students return from Poland changed and learn how to incorporate their experiences into their worlds. They present their knowledge in some creative format throughout the community, such as giving presentations and talks in local schools. By doing this they become leaders—they take the community investment and spread it out teaching in Jewish and non-Jewish communities, the latter of which is extremely important.” This past spring the trip to Poland and Israel included 23 PHH students, four staff members and an 84-year-old Holocaust survivor.

The Bureau of Jewish Education of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin, and Sonoma Counties is a non-profit organization that builds capacity among professional educators and lay leaders, enabling them to create and maintain a system of excellent Jewish education in synagogues, day schools, early childhood programs and informal educational settings.

The Jewish Community Federation is the central organization for fundraising, planning, outreach and leadership development for Jewish communities in San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties. In fiscal year 2004–2005, the Federation’s annual campaign allocated $16.9 million to some 60 agencies providing social services, educational and cultural programs in the Bay Area, in the U. S., Israel and elsewhere in the world. In fiscal year 2005, the Federation’s Endowment Fund, with assets exceeding $1.05 billion, provided more than $215 million for a variety of grants, seed projects and emergency needs in fiscal year 2004–2005.