Los Angeles, California, June 21, 2017 – The Jewish Federation’s Los Angeles Jewish Teen Initiative (LAJTI) announced the 9 Los Angeles Jewish organizations that were selected to participate in Cohort Two of the LAJTI Teen Program Accelerator. The Teen Program Accelerator provides two years of training and coaching for program staff, as well as resources and program support. Participation in the Teen Program Accelerator is designed for teen programs that are ready to expand, and have staff capacity to participate in coaching and workshops to support the program’s growth. As part of the Teen Program Accelerator, these programs will be responsible for outreach and marketing designed to reach under-engaged teens throughout Los Angeles. Cohort Two is scheduled to begin July 1, 2017 and will last until June 30, 2019.
“We are excited to welcome Cohort Two, comprised of organizations working to meet the diverse interests of teens, ranging from drama, advocacy, cooking and more. The Teen Program Accelerator will provide skillsets, training and expertise to the programs in Cohort Two so they can provide safe spaces for teens to explore their Jewish identities, as well as opportunities to expand their peer networks,” said Shira Rosenblatt, Senior Vice President, Jewish Education and Engagement at The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles. She continued, “We look forward to accelerating these programs over the next two years–through coaching, workshops, and collaboration– to ensure they maximize their ability to create a sense of belonging and inspiration for LA teens.”
Specialized entrepreneurial coaching and training is provided through a partnership of the Federation with UpStart, a Bay Area nonprofit that provides coaching to organizations interested in advancing innovative ideas that contribute to the continued growth and vitality of Jewish life. Specialized coaching is also provided through AJU’s Graduate Center for Education’s ETZAH initiative and BJE Impact to seamlessly integrate creative and meaningful Jewish content and approaches to service learning in ways that speak to the program’s mission, culture and goals.
The 2nd cohort of the Teen Program Accelerator includes the following programs: Chabad of the Conejo – CTEEN, Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of LA – Thrive, Challah for Hunger – Social Change Bakery, Culinary Kids Academy – CKA Friends Community, ETTA – Learning to Lead, Jewish World Watch – Teen Ambassador Program, Sinai Temple – Chai School, The Advot Project – Home Shalom Healthy Relationships Workshop, and theatre dybbuk – The Art of the Teen.
The Teen Program Accelerator is part of the Los Angeles Jewish Teen Initiative (LAJTI), co-funded by The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles and the Jim Joseph Foundation, with seed funding provided by the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles. Program partners include UpStart, ETZAH, an Initiative of the AJU Graduate Center for Education, and BJE Impact.
About the Los Angeles Jewish Teen Initiative (LAJTI):
Created to ignite teens’ passions, inspire Teen Educators, and support vibrant organizations serving the future of the Jewish community, LAJTI is The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles’ community-wide effort to engage teens in compelling and meaningful Jewish experiences that support them in leading healthy and fulfilled lives.
To learn more about LAJTI, the Teen Program Accelerator and Cohort Two, please email Alana Weiner at AWeiner@JewishLA.org.