Los Angeles, CA, April 30, 2018 – The Jewish Federation’s Los Angeles Jewish Teen Initiative (LAJTI) hosted the first-ever Building Resilience in Teens: A Wellness Conference for Parents and Educators on Sunday, April 29th at the Luxe Hotel in Los Angeles. Over 250 parents, educators and mental health professionals attended the full-day conference, which offered expert-led workshops and presentations on critical issues regarding parents, teens, and their relationships.
LAJTI knows that stress is a pervasive element in teens’ lives for a multitude of reasons. LAJTI organized this conference after noting that parents and educators of teens were in need of more knowledge and resources in addressing the challenges teens face. The LAJTI Focus on Teen Wellness elevates this important topic and addresses teen wellness through a Jewish lens and creates programs that support and guide teens holistically. The Focus on Teen Wellness deepens our understanding of the social and psychological context for common problems affecting teens and provides a tool box of resources for the community. Through dialogue, workshops, training, and funding for impactful programs, LAJTI offers parents, educators, and teens opportunities to discover how our Jewish community can provide resources and relationships that fortify teens’ emotional, spiritual, and physical health, and help our teens find balance, joy and meaning in their lives.Jay Sanderson, President & CEO of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles said, “we are extremely proud of our Federation’s innovative work in the area of teen wellness. We empower parents and teens and their emotional, physical, and mental well-beings. Our Los Angeles Jewish Teen Initiative is accomplishing this goal, and engaging thousands of teens and their families across Los Angeles.”
Keynote speaker Julie Lythcott-Haims, Former Stanford University’s Dean of Freshen and author of How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success, shared her thoughts and advice in a panel entitled, “How Not to be Helicopter Parents.” She said, “Like it or not, our job as parents is to put ourselves out of a job. We’ve succeeded when our adult children can fend for themselves.”
Shira Rosenblatt, Senior Vice President of Jewish Education and Engagement at The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles said, “We knew that if we were creating a multi-faceted Jewish teen initiative to change the landscape in LA—teen wellness had to be at the foundation of our work. We strive to inspire, connect, and provide resources for parents, educators and teens that help our teens live more balanced, healthy, and fulfilled lives.”
By providing new approaches to developing resilience, the conference empowered participants to help their teens and families bounce back from challenges and grow with optimism. The conference was hosted with support from the Jim Joseph Foundation, Cedars Sinai, and the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles.
Photography Details
Photo 1: From Left to Right: Andrew Cushnir, Executive Vice President of Donor Relations at The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles; Jerry Coben, Community Leader and Board Member and Chair of Federation’s Los Angeles Jewish Teen Initiative (LAJTI) Committee; Becky Sobelman-Stern, Executive Vice President and Chief Program Officer at The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles; Julie Beren Platt, Chair of the Board at The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles; Julie Lythcott-Haims, Keynote Speaker; Alix Liiv, Senior Project Manager at The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles; Dr. Miriam Heller-Stern, National Director of the School of Education at HUC-JIR; and Dr. Isa Aron, Professor of Jewish Education at HUC-JIR/Los Angeles
Photo 2: Keynote speaker Julie Lythcott-Haims
About The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles:
Based on Jewish values, The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles convenes and leads the community and leverages its resources to assure the continuity of the Jewish people, support a secure State of Israel, care for Jews in need here and abroad, and mobilize on issues of concern to the local community, all with our local, national, and international partners. To learn more, visit www.JewishLA.org.
About The Los Angeles Jewish Teen Initiative:
Created to ignite teens’ passions, inspire teen educators, and support vibrant organizations serving the future of the Jewish community, the LA Jewish Teen Initiative (LAJTI) is The Jewish Federation’s community-wide effort to engage teens in compelling and meaningful Jewish experiences that support them in leading healthy and fulfilled lives. By engaging teens in Jewish life, the Federation is ensuring our Jewish future for generations to come.
LAJTI is 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.
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