Pooling resources, colleges join together in network

"Our goal is to be an organization every Israeli knows and through which every citizen has passed once or twice in his life, just like the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel," says Roni Yavin, the director general of the Elul college in Jerusalem. She was referring not only to the college she heads but to her other function as chairwoman of the Network of Colleges for Jewish Renewal, which today unites 16 educational institutions that fit this definition.

Some of the colleges in the network have already become well-known throughout the country: Elul, Alma, Binah, Kolot, Beit Daniel, the college at Oranim. Their shared objective - Jewish studies aimed at the secular public or a mixed religious and secular public - has also received widespread media coverage. Some of these colleges have become a reference point not merely of the public that regularly visits them but also for schools, pre-military academies and community centers that cooperate with them.

But the colleges are not prepared to make do with these achievements. They want to reach out to new publics and give expression to ideas that go beyond the study of texts. To this end, over the past two years they have initiated joint activities, including during the Ten Days of Penitence and on national memorial days. About two weeks ago, they made yet another huge advance when they became a network of public standing and for the first time gathered together all the instructors of the various groups at a two-day conference in Jerusalem.

Yavin says the activities of the various colleges will increasingly focus on the activity within the network. Currently, the network has three aims. The first is to create a joint Internet site where one can find all the texts and sources taught at the colleges. Another aim is to reach out to different publics, making use of the geographic and sectoral deployment of the colleges in the network. Thus, for example, the Mimizrah Shemesh college is aimed at a traditional public of Mizrahi (Middle Eastern and North African) origin, whereas the colleges of Kolot BaNegev and Bamidbar are located in the Negev, while Kehilot Sherut concentrates on the subject of liturgical poems and Elul stresses the dialogue between religious and secular. The third aim is to enlarge the colleges' joint public activities.

Far-reaching plans

Some of the college heads have far-reaching plans. Sharon Leshem-Zinger, who heads the school for training discussion leaders at the Kolot BaNegev college and who is a group instructor within the Yaakov Herzog Center framework, speaks about her desire to set up a movement "and maybe even a political party" that will fight for the cultural and social agenda in Israel. "A movement that can deal with socio-economic tensions as well as the tension between religious and secular. A movement which can nurture the quality culture we need so much, from our own special point of view, dealing with the sources of Judaism," she says. Yavin has no objections but thinks that "most of our public has not yet reached that stage. They are still focused on studying themselves."

The conference two weeks ago mainly dealt with internal and professional issues relating to the group discussion leaders, focusing on exchanging ideas about successful means of instructing the groups. The professional accompaniment and the organizational sponsorship, as well as the conference's location, were provided by the Mandel Leadership Institute. Dr. Daniel Merom, who heads the Mandel Institute's branch focusing on nurturing innovative ideas in the education field, says even a discussion about the methods of leading group discussions is significant when it comes to reaching out to wide audiences. "The first breakthrough made by the colleges began with the enthusiasm and the inspiration of the founders. But in order to reach out to new audiences, there is a need for more professional work methods. The principal's personal inspiration is not enough," he says.