We work with Jewish communities across the country to deepen their approach to social and economic justice, and to understand and engage with the most crucial issues that people in America are facing today. With nearly 20 years of training Jewish social justice leaders under our organizational belt, we’ve got a lot of experience — and we love to share it. Detailed below are Avodah’s Community Engagement offerings.
Social Justice Workshops with Alumni Justice Ambassadors: Avodah has a network of more than 1,200 Avodah alumni – and they’re experts on a huge number of issues related to social and economic justice in the United States. Our Alumni Justice Ambassadors (AJAs) are Service Corps and Fellowship alumni with serious experience and chops as educators who work with Jewish communities across the country to deepen their approach to social and economic justice, and to give them the tools to understand and engage with the most crucial issues that people in America are facing today.
AJAs are available to speak, teach, consult and facilitate in your communities. We have taught at synagogues, Hillels, conferences and more. AJAs are available on a sliding scale to organizations, depending on organizational size. Our workshops include topics such as “Intersections of Justice,” “From Tzedekah to Tzedek,” “From the Personal to Political,” and more. If you would like an Avodah Alumni Ambassador to lead a learning session with your synagogue, community, students, or other individuals, contact Avodah Rachel Glicksman, Alumni Director, at [email protected].
Learn more about our offerings at avodah.net/aja.
Here’s what our participants from our AJA workshops had to say:
“Thank you very much for working with our staff on enhancing how we approach and implement inclusivity practices into our work and our Hillel space. I really appreciated it and I know my colleagues did, too.”
—Michael Simon, Executive Director, Northwestern Hillel
Teen Curriculum for Budding Activists: “Tikkun Olam: Our Turn” is our groundbreaking curriculum that offers 12-18 year-olds the opportunity to learn about the connection between Jewish social justice values and practice through the creation of meaningful individual social justice projects. It is a great framing for more impactful b’nei mitzvah projects, confirmation, camp and day-school programs, or other service and justice projects. Tikkun Olam: Our Turn gives teens the tools they need for broader social justice work. Learn more at avodah.net/tikkun.
Video Series and Discussion Guides: “Speak Torah to Power” is a groundbreaking speaker series that connects 
today’s most pressing social justice issues with Jewish wisdom to guide us in doing transformative work in the world. In this series, six leading Jewish educators from across the United States explore the connection between activism, service, spirituality, community, Jewish wisdom and the events of our day. More than 15,000 people have already tuned in to Speak Torah to Power.
Visit avodah.net/speaktorahtopower to watch the videos and download our free discussion guides to support your communities in exploring these issues and questions together.
Webinars and Online Learning:
Avodah is creating various programs for our community throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to foster learning, community building, and discussion through virtual connection. Click here to view our weekly offerings.
Avodah’s staff of seasoned educators and organizers are available for consulting and training at your local Jewish
institution. We bring individual consultation, facilitated talks, and workshops to conferences, organizations, and
institutions to foster learning around today’s social justice issues, all through a Jewish lens. Contact Sarra Alpert at [email protected] to learn more.