Kerem Shalom, a vibrant, progressive synagogue in Concord, Massachusetts with 250 member families, seeks a dynamic, compassionate, and well-organized educator to serve as our full-time Director of Education and Engagement (DEE), beginning summer 2024.
Job Description
Working in close partnership with our Rabbi, the DEE will develop, oversee, and administer our Hebrew School Reimagined program and other religious, community, and educational programs for our youth and their families. The DEE will also take the lead in developing, organizing and running family-oriented community events, including those connected to major Jewish holidays. At times the DEE may also work collaboratively with Kerem Shalom’s professional staff to develop educational opportunities and other programs for the entire congregation.
Responsibilities
The DEE will have primary responsibility for designing curriculum, hiring and supervising teachers, preparing budgets, managing spending, overseeing all communications with parents, engaging parents, and working with administrative staff on logistical issues related to these programs. All these efforts should be rooted in six “Learning Pillars,” which are at the center of our communal culture: Kehillah (Community); Simchah (Joy); K’vod Ha-B’riyot (Dignity of Every Person); Naaseh V’Nishmah (Learning by Doing); Al Pi Darko (Our Own Paths); and Avodah She-Ba-Lev (Spirituality).
The DEE will provide hands-on leadership for:
● Hebrew School Reimagined (HSR): A weekly after-school learning program consistent with our unified curriculum in which students in Grades 1-2 have Jewish explorations about the holidays, synagogue, and family; and students in grades 3-6 have electives (such as culinary arts, visual arts, STEM, music, movement and drama, storytelling, etc.). HSR includes weekly T’fillah, where we explore the meaning of prayers as well as learn to pray them) as well as Hebrew Through Movement for students in Grades 1-4 and One-on-One Hebrew for students in Grades 5-6.
● Family Education: Programs for each grade, which are carefully planned to dovetail with the religious school curriculum so that parents and children can learn together about Judaism and Jewish culture and bring that learning into their homes.
● 7th Grade Cohort: Weekly evening sessions, with dinner, for b’nai mitzvah students (and sometimes their families). The program currently uses the Moving Traditions B’nai Mitzvah Curriculum to explore the wisdom Judaism offers for this transitional moment in their lives. Students also complete a values-based mitzvah project, supported by our staff, while working with KS clergy and tutors to prepare for their own b’nai mitzvah services.
● Holiday Preschool and Kindergarten: Monthly explorations of Jewish stories and practices, with hands-on activities and projects that connect to the Jewish holidays.
● Tot Shabbat: Monthly gathering to sing, pray, and be together in celebration of Shabbat. Includes dinner and activities when in person.
● Teen Programs: Opportunities for older children to continue their Jewish education, perform service projects, and connect with one another. These currently include J-LOFT (“Jewish Learning Opportunities for Teens”), a collaborative effort among seven MetroWest synagogues. Teens also serve in Hebrew School Reimagined as madrichim/ot (“guides”) for the younger children alongside the faculty.
● Family Focused Holiday Celebrations: Working in close partnership with our Rabbi and in collaboration with other professional staff, Board members, and volunteers, the DEE will have primary responsibility for creating family-friendly community celebrations for key holidays, such as Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Hanukkah, and Purim as well as religious services and family programs offered during the High Holy Days. The DEE will supervise administrative staff and others who may support these celebrations.
● Community Programming: In collaboration with Kerem Shalom’s staff and volunteers, the DEE will have primary responsibility for organizing events that give families and other members opportunities to join together in fellowship. These activities currently include monthly community-wide Shabbat dinners and a variety of activities that give youth, families, and others opportunities to come together around our shared goal of Tikkun Olam.