The East Valley Jewish Community Center launched its “Conversation with the Rabbi” podcast March 30.
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The world looks different now than in 2019 — the year Arizona State University published the first study of the local Jewish community since 2002. Still, its findings have major implications for Jewish organizations and synagogues looking to engage more of the community.
University of Arizona Hillel welcomes new executive director
When Shearim Torah High School for Girls opens next fall it will be in a new building. The school is set to purchase a site that is three times that of its current location. Conveniently, it’s also across the street.
A new Jewish high school in Scottsdale is offering full scholarships for its fall 2021 incoming class.
Temple Beth Shalom is the only Reform congregation in the West Valley, and we have a multi-generational and egalitarian membership. We are proud of our history of inclusivity and that we are able to offer a full range of educational programming, community and social functions and religious s…
On a blustery day in late January, Holocaust survivor Sami Steigmann, 81, made his debut on Clubhouse — the buzzy, audio-based, social-media platform that launched in the venture capital and Hollywood communities last spring and now connects millions of “regular” folk with celebrities for sp…
Time for D.C. statehood
In the last year, Asian Americans have suffered at least 3,795 hate incidents. The upsurge in this disturbing trend seems to stem from some level of “blame” associated with the coronavirus outbreak in China, and the taunting finger-pointing and name-calling that was shared widely as the drea…
One week after Israel’s fourth national election in two years, the country remains in political gridlock. As in previous rounds, in addition to the traditional political, religious and national allegiance issues that divide them, Israelis are profoundly divided over whether Prime Minister
Kvetch. Mensch. Mazel tov. Schmooze.
George Kalman was 9 years old when he was shoved into a cattle car to be deported to a concentration camp. He was 10 years old when a Russian soldier entered his forced labor camp and liberated him on April 2, 1945.
Mary Hirschfeld, 89, only recently began thinking about her title of Holocaust survivor.
Andrew Gibbs is ready to chat about Israel any time.
A Jewish story doesn’t have to center on obvious themes like the Holocaust or weddings and b’nai mitzvah, according to Linda Burt Pressman. Stories about raising children or divorce can be Jewish stories too, when viewed through a Jewish lens, she said.
By the time Marlie Nochomovitz finally got her driver’s license, there was nowhere to go.
Passover is a great opportunity for young children to get involved with the planning and preparation of the seder. While we’re still dealing with Zoom seders, here are some ideas to make the holiday fun for the whole family.
Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz is fighting climate change one vegan meal at a time.
Often synonymous with Jewish life on campus, Hillel has been a gathering point for Jewish students across hundreds of campuses in the United States for decades. The past year tested the organization like never before, as it confronted challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic along with a ri…
Isabell Kondkhorov, 16, loved her CTeen chapter in Newton, Massachusetts. She even decided to stay as a member once she had moved across the country to Phoenix. Now a sophomore at Pinnacle High School, Kondkhorov is part of three chapters: Newton, Gilbert and the newly-formed Phoenix chapter…
Rabbi Aviva Funke misses the sound of other people humming and singing along to her music.
Aileen Becker’s 27-year-old daughter was in the first class of Shearim Torah High School for Girls in 2007. “They’ve produced a lot of bright girls who have done very well academically,” she said. But it isn't the right fit for her 15-year-old daughter.
Maybe it’s the fact that the wave of insider accounts of the Trump administration seems to have finally crested. Maybe everyone had a lot of time for high-yield contemplation during 2020. Maybe the entire publishing industry wanted to create some difficult choices for me, personally.
In an attempt to keep up with its expanding student population, Torah Day School of Phoenix is adding five modular buildings to its campus.
Menachem Mendel Academy hosted a community-wide event at the beginning of September to celebrate the school’s new campus — which includes a Beis Hamedrash, gymnasium, woodwork room, science lab, art room, library and extra classrooms. With over 250 people in attendance, the different worksho…
A panel of five alumni of the Bureau of Jewish Education’s Hebrew High will give a talk on Tuesday, Aug. 19 in advance of the 2019-’20 academic year.
Arizona State University’s Hillel chapter was nominated for several categories at the college’s 2018 Pitchfork Awards. ASU Hillel took home the Outstanding Undergraduate Student Organization award, which recognizes the achievements and successes of a registered ASU student organization that …
Around the same time that the pumpkin-flavored coffee drinks appear in your local coffee shop, another annual event will take place that may send you reeling like a triple shot of espresso. Yes, it’s almost that time of year: parent-teacher conferences. Your child means the world to you, so …
As a former Jewish summer camper, Moving Traditions CEO Deborah Meyer said camp was a place where she developed long-lasting friendships and an intense connection to Jewish life. But it was also a place where she remembers some inappropriate behavior between counselors.
For generations, children have spent their summers climbing trees, escaping on small adventures and meeting new friends. In addition to pure summer fun, these activities provided children with hands-on ways to develop life skills.
Nick Enquist | Staff Writer
On Monday, the Arizona Jewish Historical Society held the public opening for “Israel at 70: The Diverse Faces of Israel,” a solo exhibit of photography by Joel Zolondek, a Jewish News contributor. Marty Haberer, CEO of Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix, and Vicki Cabot, a former Jewish Ne…
A Valley native and product of the Arizona public school system, Republican Jonathan Gelbart is one of two Jewish candidates vying to become Arizona’s next Superintendent of Public Instruction.
The roofers’ hammers boomed overhead on a recent Wednesday as Rabbi Gavriel Goetz, head of school for Yeshiva High School of Arizona, explained that the YHSA’s new building and first permanent home should be open sometime this fall.
What does it take to move your child from consumer to producer of technology?
There’s an undercurrent that runs through most conversations we have with our kids about school. With some families, it’s more explicit: “We expect you to do well, and come home with As and Bs on your report card.” With other families, it’s less so, but still implied: “We expect you to go to…
It may only shepherd six schools, but when it comes to the number and size of scholarship dollars it provides students, the Jewish Tuition Organization (JTO) stands tall across the state.
Dynamite and pottery don’t normally go together.
This year, the Anti-Defamation League continues its annual practice of making sure Jewish students are not academically penalized for missing school during the High Holidays.
It’s time for school again, but it’s not always easy to get kids back into the reading habit if they’ve been doing other activities all summer. Here, then, to re-engage little minds are a few Kar-Ben books you’ll find either in bookstores or online. These picks can also serve as terrific rea…
With August more than half over, the school-supply shopping sprees, first-day fashion decisions and maybe even a little last-minute summer reading are underway. Even if some kids are less than excited about the end of their relative freedom, they have much to look forward to when it comes to…
Classes started bright and early on Aug. 9 at Pardes Jewish Day School. The new head of school, Peter Gordon, was on hand to say hello to students and parents.
A group of Arizona high school students are spending this summer at the Jewish National Fund’s Alexander Muss High School in Israel (AMHSI), through the Schwartz-Hammer AMHSI Impact Fund and the JNF Boruchin Educational Fund. Alexander Muss High School in Israel is a pluralistic, college-pre…
The Jewish Tuition Organization (JTO) is urging Arizona companies to take advantage of the $5 million the Arizona Department of Revenue still has available before it reaches its cap for the 2017 corporate private school tax credit. The fund originally had $74 million.
Students won’t be the only ones starting classes at Pardes Jewish Day School on Tuesday, Aug. 8. Joining them will be Peter Gordon, Pardes’ new head of school.
The East Valley Jewish Community Center is one of more than a dozen organizations participating in the fifth annual Operation Back to the School Chandler.
Families who receive free Jewish books or music CDs each month from PJ Library say the program has influenced or supported how they talk about and practice Jewish traditions in their home, according to a new study.
Registration for IAC Eitanim 2017-2018 is now open for middle and high school students
About 75 children who attended local Jewish day schools last year received a supplemental scholarship from the Jewish Day School Scholarship Fund, but with tuition rates rising, more funds will be needed.
The East Valley Jewish Community Center (EVJCC) is starting a new program in August to promote leadership skills among Jewish teens.
