• What’s This All About?

    This web page contains reflections, updates, and insights gleaned from BJ’s ongoing Community Building Initiative. This effort aims to learn how BJ members build community and relationships in such a large congregation -- or how we don't -- and how we can improve the strength and quality of our community. The initiative is led by Guy Austrian, who writes the posts on this page. (The posts appear with the most recent ones at the top of the page.) For more information, click on the "About" tab above.

  • How to Contact Guy

    If you have comments or questions on these posts, or on the initiative as a whole, please feel free to let Guy know. You can e-mail him at gaustrian@bj.org

  • What’s This?

    Here you'll find various updates, thoughts, and reflections on B'nai Jeshurun's Community Building Initiative, an effort begun in September 2008 to explore how BJ members get connected and how BJ can do a better job of building community within our community. Most of these posts are written by Guy Izhak Austrian, BJ's senior consultant for community and social justice. Guy was previously on staff at BJ as director of social action/social justice from 2005-2008, and he is now a full-time rabbinical student at the Jewish Theological Seminary.

  • Share Your Comments with Guy

    If you have comments or questions on these posts, or on BJ's Community Building Initiative, please feel free to let Guy know. You can e-mail him at gaustrian@bj.org

End-of-the-Year Update: Just Getting Started!

Posted on June 12, 2009 by Guy Austrian

 I’m wrapping up my work on BJ’s Community Building Initiative, so I wanted to leave a final update here.  It has been an honor and a pleasure to work with so many dedicated, passionate BJ members and staff.  Feel free to contact me in the future at guyaustrian@gmail.com

The four projects which were chosen to be implemented, and the current status of their work, is as follows.  Please watch for announcements and get involved – nothing will happen without the enthusiasm, creativity, and participation of the community!

Program Initiatives

1.  Immersive Community Experiences

A working group met on 4/29 and 6/2. Among the ideas it will pursue::

  • Shabbaton-in-the-City, a new model for a low-cost, 25-hour program, will be piloted three times next year:  one community-wide, two by demographic or theme.

Lead staff:  Sarah Verity, sverity@bj.org.

 

2.  Pre- and Post-Services Events

A working group met on 5/1 and agreed that BJ should focus on:

  • More regular kiddushim after services
  • Pre-services events, such as learning about prayers, singing niggunim, etc.

Rabbis and staff are currently working on how to incorporate these into the Shabbat schedule.

Lead staff:  Guy Felixbrodt, gfelixbrodt@bj.org

Infrastructure Initiatives

1.  Member Development System

A new Task Force met on 6/3 and will meet again soon, focusing on these goals:

  • Help members to initiate and grow their participation and leadership at BJ.
  • Engage new members following New Member Orientation Programs and beyond.
  • Build groups/cohorts of members in relationship with each other.
  • Strengthen staff-member partnership in renewing a member-oriented, relational culture.

The system will have three components:

  • Cohorts:  groups of members (families and individuals) may join a multi-stage program of increasing levels of engagement. Each level will include Jewish learning; learning about BJ; skills workshops; personal exploration, etc.
  • Staff-Lay Workshops: strengthen partnership of staff and lay leadership in developing members’ participation and building community.  Train in leadership skills and community-building methods.
  • Community Fair:  twice a year

Lead staff:  Belinda Lasky, blasky@bj.org

 

2.  Online Tools

A working group met on 4/22 and 5/20 and decided to focus on:

  • Social networking tools:  as a first experiment, the group created a BJ Facebook group.
  • Discussion groups:  web-based, topics created by users

Lead staff:  Denise Waxman, dwaxman@bj.org

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