The Harold and Renee Berger Synagogue Network for
Engaging Families with Young Children

Jewish Spaces: Ensuring We All Belong

Goal: To assist early childhood educators in understanding the needs of marginalized communities; to provide action steps and resources for making change in their learning environments so that all children belong in the classrooms.

Target Audience: Early Childhood Educators

Commitment: Four sessions, once a month | 45 minutes each
Each session will be designed to allow for sharing, presentation of new content and q&a with our expert. Each session will end with an action step for trial in that month, to be shared at the following session.

Content will include: What we know, Implications on learning spaces, Action steps for our schools/congregations

  • January – Families of Color | Julia Weekes | Thursday, January 26, 2023 1:30 PM
  • February (JDAIM) – Children with Disabilities | Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer | Thursday, February 23, 2023 1:30 PM
  • March – Families who Identify as LGBTQ+ | Robin Matthews | Thursday, March 23, 2023 1:30 PM
  • April – Bringing It All Together | Presenter TBD | Thursday, April 27, 2023 1:30 PM
  • May: In person meeting – sharing our successes, challenges and next steps | Gabby/Elana

Stipend: For Directors who attend and participate in all four virtual sessions a stipend of $180 will be awarded directly to them at the end of the academic year.

We are really excited about the growth in our ECE families as part of our participation in the Berger Network. They came because they saw an ad for our Torah Tots program. SomeĀ  of themĀ  joined the synagogue and two are new board members!