This month’s Scholar in Residence visit with Tamara Rebick, Founder and Chief Experience Officer of Coriphery Holistic Consulting Solutions, marked an important step forward in strengthening how our congregational educators approach Israel education across our community, particularly for students in third through seventh grade.
Over several days, Tamara served as a content concierge—helping educators identify meaningful and developmentally appropriate ways to bring Israel into their classrooms. She led a workshop for 12 classroom educators from six congregations walking them through high-quality educational sites including the National Library of Israel, M-Squared, the I-Center, and more. As she introduced each resource, she shared examples of full lesson plans and activities that educators can access for free and easily use in their classroom. Tamara modeled strategies to help students experience Israel as a living story—one rooted in people, culture, and values. Educators left with concrete tools, curated resources, and a renewed sense of confidence in their ability to teach about Israel with both depth and balance.
Through one-on-one consultations, she met with education directors to review their current Israel curricula, uncover gaps, and select high-quality resources tailored to each congregation’s needs and philosophy. She’ll continue this work throughout the school year, consulting with 10 congregations to strengthen Israel curriculum in their congregation, specifically for elementary aged students.
This initiative part of Federation’s broader effort to strengthen Jewish learning in our congregational schools, ensuring that Israel education is engaging, relevant, and enduring. Now in its second year, the initiative seeks to provide a thoughtful bridge between the love of Israel that is built in early childhood and early elementary years and the challenging conversations teens are having about Israel as they prepare for college and beyond. The high-quality professional development and content that educators experienced with Tamara will translate into nuanced learning experiences in our congregational classrooms that give students the tools to strengthen their Jewish identities and deepen their relationships with Israel.
We’re grateful for the generosity of the Cooperman Family Fund for a Jewish Future of the Jewish Community Foundation and donors to the UJA Annual Campaign who make it possible for us to bring experts like Tamara to guide our educators in this vital work, helping them spark connection and pride in the next generation.