In June the Jewish Community Center launched its new Jewish Life and Learning program by offering a taste of its fall programming. The new classes are now in place, a brochure is in the mail and fall programming will officially begin on Monday, Aug. 29. The brochure, “Jewish Life & Learning for the Curious Mind,” can also be accessed online at www.jcckc.org.

Jill Maidhof, the director of Jewish Life and Learning, explained that the change in name and the larger variety of class offerings is the result of a survey conducted by the JCC last spring.

“We sent a survey probing every aspect of what was then called the Department of Adult Jewish Learning to participants, faculty and other stakeholders, like funders. We carried on personal conversations with a variety of those people as well as thought leaders across the country and colleagues at different JCC’s,” she explained.

From the survey and conversations, the JCC decided to expand the scope of programming it offered beyond adult Jewish learning.

“In addition to formal classes, lectures and presentations people thought informal venues, recreational programming that focused on Jewish values and traditions, family programs, spirituality and personal development workshops, things like cooking, cultural arts emerged as a very important priority for folks.”

Besides enlarging the focus of its educational programming in a variety of ways, Maidhof pointed out the JCC has embraced a more collaborative approach to programming.

The first effort was to meet with representatives of the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, which occurred early this year.

“Basically we said we are seeking the same ends, we are working with the same target audience, heck we are even in the same building. We could be far more than the sum of our parts and we have a great opportunity to work closer together,” Maidhof said.

Since the initial meeting Maidhof, Federation Associate Executive Director Alan Edelman and their staffs have begun to work together in co-promoting and planning and implementing programs.

Edelman explained that this collaborative concept, similar to the saying “it takes a village!” is happening in Jewish communities throughout North America.

“Jewish communities are coming to appreciate the value of collaboration as an effective means of engaging more members of the community along a lifetime continuum of Jewish living and learning experiences,” he said.

One of the reasons for this, he explains, is that at various stages of life, individuals may or may not be affiliated with a particular Jewish institution.

“Therefore, every Jewish organization, including the Jewish Federation, Jewish Community Center and congregations must offer a variety of activities that will create a net wide enough to catch every member of the community at one time or another. Hopefully, that initial activity will be meaningful enough to engage the person for the rest of their lives,” Edelman said.

“This new and evolving collaboration is our community’s attempt at bringing professional and volunteer leadership together to brainstorm ideas and implement programming.

We encourage members of the community to share their ideas for engaging more people in Jewish living and learning,” he added.

One of the first things the JCC did was invite the congregations, agencies and organizations in the community to submit their programs for publication in the brochure which has just been published. To be included a program needed to meet three criteria:

It had to be focused on Jewish content

It had to be open to the community without regard to membership or affiliation

It must take place between mid-August and December of this year.

Maidhof said that invitation resulted in a 33-page document “that really shows the breadth of what’s available in this city.”

The brochure is not meant to be the only resource for community programs. For instance some plans weren’t finalized before publication.

“We are strongly encouraging people to see it as a companion to Planit Jewish, the online Jewish calendar. But it’s a great example of reaching out and taking a step in the direction of more and more collaboration and better and more efficient use of community resources,” she said.

A couple of classes organized by the JCC will be held at sites other than the JCC this year. For example an Ayeka class will be held at Congregation Beth Torah. A cooking class is scheduled to be held at The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah.

Maidhof is hopeful more and more collaboration will take place in the future.

“Right now we are in the stage of reaching out and looking at what’s possible,” Maidhof said.

Maidhof to lead JCC’s
Jewish Life and Learning program

After almost 25 years holding a variety of positions at the Jewish Community Center, Jill Maidhof has assumed the full-time position of director of Jewish Life and Learning.

Most recently she has served as the JCC’s associate executive director and served as interim director, along with Director of Finance Jim Sluyter, for an eighteen-month period before Jacob Schreiber joined the JCC in the fall of 2009.

Schreiber said what stands out about Maidhof is her love of Judaism and her passion for bringing its values, wisdom and sense of community to all people.

“That is what drives her. That is why she has served in just about every position there is in the JCC — because each one, when done correctly and with dedication, can positively impact the lives of so many,” he said.

In addition to her regular duties, Maidhof, who joined the JCC in October of 1986, had been serving as the interim director of Jewish Life and Learning since Jeff Goldenberg left the JCC in April. It was during that time that Maidhof decided she would once again enjoy a position that was more hands on and less administrative.

“I was reminded of how much I loved my years as a Jewish educator and the process of creating programs,” Maidhof said.

This new position allows Maidhof to return to a “long-time passion and leave a legacy of excellence in one focused area.”

“For many years, I had the privilege of learning first-hand about operations in many parts of the Center,” said Maidhof. “Now I’m excited to delve deeply into one area.”

Melton undergoes changes

Following an extensive study of adult educational programming at the Jewish Community Center undertaken last spring, the year one curriculum of the Florence Melton Adult

Mini School will be offered this fall in three 10-week units. In the past it has been offered as a year-long course. No changes are being made to the year two Melton curriculum this year.

Jill Maidhof, director of the JCC’s Jewish Life and Learning department, said the survey and one-on-one discussions with educators and students found that people unanimously believe that there is no better adult curriculum than Melton.

“It’s the best there is for the community setting,” she said.

However the survey did bring to light that on a local level repackaging Melton might better meet the needs of its target audience. One reason for that, Maidhof said, is people are becoming more resistant to making a commitment for an entire year.

“They may go out of town for several weeks at a time. It’s also a significant financial commitment,” she said.

The JCC worked with the international Melton faculty and will pilot the three, 10-week units this year. While the course has been designed by Rabbi Morey Schwartz, the curriculum developer for Melton, to stand alone Maidhof believes students will get the greatest benefit by taking all three sessions.

“Our hope is to hook people early and keep them in the system. We think with excellent teachers that’s exactly what will happen. But we also are very respectful that people have many concurrent priorities,” Maidhof.