How to Register

For general inquiries, contact us by phone: 416-638-1881x4255 or e-mail: kolel@prossermanjcc.com.

NOW ONLINE: CLICK HERE!

Kolel Launches Project Open Book

Thanks to the generous support of The Covenant Foundation Kolel is pleased to announce the launch of Project Open Book: The Kolel Resource Library. This on-line resource allows Kolel to publish and disseminate its "signature" courses and events in digital format for use by institutions and groups, and to create an on-line learning environment for use by individuals.

Project Open Book takes the four areas in which Kolel has been recognized as a leader in the field of adult education: Basic Judaism (Gate of Jewish Life), Women and Judaism, Jewish Texts, and Jewish Parenting and Family Life and turn its courses and one-night events in those subjects into power-point presentations, guided learning modules, video and audio presentations, textual sources and facilitator guides. Individuals anywhere in the world can study with Kolel in an accessible and easy way; and organizations without the benefit of Kolel's faculty or physical presence can use its time-tested and recognized materials to fit their own communities. With Kolel's new partnership with the BJCC, it is envisioned that these materials will be of special interest to JCCs throughout North America as well as synagogues, study groups, small communities, women's groups, and of course, individual learners who now make up an "e-learning" community that numbers in the millions.

The Covenant Foundation is a program of the Crown Family Foundation and the Jewish Education Service of North America. The Foundation supports creative approaches to programming, while celebrating and building on existing strengths within the field of Jewish education in North America. It strengthens educational endeavors that perpetuate the identity and heritage of the Jewish people across all denominations and in all settings. The Covenant Awards recognize the achievements of exceptional Jewish educators who have distinguished themselves through their creativity, commitment, and talent. In 2005 Rabbi Elyse Goldstein was honoured to receive the Covenant Award for Outstanding Jewish Educators.

Rabbi Goldstein is the curriculum and content supervisor. Rabbi Michal Shekel has contributed material together with other previous Kolel staff. Baruch Sienna, a senior Jewish educator who is Kolel's webmaster, previous author of its weekly on-line parasha, and faculty member, has been the project author and manager.

Audio Podcasts

Kolel now offers audio recordings for registered class members that can be downloaded and listened to at your convenience.

If you missed a class, or wish to listen to a class again, and have received a password for your class, click the "Enter..." button below:

Winter 2010 Courses and Special Events

KOLEL NEW and CURRENT OFFERINGS

SPECIAL SPRING-SUMMER OFFER!
Click here to save $25 on spring/summer Kolel or Prosserman JCC courses:

Conversations about Conversion (6 weeks)
Explore the history, challenges and rewards of conversion with respect to family, ethnicity and community. For those considering conversion or already in a conversion program, alone or with a Jewish partner.

Instructor: Alena Strauss
Location: Miles Nadal JCC
Date: Wednesdays, May 5 - June 9
Time: 7:30-9:30pm
Price: $130/$80 students and seniors

Dollars Incensed: Economic Justice, Communal Responsibility, and the Cost of Jewish Living
From the eighth-day snip to the last-day burial, Jewish living does not come cheap. We will go way beyond the raw numbers to explore some of the ethical dilemmas relating to Jewish expenditures. Must Jewish communal organizations pay employees a living Jewish wage? What is the responsibility of Federation to fund Jewish organizations who themselves do not support Federation? Should Jews support ethical food certification, driving up the cost of kosher consumables?

Instructor: Rabbi Adam Cutler
Location: Prosserman JCC
Date: Thursdays, May 6 and 13
Time: 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Price: $35/$20 students and seniors

Jewish Paths into Understanding Illness and Healing
The experience of illness and the process of healing touch us all, body and soul, and Jewish tradition has a rich store of responses to physical suffering. Explore Biblical and Talmudic teachings about pain, comfort and resilience through creative, embodied text study -- a dynamic method of learning that combines movement, writing and storytelling exercises with the study of traditional Jewish texts and images. Join us as we bring the texts to life and bring our lives and experiences into vibrant conversation with the texts.

Instructor: Rabbi Miriam Margles
Location: Prosserman JCC
Date: Tuesdays, May 4 - June 1 (no class May 18)
Time: 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Price: $90/$50 students and seniors

Jewish Food for Thought
What does Judaism have to say about contemporary food concerns such as factory farming, GMOs, and fair trade practices? This five-part series will address some of the challenges we must navigate in our modern day food systems, while exploring Jewish texts and teachings that can guide us in our dietary decisions. This series includes four in-class sessions, plus one site visit to the Kavanah Garden, an educational project which seeks to respond to contemporary food issues from a Jewish perspective.

Instructor: Risa Alyson Strauss
Date: Mondays, May 3, 10, 17 & 31
Time: 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Miles Nadal JCC
Field Trip: Kavanah Garden Site Visit - Sunday, June 6 (10 am - 12 pm)
Price: $90/$50 students and seniors

Summer Ulpan
Summertime and the learning is easy! What better way to spend your summer than by learning to speak Hebrew in just eight intensive classes? Learn to get around, make friends, and express yourself in Hebrew. Explore modern spoken Hebrew, using idioms and expressions from everyday life.

Instructor: Naomi Nemerov
Location: Prosserman JCC
Date: Tuesdays and Thursdays, July 6 - 29
Time: 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Price: $170/$100 students and seniors

To register for Kolel courses, or for more info, call 416-638-1881.