The
Way,
Leavvr en
What SAL/1E Achieved
Cooperation of rabbis, Federation outreach were keys to enrollment success.
.
IRWIN ALTERMAN -
Special to the Jewish News
S
AJE was conceived
last year as the largest
program of seminars
for adult Jewish
enrichment in our communi-
ty's history.
The first year's Seminars for
Adult Jewish Enrichment pro-
gram
was extremely successful
.,,,
by any measure. More than 50
courses of three sessions (one
hour per session) were presented
in r'vo semesters last winter,
with more than 500 people par-
ticipating in 1,300 course regis-
trations. The courses included a
broad spectrum of Jewish study,
such as Talmud, history, prayer,
ethics, contemporary issues and
even Jewish songs.
This coming winter, SAJE
_
expects to build. on that success
with a similar number of cours-
es and an even greater number
of course registrations. We also
plan one or two special initia-
tives for particular target groups,
such as young adults.
Several factors contributed to
the structure and early success
of this program.
First, an unfilled need for
adult Jewish education exists in
the community Certainly the
congregations
and other institu-
0 b
dons have continuously provided—
many excellent educational
opportunities for their members
and the public. But a further
need exists for the unaffiliated
and others not engaged in study,
as well as those who may want to
experience studying with other
rabbis. The timing was also right,
because many people have a new
Irwin Alterman is a vice president
of the Jewish Community .Center of
Metropolitan Detroit, and a mem-
ber of the board of directors and co-
chair of the Seminars for Adult.
Jewish Enrichment program.
The Seminars for Adult Jewish Enrichment
con.sistintly filled its classrooms with
alterative learners.
or renewed interest in some
Jewish education.
Second, the Jewish
Community Center of
Metropolitan Detroit, with build-
ings in West Bloomfield and Oak
Park, provided a "neutral" loca-
tion. Moreover, the JCC's revital-
ized mission stresses Jewish edu-
cation. Also, holding a large
number of courses at one time
created an excitement and a syn-
ergy that proved to be conta-
gious.
Third, the organizers saw the
opportunity and were able to
make it happen. The JCC created
the program with Sharon Hart
and me and the co-chairs; we
quickly persuaded AJE through
its president, Lynda Giles, to be
an equal sponsor. The Jewish
Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit and the Jewish News
agreed to be co-sponsors.
Fourth, the program could not
have started without the full coop-
eration of our local rabbis and
other lecturers. We asked our lec-
turers to donate their services so
that tuition could remain modest.
Since our goal was to complement
congregational programs and not
to compete with them, we agreed
to have SAJE in the winter, a less
active time for congregations. The
enthusiastic support from the
Michigan Board of Rabbis was an
important catalyst.
Fifth, a major feature of
SAJE is that lecturers From all
movements agreed to participate
in one program with one inte-
grated brochure. The lecturers
ran the gamut from secular to
Orthodox. I believe this only
could have happened under the
auspices of the Jewish
Federation and its agencies.
Even then it would not have
succeeded without the
Federation's recent intense out-
reach effort to expand its pro-
grams and funding directly to
all segments of our Jewish com-
munity. With the climate
Federation created, bringing
everyone together in one pro-
gram proved to be easy.
The continuity of SAJE is
secure with the generous endow-
ment from Cis Maisel Kelman.
We look forward to expanding
SAJE in the future, but only to
the extent that the community
desires.
SAJE's success proves again
that we live in one of the greatest
Jewish communities anyvvhere.
8/6
1999
Detroit Jewish News
75