, 46 Cover Story THE SQUEEZE from page 24 months studying at the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem, Conservative Judaism is the middle road that she finds attractive. While she believes that an .observant Conservative Jew is one who honors the mizvot halachically, she sees strength in the movement's acceptance of those who don't. "Many people I know — particularly those I have met studying at my yeshiv- ah — are currently struggling with what it means to be a Conservative Jew," she said. "This is particularly challenging because many people who find their homes in the movement do not halahi- cally follow it. Personally, I do not feel that this excludes them from the move- ment. "One of the greatest assets of the movement is that while it does strongly encourage a halachic lifestyle, it also allows congregants time to explore their Judaism and does not force this lifestyle on them. Instead, Conservative Judaism affords its membership a wealth of learn- ing opportunities to help them further their path and reach their appropriate level of observance in a comfortable fashion." The Detroit and Ann Arbor Jewish communities together have nearly 5,000 families who belong to synagogues. Attracting Youth One area for growth is with young people. The Conservative movement prides itself in offering Jewish commitment and synagogue roots to its young through afternoon and day school edu- cation programs and its 750 youth group chapters, affiliating 25,000 mem- bers. Teen programs also include the United Synagogue Youth's Israel Pilgrimage summer program and USY On Wheels summer bus trips, providing travel with other Conservative Jewish teens. Participants in Israel programming study at USY High and the 11-month Nativ College Leadership Program, with full accreditation at Hebrew University. The KOACH program provides out- reach and educational materials for Conservative college students on cam- puses and sponsors trips and conven- tions for students. USCJ President Yudof said early suc- cess has greeted Project Reconnect, which she and chair Jackie Saltz con- ceived and developed last year to identi- fy and attract alumni of United Synagogue Youth and similar organiza- tions. Using only volunteer staff, mem- ber power and donations, she said, the effort to reunite thousands in the Conservative movement, is just begin- ning to draw on the power of a Web site: vvww.projectreconnectorg The movement runs undergraduate and graduate programs at both JTS in New York and the University of Judaism in Los Angeles. The William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education at JTS bears the name of its Detroit benefactor. "The growth sector, if there is one in the Conservative movement, is not in the creation of new synagogues," said JTS Chancellor Schorsch. "It is in Jewish education." He noted that 50,000 students are in Conservative Jewish day schools, representing one-quarter of all Jewish students in day schools. "The popula- tion survey shows today's [Conservative day school] youngsters' are the best educated ever." Locally, the Conservative move- ment's Hillel Day School of Metropolitan Detroit boasts 656 stu- dents which, according to Head of School Steve Freedman, "makes us one of the larger day schools in the country. "And the quality of Jewish educa- tion taking place across our country, both in day schools, and probably equally significant in religious schools, is probably better than ever in terms of developing meaningful curriculum and putting time and energy also into train- ing principals and teachers," said Freedman. Congregational Life Much of the movement's vitality centers on synagogue life. Conservative synagogues have largely taken root in middle-class suburbia. Yet they also have sprung from 1960s-era spiritual-renewal drives, such as the chavurah movement. At its genesis, that movement sought to establish intimate prayer by transforming largely passive congregations centered on a rabbinic leader to active hubs for family life. Leading that spiritual-renewal trend is a new nondenominational initiative of a group called Synagogues: Transformation and Renewal, funded by some major Jewish donors. The group, known by the acronym STAR, is pro- moting a project called Synaplex that seeks to produce innovative Shabbat activities in congregations, like a spiritual version of a multiplex. The pilot program operates at 12 con- gregations nationwide spanning the reli- gious spectrum. Five are at Conservative synagogues. Conservative rabbis who premiered Dana, 8, and Laura Goldberg ofWest Bloomfield participate in a program to make Havdalah objects at Adat Shalom Synagogue. Synaplex this fall discussed some early signs of success — including big crowds — at the movement's biennial confer- ence. More Learning But in terms of advanced education, Rabbi Schorsch said, "We, as syna- gogues, are failing to capture the prod- ucts of serious Jewish education. We have invested enormous resources in producing more serious Jews. 'Entry- level Jews' get too much attention while `advanced Jews' receive too little relevant programming." Many agree. "This has historically been true," said Rabbi Pachter. "We know how to get people to the first step: bar/bat mitzvah, adult Hebrew reading, etc., but not much beyond this." He sees programs like the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School Institute of Hebrew University and Eilu v'Eilu: The Lifelong Jewish Learning Project of the Michigan Conservative movement as having "led the way to serious education for the post-beginner." The once independent Eilu Eilu is now a part of the Conservative move- ment's Rabbinical Assembly-Michigan Region's new Community Education Division, directed by Dr. Mitch Parker. The Community Education Division also oversees a 24-week conversion insti- tute program, a scholar-in-residence pro- gram and a community calendar listing all classes and activities offered by partic- ipating synagogues. "B'nai Moshe has a solid cadre of rela- tively advanced adult learners among its membership," said Nancy Kaplan, vol- unteer coordinator of the synagogue's Kolel Moshe Lifelong Learning Institute, which opens its classes to the communi- ty. "However, like other congregations, we also have many adult members who are beginners looking for basic intro classes. "We try to meet this multi-faceted sit- uation by offering a few classes at Kolel Moshe on a basic intro level, but also by encouraging our beginner-level folks to enroll in community-based entry-level programs." At Adat Shalom, Rabbi Nevins said there is "a huge demand" for introducto- ry courses. But he added, "Obviously, we need to stimulate more advanced stu- dents so they will see our movement as a place to grow spiritually. (So) we try to mix it up, with everything from Hebrew literacy to Talmud and Halachah." Beth Ahm's classes focus on those beginning an exploration of Judaism, said Rabbi Popky. However, his classes THE SQUEEZE on page 28 11/14 2003 27