Editor's Letter jarc Meet Generation T2T H adas Corey wants to learn more about who she is as a Jew. And we at the Detroit Jewish News aim to help her and other Metro Detroit teenagers embrace their Jewish identity. The 16-year-old junior at Birmingham Seaholm High School is the first intern of Teen2Teen (T2T), Detroit Jewry's new monthly teen publication. The full-color, pull-out feature debuts in the centerfold of today's JN. With its enthusiastic staff, Teen2Teen offers boundless potential to give teens a forum for expression — and a spur for communal engagement. The publication, written by and for teens, is an initiative of the JN and the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit. Teen2Teen also will be distributed through BBYO, day and synagogue schools, the JCC and other places where Jewish teens gather. "I want to get more in touch with who I am',' Hadas told T2T's executive editor Keri Cohen and me when she began her internship. "Being Jewish is a very important part of my life, and I want to expand it. I want to learn more and do more' Hadas has studied journalism at Seaholm. She loves to write, and she's ecstatic about having the chance to voice her views. "I think that teens will really enjoy the subjects that we — their peers — will be writing about because they'll be able to relate so well;' Hadas said. "With the teen section, the JN will reach a whole new generation of readers." of our community — religiously, economically, geographi- cally — these engaged teens will help point us in the right direction to keep others of their generation involved and con- nected. Keri Cohen lauded her young staff's energy and dedication to the new teen publication. "These are very busy kids with tons of homework, friends, extracurricular activities, family obligations and more Cohen said. "Yet they come to the table with ideas, definite opinions, humor and the drive to pull it all off." We're proud to be working with these young journalists. The experience of working in a professional setting is invaluable. Our student writers may be feeling their way now, but it won't be long before they tackle hard issues along with the fun stuff. They will grow as Teen2Teen grows. It's a win-win situation for the kids, the community, the IN and Federation's Stephen H. Schulman Millennium Fund. The fund supports innovative projects that benefit local Jewish teens. A Schulman grant is helping bring T2T into the com- munity. Teen Readers Mattes- We can't sit back when it comes to engaging teens. We have witnessed the phenomenal growth of the Frankel Jewish Academy, which is guiding more than 200 teens in a serious exploration of Judaism while teaching values that anchor our Jewish community. Beyond that, more than 300 teens at Bais Yaakov, Yeshivas Darchei Torah, Yeshivat Akiva and Yeshiva Gedolah receive a strong Jewish education. "Despite these successes:' says Rabbi Judah Isaacs, director of Federation's Alliance for Jewish Education, "the number of teens con- tinuing in congregation-based schools post- A Voice, A Hope bar and bat mitzvah, continues to decline. It's a generation that will play a central Although BBYO remains strong, the total Teen journalist Hada s Corey role in Jewish continuity, in the suste- number of teens involved in youth groups nance of our heritage against the head has declined precipitously in the last 10 winds of assimilation, acculturation and apathy. years. Teens are dropping out of Jewish life at the time in their More than 16 percent of Jewish Detroit's population of life when religious affiliation and identity are being formed." 72,000 consists of 10- to 19-year-olds — meaning teens are a The numbers are revealing: In 2003-04, teen enrollment in huge percentage of who we are. Some of our teens attend day congregational schools totaled 884. Today, 791 students are schools. Others are enrolled in synagogue schools. Still oth- enrolled. Our declining population isn't the only cause. ers only participate in Jewish youth groups, like BBYO. But all We know that teens step forward with the right encour- have a part in the grand script to dispel the illusion that it's agement. Friendship Circle attracts local teens as volunteers not cool to be Jewish. and role models. Recently, 100 local teens came together for Seaholm isn't one of the public high schools with a significant JServe, a day in which teens worldwide made a difference in Jewish enrollment. But Hadas, daughter of Lisa and Lou Corey, their home communities. More than 250 local teens joined a has made lots of Jewish friends through the religious school Shout Out for Israel rally during the 2006 Lebanon war. at Temple Israel since age 5. She's part of the West Bloomfield Teen2Teen is a window into the lives of our teens: their synagogue's adult and teen Tefillah singing groups as well as the challenges, ambitions, hopes and dreams. It's an innovative, Kever Avot program, which enables seniors to visit the graves of collaborative effort to bring together our teens to help rein- loved ones during the High Holidays. Her 13-year-old brother, force the vitality of our community. Sam, attends Derby Middle School. We invite your feedback to Teen2Teen. Contact the section's executive editor at: kcohen@thejewishnews.com . Communal A Staff Journey monitoring is essential to maintaining the mini-newspaper's Hadas is one of 15 who make up the inaugural staff of budding synergy. Teen2Teen. The section is all about teens, but adults should Says Rabbi Isaacs: "It will be incumbent on all of us to read peek at it, too, for an insight into our next generation of it and respond. We believe that this is the time for teens to Jewish leaders. Because they represent a broad brushstroke step up and be heard. We are listening." I I We take Tributes personally. Personal Greetings Every Card Uniquely Yours Personal Service One Day Processing Personal Care For the Men, Women and Children We Serve Throughout Their Lives PHONE 248.538.6615 FAX 248.538.6615 ONLINE: wwwjarc.org 30301 Northwestern • Suite 100 Farmington Hills, Ml 48334 .1 1214690 May 24 2007 5