Tag: inclusion

Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance, and Inclusion Month (JDAIM) invites us each year to ask a hard but necessary question: who feels fully welcomed into Jewish communal life and who still encounters barriers, even when our intentions are good?

When values outpace systems

In recent years, our community has begun to confront an uncomfortable truth., While many Jewish organizations deeply value inclusion, good intentions alone are not enough to create access, especially for young adults with disabilities. Inclusion requires skills, systems, and sustained commitment.

Learning what inclusion requires

That realization came into focus in 2023, when we partnered with Matan, a national leader in disability inclusion in Jewish life, to conduct a communitywide assessment. Matan works with Jewish organizations across North America to build the tools and confidence needed to create truly inclusive communities. One finding stood out clearly: Jewish professionals wanted to be inclusive of people with disabilities, particularly young adults, but many did not know how to translate that desire into practice.

That insight became a turning point.

Turning learning into action

In response, we launched the Lieberman Fellowship for Jewish Organizations Serving Young Adults, a yearlong cohort learning experience (2024–2025) led by Matan. The fellowship focused on moving organizations from intention to implementation, helping teams rethink policies, practices, and culture through an inclusion lens. At the conclusion of the learning year, participating organizations, along with one additional congregation, received grants to turn learning into action through concrete inclusion projects.

This JDAIM, we pause to take stock of progress at the projects’ midpoint. What we found was encouraging—not because the work was finished, but because it is becoming more thoughtful, more systematic, and more honest.

What’s changing across our community

Across the region, organizations are shifting away from ad hoc accommodations toward intentional, systems-based approaches to access. Some are redesigning how people request accommodations or improving digital and physical accessibility. Others are investing in staff training, inclusive employment pathways, peer support, or relationship-centered spaces like Shabbat tables and social programming. Again and again, we are seeing that small but deliberate changes—clear communication, accessible tools, sensory supports—can dramatically expand participation and belonging.

That progress has not come without challenges. Many teams underestimated how long it would take to coordinate across departments and partners. Staff transitions and technology limitations slowed timelines. In some cases, organizations intentionally slowed decision-making to ensure solutions would be sustainable and meaningful rather than rushed. These challenges are real, but they also reflect a growing sophistication in how our community understands inclusion: not as a quick fix, but as long-term work that must be built to last.

Inclusion, in action

Each organization is approaching inclusion differently, shaped by its mission, audience, and capacity. Together, these efforts reflect a shared shift toward more intentional and sustainable access.

Inclusive employment and workforce pathways

• Adas Israel is piloting a supported employment program for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, envisioning a multi-year pathway to meaningful, paid work and vocational growth.

Accessible spaces, programs, and experiences

• Bender JCC is investing in accessible fitness equipment and assistive listening devices, alongside hosting sensory-friendly cultural programming.
• Edlavitch DCJCC repaired hazardous entryways and launched a visibility campaign highlighting accessibility across programs.

Digital communications access

• GatherDC transformed its community calendar to include accessibility information, mobile usability, and screen-reader tools, changing how thousands of young adults find Jewish experiences.

Peer support, community design, and belonging

• B’nai Israel Congregation is pairing a young adult inclusion peer program with accessible communication training for staff and lay leaders.
• OneTable supported hosts creating intentionally inclusive Shabbat tables, including spaces centered for autistic and Deaf/ASL communities.

Data-informed systems and long-term engagement

• Pozez JCC is building data-informed systems to track and strengthen engagement of neurodiverse young adults over time.

Training, capacity-building, and organizational practice

• Mem Global distributed social inclusion kits, launched accessibility microgrants, and is preparing to hire a Camper Care Director to support emotional and behavioral needs at immersive experiences.
• Sixth & I is preparing comprehensive social inclusion trainings for staff and volunteers serving young adults in less-structured Jewish spaces.
• Temple Rodef Shalom standardized its accommodation request process, shifting from informal responses to clear, transparent, and equitable access systems.

The lesson we’re carrying forward

Perhaps the most important lesson emerging from this work: inclusion is grounded in relationships, strengthened through training, and sustained by systems, not by individuals alone. When access is embedded into how organizations operate, it becomes part of communal life.

Beyond JDAIM

This JDAIM, we are not just raising awareness. We are witnessing growth—imperfect, iterative, and deeply committed. Our community is learning what it truly means to create Jewish spaces where young adults with disabilities are not merely accommodated, but genuinely welcomed, supported, and able to belong.

Ori is 23, and she carries something most adults twice her age still struggle to hold: the responsibility of representing Israel with honesty, heart, and humility—especially to kids. She’s one of 11 community shlichim (Israeli emissaries) bringing Israel to life across Greater Washington through Federation’s Shlichim Program.

Growing up in Moshavat Kinneret, a small community in northern Israel, Ori was surrounded by family, a strong sense of responsibility, and a beloved boxer dog she still misses. Before coming to Greater Washington, Ori spent two summers at a Jewish camp in upstate New York.

Teaching Israel in a Complicated Moment

Now living in Greater Washington, Ori spends her days with children, parents, and educators—teaching Hebrew, leading workshops, and helping our community deepen its connection to Israeli life and culture. But talking about Israel isn’t as simple as it used to be. She says it’s gotten harder in the last few years. Kids are asking deeper questions. There’s no single story to tell.

“I’m not saying Israel is perfect,” she says. “Like anything else, there are things that are good and things that are bad. I want to show them both sides.” Ori doesn’t pretend otherwise. She listens, brings her own questions, and creates space for kids to talk about Israel with curiosity, honesty, and care.

Pride Without Pretending

Ori loves teaching about Israel’s creativity—from everyday inventions to world-changing breakthroughs, like cherry tomatoes. “The best invention,” she says, laughing.

Through Made in Israel, an interactive Hands-on Israel workshop she leads, participants explore the Israeli innovations they’ve heard of and many they haven’t. They learn about the brilliant minds behind these inventions through games and challenges that spark curiosity and pride. Ori’s goal is more than just facts. She shows people that Israel is a place of ideas, impact, and imagination.

Teaching Joy, Too

For Ori, representing Israel isn’t only about navigating complexity—it’s also about sharing joy. She brings Israeli traditions into American Jewish life in ways that feel lasting and personal. “We’re not sitting sad and miserable in Israel—we’re happy,” she says. “We’re living.” That’s what she wants kids to see: that Israel is a home, full of celebration, tradition, and joy.

Ori’s work is part of a larger effort to build people-to-people connection through immersive, everyday experiences. Through Federation’s Shlichim Program, Israeli emissaries like Ori help bring Israel to life in schools, synagogues, JCCs, and more—creating personal, lasting moments of understanding and connection across Greater Washington.

Bringing Community with Her

Ori often talks about the community she grew up in—a kibbutz where kids moved freely, everyone knew each other, and life felt safe and shared. “It’s a very community-like place,” she says. “It’s a safe space… I really, really love it.” That sense of belonging is something she carries with her. And through her teaching, she hopes to help create more of that feeling for the children and families she meets here.

Leaving Something Behind

One of the biggest surprises for Ori has been seeing what Jewish life looks like outside of Israel. She didn’t know what to expect. But she’s found deep relationships, strong communities, and new ways of expressing Jewish identity that continue to shape her own perspective. Ori wants to bring more of Israel into Jewish spaces here, and she hopes the connections she’s made will last long after she leaves.

“I don’t want to just be a shlicha who came and left,” she says. “I want to leave something behind.”

Looking Ahead

When she thinks about the future of Jewish life in the U.S., Ori doesn’t hesitate. She hopes people feel safe being openly Jewish. She hopes for greater unity, more listening, and a community that remains a source of strength, even in uncertain times. Until then, she’s teaching, learning, and building relationships—one day, one conversation at a time.

Continue the Conversation at RE:Israel

Ori’s story reflects the honest, values-driven work of Israel education today—work that feels more urgent than ever. In the wake of October 7, educators, parents, and communal leaders are grappling with big, essential questions:

• How do we teach and talk about Israel with clarity and care?
• How do we support young people in holding complexity without letting go of connection?
• And how do we reframe Israel education for this new era, with tools that are honest, nuanced, and real?

These conversations will take center stage on Tuesday, February 24, at RE:Israel: Reflect. Reframe. Reconnect., a half-day learning experience for educators, communal professionals, lay leaders, and parents seeking thoughtful, practical engagement with Israel education in this moment.