What We Do

Major Programs, Projects, and Resources
2009–2010

Institute for Educators

Four-days of intensive professional development offers 25 educators from around the country the chance to work with scholars and master teachers to integrate the stories of American Jewish lives, past and present, into their teaching. The institute in July 2010 will focus on the history of American Jews and the Civil Rights Movement. Funded by the Dorot Foundation.

"Go & Learn"

Fifteen downloadable lesson plans with primary documents are designed to help Jewish educators make their teaching more inclusive and engaging to students in both formal and informal settings.

*Online Encyclopedia

Formerly available only on CD-ROM, the online version of Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia, edited by Paula Hyman and Dalia Ofer, includes approximately 2,000 searchable articles on the lives and achievements of Jewish women in dozens of different fields.

*"Jewesses with Attitude" Blog

Jewish women share their thoughts about politics and pop culture, sexuality and social justice, feminism and food.

"Making Trouble"

This award-winning documentary film about three generations of funny Jewish women, produced by the Jewish Women's Archive, is hosted by four of today's leading Jewish comedians. Downloadable Discussion Guide. Now available on DVD.

Online Exhibits

• Contemporary Activists celebrates the life choices and accomplishments of Jewish women making change in four late 20th century American cities.
• History Makers highlights the achievements of 16 trailblazing American Jewish women. A complementary series of posters illustrates their inspiring stories.
• "Jewish Women and the Feminist Revolution" explores the profound impact Jewish women had on the women's movement and on American Jewish life.
• "Katrina's Jewish Voices" documents the experiences of Jewish residents of the Gulf Coast and the response of the national Jewish community during and after Hurricane Katrina.

*"This Week In History"

This weekly calendar that matches the current date with events in American Jewish women's history, from 1654 to the present, can be read on jwa.org, in a weekly e-letter, or embedded on a blog or website.

*"We Remember"

This growing online collection contains reminiscences of a remarkable variety of recently deceased American Jewish women who made a difference in their community and beyond.

Coming soon from the Jewish Women's Archive

"Living the Legacy": A Jewish Social Justice Education Project

This online curriculum uses primary sources to explore the role of American Jews in the Civil Rights and Labor Movements. Educators working in both formal and informal settings with students in high school and advanced junior high can use the curriculum in its entirety or choose individual lessons to teach. Funded in part by the Covenant Foundation.

"Unlocking the Archive"

This new tool designed by JWA will allow users to bring together digital material and "remix" it to create their own multi-media presentations that can be easily displayed and shared on the Web. Funded in part by the Revson Foundation.

"Bat Mitzvah Interactive"

This online initiative will make the bat mitzvah a personally meaningful milestone for girls and their families by helping girls uncover family stories and reflect on the significance of their heritage. Bat mitzvah-age girls will use an interactive “tool kit” to conduct interviews, collect family artifacts, and discover new role models. Funded in part by the Boston Jewish Community Women’s Fund and the Polinger Family Foundation.

*Website visitors invited to add comments or updates, and to create content.