Weinstein 2024

2024 • ‫מכון ויינשטין | תשפ”ד‬ Bert B. Weinstein Leadership Institute program guide

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I am who I am the rest of the year, in the rest of my life, because I learned how to “be” here at Camp Ramah. Why I’m still here? Because I’m an incomplete project and always will be. And as long as I’m learning how to be me, I feel the pull back to camp to keep trying, keep making mistakes, keep growing.

Jon Adam Ross (JAR)

JAR is the founding artist and the managing director of The In[HEIR]itance Project and a lifelong camper at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin.

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day 1 ‫ברוכים הבאים‬

Thursday January 4 2024

‫כג טבת תשפ”ד‬

3:00

‫ | חטיף‬Chadar Katan

3:30

Icebreakers on the Givah

4:00

‫ | הקדמה | ברוכים הבאים ומנחה‬BKR Track Workshops

4:45

Weinstein Chadar Gadol

Vatikim Chadar Katan

RSC & RCN Staff Lounge

Returning Rashei Edot BKR

Vocational Training Ezra Moadon

Tikvah Staff Building A

‫ | ארוחת ערב‬Chadar Sheini

6:00 Meetings by Camp 6:45

Berkshires | Sifriya Chadasha California | Rabbi Joe’s House

Canada | Whizin Darom | BKR Galim | Building A New England | Staff Lounge

Nyack | Chadar Katan Poconos | Chadar Gadol Rockies | Building B Wisconsin | Mercaz

7:30

‫ מעריב‬/ ‫ | פעולת ערב‬Chadar Gadol

8:30

‫ משמר‬/ ‫ | חטיף‬Chadar Katan

‫יום עיון‬

day 2

Friday January 5 2024

‫כד טבת תשפ”ד‬

8:00

‫ | שחרית‬Chadar Gadol

8:45

‫ | ארוחת בוקר‬Chadar Sheini

9:30

Block 1 | Strengthening Our Core: Jewish Learning at Ramah

10:15

Block 2 | Opening Our Hearts: Camper and Staff Care

‫ | חטיף‬Chadar Katan

11:00 11:15 12:00

Block 3 | Appreciating Our Industry: The Bigger Picture

‫ | ארוחת צהריים‬Givah

1:30

T-Shirts, Photos, and Rikkud | Givah

2:00

Block 4 | Choosing Our Passions: Chuggim

2:45

‫ הכנה לשבת‬/ ‫זמן חופשי‬

4:30

‫ | קבלת שבת ומעריב‬Chadar Gadol

6:00

Block 5 | Filling Our Cups: Shabbat ‫לימוד‬

8:30

Vocational Training Ezra Moadon Vocational Training Ezra Moadon

You’ve Been Bamboozled! | Chadar Gadol

1:00

7:00

Vocational Training Ezra Moadon

‫ | סעודת שבת וזמירות‬Chadar Sheini and Chadar Gadol ‫ עונגי שבת‬by Camp Berkshires | Sifriya Chadasha California | Rabbi Joe’s House

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Canada | Whizin Darom | BKR Galim | Building A New England | Staff Lounge

Nyack | Chadar Katan Poconos | Chadar Gadol Rockies | Building B Wisconsin | Mercaz

day 3

‫שבת‬

Saturday January 6 2024

‫כה טבת תשפ”ד‬

‫ | ארוחת בוקר‬Chadar Sheini

8:15

‫שחרית‬ 9:00

Traditional | Chadar Gadol Tefilat Tikvah | Mercaz Tefilat Yeladim | BKR

10:00

(‫ | קריאת התורה ומוסף )פרשת שמות‬Chadar Gadol

12:00

Block 6 | Refilling Our Cup: Shabbat ‫לימוד‬

1:00

‫ | ארוחת צהריים‬Chadar Sheini

2:00

‫זמן חופשי‬

3:30

‫ | פעולת שבת‬Chadar Gadol

4:15

‫ | מנחה‬Chadar Gadol

5:00

‫ס‬

‫ | סעודה שלישית וזמירות‬Chadar Sheini and Chadar Gadol

5:45

‫ | מעריב | הבדלה | ריקוד‬Chadar Gadol

7:00

‫ | ארוחת ערב‬Chadar Sheini

7:45

Highlights of the Ramah Camping Movement | BKR

8:45

Warming Our Spirits: ‫ | מדורה‬Ma’agal Ilan

day 4

‫קדימה‬

Sunday January 7 2024

‫כו טבת תשפ”ד‬

8:30

‫ | שחרית‬Chadar Gadol

9:15

‫ | ארוחת בוקר‬Chadar Sheini Track Workshops

10:00

Weinstein Chadar Gadol

Vatikim Chadar Katan

RSC & RCN Staff Lounge

Returning Rashei Edot BKR

Vocational Training Ezra Moadon

Tikvah Staff Building A

‫ | היום יום דואר‬BKR

11:00 11:45

‫ו‬

‫ להתראות‬to Weinstein participants / Lunch for those staying an extra day

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‫יום עיון‬

day 2

Friday January 5 2024

‫כד טבת תשפ”ד‬

Block 1|Strengthening Our Core: Jewish Learning at Ramah 9:30AM - 10:15AM

Heart-Head-Hand

Sifriya Chadasha

Dr. Jonathan Golden

Building Inclusive Communities at Camp and Beyond Mercaz

The Shalom Hartman Institute

Dr. Daniel Olson

Finding those Mah Rabu Moments: Making Tefillot the Highlight of the Summer

Maya Albin

Chadar Katan

Alli Moses

Ramah Galim

National Ramah National Ramah

Talk the Talk and Walk the Walk: Bringing Your Values to Life BKR

Ariella Moss Peterseil Ramah California

Block 2|Opening Our Hearts: Camper and Staff Care 10:15AM - 11:00AM

Self-Advocacy at Camp Building A

Noah Averick

Ramah Poconos

Troubleshooting Challenges to Inclusive Communities Whizin

Orlee Krass

Ramah Poconos

Making Your Camper Feel 10 Feet Tall Chadar Katan

Michelle Sugarman Ramah New England

The Intersection of Gender and Mental Health at Camp Chadar Gadol

Dr. Daniel Olson National Ramah

Maya Klareich National Ramah

Block 3|Appreciating Our Industry: The Bigger Picture 11:15AM - 12:00PM

Rosh Edah Panel Chadar Gadol

Amy Skopp Cooper National Ramah

Hearing from You: A Year-Round Engagement Discussion Chadar Katan

Adina Beiner

Ramah Wisconsin

The Business of Camp BKR

Rabbi Joe Menashe Ramah California

Rabbi Ami Hersh Ramah Nyack

Anna Serviansky Ramah Darom

The Best Work Experience You’ll Ever Get: How Camp Will Prepare You for the “Real World” Sifriya Chadasha

Adina Scheinberg National Ramah 6 | Bert B. Weinstein Leadership Institute

‫יום עיון‬

day 2

Friday January 5 2024

‫כד טבת תשפ”ד‬

Block 4|Choosing our passions: chuggim 2:00PM - 2:45PM

Basketball/Sports

RamahCappella

Shaya Kalmanofsky

Dr. Daniel Olson

Ramah Berkshires

National Ramah

Hike

Shabbat-O-Gram/Shabbat Decoration Making

BKR

Sports Courts

Meet at bottom of the Givah

Chadar Katan

Mirit Sands

Molly Auerbach

Ramah Rockies

Ramah California

Talia Patt

Ramah California

Block 5|Filling Our Cups: Shabbat 6:00PM - 7:00PM

GodTalk

Power, Vulnerability, and This Moment for Israel and the Jewish People

Chadar Katan

Rabbi Ami Hersh

BKR

Ramah Nyack

Dr. Jonathan Golden

The Shalom Hartman Institute

My Eight Weeks in Israel

The Language of Hate: Echoes of Parshat Shemot and Migdal Bavel

Amy Skopp Cooper

Sophie Libow

Mercaz

Chadar Gadol

Ramah Nyack

Ramah Nyack

‫שבת‬

day 3

Saturday January 6 2024

‫כה טבת תשפ”ד‬

Block 6|Refilling Our Cups: shabbat 12:00PM - 1:00PM

Insights from the Parsha

the people we become

Rabbi Joe Menashe

Mirit Sands

BKR

Ramah California

Power, Vulnerability, and This Moment for Israel and the Jewish People Sifriya Chadasha

Dr. Jonathan Golden

The Shalom Hartman Institute

Mercaz

Ramah Rockies

Nonviolent Communication: Could it Have Helped Our Patriarchs? Could it Help Us? Chadar Gadol

Anna Serviansky Ramah Darom

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schedule for vatikim

day 4

‫קדימה‬

Sunday January 7 2024

‫כו טבת תשפ”ד‬

8:30

‫ | שחרית‬Chadar Gadol

9:15

‫ | ארוחת בוקר‬Chadar Sheini Track Workshops

10:00

Weinstein Chadar Gadol

Vatikim Chadar Katan

RSC & RCN Staff Lounge

Returning Rashei Edot BKR

Vocational Training Ezra Moadon

Tikvah Staff Building A

‫ | היום יום דואר‬BKR

11:00 11:45

‫ו‬

‫ להתראות‬to Weinstein participants/ Lunch for those staying an extra day

1:00

Free time in Ojai

3:00

Service Project

6:00

‫ארוחת ערב‬

8:00

‫פעולת ערב‬

day 5

‫תוספת‬

Monday January 8 2024

‫כז טבת תשפ”ד‬

8:00

‫ארוחת בוקר‬

8:30

Leave camp for Santa Barbara

9:30

Tefillot Afloat

12:00

‫ארוחת צהריים‬

1:15 4:00

Low tide

‫פעולת ראש חודש‬

Depart for airport

Ramah is grateful to the Jim Joseph Foundation; The Immerman Foundation, a supporting foundation of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland; Jewish National Fund; Nefesh B’Nefesh; Leo Oppenheimer & Flora Oppenheimer Haas Foundation; the Shalom Hartman Institute; and KKL for their generous support.

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program tracks Bert B. Weinstein Institute for Counselor Training The Bert B. Weinstein Institute is the National Ramah Commission’s signature counselor training and leadership program for incoming senior counselors. Participants work with Ramah directors and senior staff to hone critical skills, enhance programming, and share best practices from across the Ramah movement.

Vatikim Leadership Institute The Vatikim Leadership Institute is a program designed for experienced senior counselors. Geared toward upper-level students (returning for their third summer as a counselor), this track focuses on more advanced topics of culture-building, staff dynamics, mentorship, and other leadership development skills.

Rashei Edot Rashei Edot are division leaders who will be returning to camp as supervisors this coming summer.

At the conference, they will be learning from Ramah senior staff, leading and facilitating sessions for other cohorts, and overseeing components of the Weinstein Institute, providing them with hands-on opportunities to practice organization and executive functioning in a camp environment.

Ramah College Network Ramah College Network (RCN) Coordinators implement Ramah-style programs on their university campuses. Events range from Shabbat and holiday celebrations to social and learning opportunities.

At the conference, RCN Coodinators will develop leadership skills and applications for community engagement on campus.

Ramah Service Corps Ramah Service Corps (RSC) Fellows work with their home camps to create experiential programs, as well as assist with local recruitment efforts. At the conference, the RSC cohort will reflect on their past semester of work, brainstorm effective programming, and develop new educational resources to bring back to their home communities.

Tikvah Tikvah is Ramah’s movement-wide network of programs for children, teens, and young adults with disabilities. Our Tikvah staff participants at the conference will be focusing on strategies and educational methods relating to building daily routines, nurturing independent living skills, collaboration with families, and strengthening inclusion efforts.

vocational training The Vocational Training Track provides leadership training and skill development to Ramah staff and vocational training participants with disabilities. Tikvah-supported staff members from various Ramah camps will come together to network and develop skills for Kayitz 2024 and beyond.

maslul Yisrael fellows Maslul Yisrael convenes a group of returning Ramah staff as they utilize Jewish texts, values, and ideas to explore how Israel fits into their North American Jewish identities. Maslul Yisrael Fellows will develop a set of tools and frameworks to foster substantive and compelling educational experiences about Israel at camp.

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Ramah California, 1950s 10 | Bert B. Weinstein Leadership Institute

To see the full force of the Ramah movement, represented all the way from Canada to Brazil, at Weinstein was inspiring and empowering. Weinstein was a veritable melting pot of programming ideas, culture, and spirit that allowed me to grow in every aspect, personally and professionally.

Weinstein 2023 participant

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Ramah senior staff and faculty

Tobi Afran

Maya Albin

Molly Auerbach

Tobi is the assistant director at Ramah Poconos. She was a longtime camper and tzevet member at Poconos before joining the year-round team.

Tobi is also currently a student at JTS’s Davidson School of Education, getting a master’s in Jewish educational leadership.

Maya is the TikvahNet coordinator at the National Ramah Commission. Maya spent many summers at Ramah Canada as a camper and tzevet member. She also worked at Ramah Darom to help establish their vocational training program. Maya completed her BAH in psychology at Queen’s University, and her MSc in speechlanguage pathology at McMaster University. Maya lives in Toronto, Ontario, and works as a speechlanguage pathologist (SLP).

Molly is a program coordinator at Ramah California. Originally from Denver, she is a recent graduate of Emory University with degrees in mathematics and Hebrew.

Before her full-time role at Ramah, Molly served as the Springboard innovation fellow at UCLA Hillel.

Molly has spent 17 incredible summers at camp, five of them as a madricha and two as a rosh edah. Molly’s favorite activities at camp are going on weekly Shabbat walks, busting her moves in rikkud, and uncontrollably laughing.

Noah Averick

Adina Beiner

Dr. Jonathan Golden

Noah is the staff recruitment & experience coordinator at Ramah Poconos. He started as a camper in 2007 and has worked at the overnight camp for several summers. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 2020, where he majored in nonprofit management and philosophy.

After college he worked in development for a Philadelphia nonprofit. Noah focuses on improving staff recruitment, as well as expanding our staff programming and appreciation strategies.

Adina grew up in the mountains of Ramah Darom and she now summers in the Northwoods as the assistant director of Ramah Wisconsin, where she learned how to wear a coat in the summer. Adina’s favorite parts about camp include Rosh Chodesh, Silly Sock Sunday, and of course, helping create magical and meaningful experiences for both campers and staff. Adina is currently pursuing her doctorate in education from Northeastern University with a focus on counselor retention at Jewish summer camps.

Jonathan is director of Wellspring Leadership Initiatives at and interim director of Boston at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America. A graduate of Princeton University, Jonathan received his MJEd from Hebrew College and PhD from Brandeis University. As a member of a Conservative synagogue in his childhood, a Reform community in college, modern Orthodox synagogues in his 20s, and the independent Temple Beth Zion today, Jonathan is interested in historical and contemporary questions of Jewish pluralism.

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Rabbi Ami Hersh

Shaya Kalmanofsky

Maya Klareich

Ami is the director of Ramah Nyack and has worked at Nyack since 2000. Ami, an alum of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, was ordained at JTS in May 2012 and also received an MA in Jewish education from the Davidson School of Jewish Education in 2013. A graduate of the University of Hartford, he holds degrees in elementary education and Judaic studies.

Shaya is the programming and community engagement coordinator at Ramah Berkshires (CRB). Originally from NYC, Shaya started attending CRB as a Cochavim camper in 2008.

He began as a tzevet member at Ramah Nyack then was a madrich and rosh edah at CRB. Before joining the year-round team at CRB, Shaya spent two years living in New Orleans and working at Tulane Hillel. He is so excited to be back at CRB and can’t wait for Kayitz 2024.

Maya (she/her) is a program director at the National Ramah Commission and has spent her summers at Ramah California since 2008. She graduated from Brandeis University in May 2022, with a BA in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, and minors in anthropology and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Maya’s silliest camp story involves a fake wedding, One Direction, a Bruno Mars music video, and a yellow paper bracelet. (Find her and ask to hear more.)

Michal Kogen Kress

Orlee krass

Sophie libow

Michal is the assistant director of Ramah California. She began her Ramah journey at a young age in the gan. She spent her summers in Ojai as a chanicha, madricha, and member of the special programming team. Michal came back to her second home in 2016 working for the development team at Ramah California, and most recently worked at BJE running the Los Angeles teen delegation of March of the Living.

She is very excited to be back on the year-round team with her two kids growing up in the gan just like her.

Orlee is the Tikvah director at Ramah Poconos. Originally from Rockland County, NY, Orlee grew up at Ramah Nyack as a camper, counselor, and rosh edah. A graduate of the Nativ program, the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and Mercy College, Orlee holds a BA and an MA in Judaic studies and education. Orlee has also served as the director of camper care at Ramah Nyack.

Sophie (she/her) is the program coordinator at Ramah Nyack She grew up at Ramah Canada, where she was a camper, counselor, and a rosh edah, working primarily in the Tikvah program. Sophie grew up in Orlando, Florida, and then went on to Washington University in St. Louis, earning degrees in environmental studies and writing. Sophie spent a year studying at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem.

In her free time, Sophie loves yoga, vegan cooking, and dance parties on the migrash.

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Ramah senior staff and faculty

Rabbi Joe Menashe

Alli Moses

Ariella Moss Peterseil

Joe is the executive director of Ramah California. He hails from Portland, Oregon, and has been a part of the Ramah family since 1995. Rabbi Joe received a BA from the University of Pennsylvania in 1993. He obtained a master of Hebrew letters from the University of Judaism in Los Angeles in 1996 and received his rabbinic ordination and an MA from JTS in 2000.

Alli is the assistant director at Ramah Galim. She received a BA in psychology and Jewish studies from Muhlenberg College and an MA in Jewish Educational Leadership from the Davidson School at JTS in New York, where she currently lives. During her study abroad experience in Israel, Alli heard about Ramah Galim and has been spending her summers immersed in this incredible community ever since, first as a madricha and then as a rosh edah.

Ariella is the camp director of Ramah California. Ariella came to Camp Ramah as a shlicha and served on staff at Ramah Canada for over a decade. Before she joined the Ojai community, Ariella was the assistant director at Ramah Canada. She studied Jewish philosophy at Hebrew University and theatre production at the School of Visual Theatre in Jerusalem.

Deret Musselman

Dr. Daniel Olson

Talia Patt

Deret serves as the director of community care at Ramah Galim, bringing over 5 years of dedicated service to the camp, including two years on the year-round team. Originally from Flagstaff, Arizona, Deret pursued studies in social work at Arizona State before obtaining his MSW at Northern Arizona University.

Beyond his professional commitments, Deret enjoys the culinary arts, particularly crafting his own pickles and kombucha.

Daniel has worked at the National Ramah Commission since 2021. His work at NRC encompasses staff development, day camps, mental health, and inclusion. In 2023, he served as the summer assistant director at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires.

He completed his PhD in Education and Jewish Studies at NYU in 2020. He attended Ramah Wisconsin as a camper and worked for many summers in Tikvah.

Talia is a program coordinator at Ramah California. She started on staff, and after being a counselor, was also a rosh edah before becoming program coordinator. Talia attended UC Berkeley, where she majored in cognitive science and minored in education. A fun fact about Talia is that she was a competitive gymnast until the age of 18 and can still walk on her hands!

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Mirit Sands

Adina Scheinberg

Anna Serviansky

As camp life director of Ramah Rockies, Mirit brings her passion for relational engagement, curriculum development, and leadership training to her work.

She graduated from JTS’s List College and the Davidson School of Jewish Education, served as rosh edah and program coordinator at Ramah Berkshires, and worked at Central Synagogue.

She loves listening and dancing to music, rooting for the New Orleans Saints, and making her way through New York Times recipes.

Adina is the senior program director at the National Ramah Commission, where she runs leadership training programs and alumni events for Ramahniks.

Recently a rosh edah at Ramah Galim, she has spent time as a chanicha, madricha, and rosh edah at Ramah Berkshires and also had a brief stint at Ramah Nyack in 2008. Adina loves theme-based hadracha, and she once ran an egg-themed shavuah hachanah! She can’t wait for a spirited Weinstein to get tzevet members hyped for Kayitz 2024.

Anna is camp director and head of education at Ramah Darom.

Anna fell in love with Ramah working at Ramah Darom in its early years. After a career as an attorney, she returned to her passion of Jewish education, working at NRC and Ramah Nyack. Prior to her current role, Anna served for six years as associate dean of List College.

Amy Skopp Cooper

Michelle Sugarman

Amy is the director of the National Ramah Commission.

Previously, Amy served as associate director from 20042021 and as director of the Ramah Nyack from 1997-2017. A graduate of Hebrew University, Amy holds degrees in Jewish history and Jewish education.

She received her MA from Brandeis University in Jewish education and communal service and is a recipient of the 2011 Covenant Award for outstanding Jewish educators.

Michelle is the co-director of Ramah New England. Originally from Scranton, PA, she was a longtime camper and staff member at Ramah Poconos, spending 26 summers there, including 12 as the assistant and then associate director. She earned her BA in Jewish studies and MSW from Temple University, and has also worked as director of the N.A. Office of Academic Affairs of Hebrew University.

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‫האי גברא עלמא בחרובא אשכחתיה כי היכי דשתלי לי אבהתי‬ ‫שתלי נמי לבראי‬ When I was born, I inherited a world full of carob trees. Just as my ancestors planted for me, I too am planting for my children and grandchildren.

‫ תענית כ‘‘ג א‬,‫תלמוד בבלי‬

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Ramah Wisconsin, 1950s Bert B. Weinstein Leadership Institute | 17

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OVERNIGHT CAMPS Berkshires • California • Canada • Darom Israel • New England • Northern California (Galim) Poconos • Rockies • Wisconsin

DAY CAMPS

Boston • Chicagoland • Greater DC Jerusalem • Los Angeles • Nyack • Philadelphia

RAMAH ISRAEL Ramah Israel Seminar • Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim (TRY) Ramah Israel Institute: Synagogue, School, Family, and Adult Trips

NATIONAL RAMAH TIKVAH NETWORK Programs for Children, Teens, and Young Adults with Disabilities Inclusion Camping • Vocational Training • TikvahNet Family Camps • Staff Professional Development