Two years ago on a Sunday morning, a 9-
year-old boy named Jacob recognized the Hebrew letter "bet." Looking at a picture of a ball with bet in the middle, with his teaching assistant,
Rebecca Redner P'03, by hisside, Jacob made the connection. The two were ecstatic. Jacob has autism, and this was the first time he had ever read.
Then a senior at Hebrew College's Prozdor, Redner worked with Jacob at Etgar L'Noar, a community Jewish education program that provides Sunday school classes and b'nai mitzvah training for children with special needs. Prozdor students are key to the Etgar team, as are Hebrew College grad students who pair with individual children as part of their Jewish special education training. For the teens, volunteering at Etgaris a way to live Jewish values as well as to explore their own Jewish identities.
"The kids loved learning about the Jewish holidays," Redner says. "It had more meaning for me seeing how much meaning it had for them and passing it on."
In addition to a main teacher and music therapist, the Etgar classroom staff includes teen volunteers who are paired with Etgar children. That's where Prozdor11th and 12th graders come in.
Volunteers go through an interview and essay selection process and receive Prozdor credits for their participation. They serve as aides for an hour-and-a-half during classon Sundays and then participate in a weekly half-hour training session. Some alsotutor b'nai mitzvah students and volunteer for Mitzvah Mensches, a post-b'nai mitzvah program for 13- to 15-year-olds.
"Prozdor students are essentially exposed to Special Ed 101," says
Arlene Remz Me'ah'02, executive director of Etgar L'Noar.
The Prozdor training sessions are led by volunteer training coordinator Andrea Lesser-Gonzalez, who also supervises the teens in the Etgar classroom. In some sessions, guest speakers make presentations on topics such as autism, assistive technology devices and speech therapy. Scheduling training right after class also gives teen volunteers the chance to debrief on their day's experiences and ask questions.
"Having Prozdor as a feeder source of volunteers has made it much easier forus. It's an absolutely integral part of our program and a very important factor inour ability to grow," Remz says.
In the last three years, for example, the program has expanded from 15 to more than 40 Prozdor volunteers. Remzsays Etgar's move this fall to Hebrew College-from previous locations at MountIda College and The Leventhal-Sidman Jewish Community Center-has many benefits for the children as well:
"Participating in their educational experience in a setting where there are hundreds of typical teenagers engaged in Jewish education enables [Etgar] children to be less isolated."
And the benefits go both ways. In thepast few years, many Prozdor student shave grown emotionally and Judaically from their interactions with special needs children. Bringing Etgar to Hebrew College also means that even Prozdor students who are not volunteering have informal opportunities to interact with Etgar children.
"Making a difference in others' lives comes back to [Prozdor students] as transformative, "says
Margie Berkowitz P'61,MJEd'82, director of Prozdor. "It's developing in them an appreciation of their own lives and blessings and a sensitivity to break down barriers."
An increasingly popular Prozdor elective, Etgar volunteerism appeals to teens with diverse skills and personality types. Those with patience, a love of children and an excellent attendance record emerge asbest-suited for the job. (Etgar children are greatly disappointed when their volunteers don't show up.)
"We want Prozdor students to understand this is part of their Jewish identity-living to do good in the world, " says Berkowitz. "We want to take it beyond the slogan of
tikkun olam to make it a meaningful experience for them."
Enriched by her fulfilling volunteering experience at Etgar, Redner has decided to major in special education as a sophomore at Boston University."I have no idea where I'll end up, " she says, "but I know who I'll be working with."
-JWG
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Photo by Justin Allardyce Knight
Etgar student Andrew Blacker with Prozdor volunteer Ali Kotzen |
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