News

Earlier this year, Koret partnered with Rosov Consulting and EarlyJ to research the Jewish early childhood education landscape in the Bay Area. Our findings led EarlyJ to expand a pilot program providing funding for Bay Area Jewish preschools to offer increased financial aid, attract and retain teachers, and increase security following the October 7 attacks. One school, the Gan Preschool in San Rafael, used funding to support three new Israeli families.

Chag Pesach sameach! Across the Bay Area, local congregations and community organizations will host Passover Seders and holiday gatherings. Read more to find a celebration near you.

Yehuda Kurtzer, President of the Shalom Hartman Institute, recently spoke at the Helen Diller Institute for Jewish Law and Israel Studies at UC Berkeley to discuss American Judaism and the transition point that American Jews currently find themselves in.

After the devastating attacks on Oct. 7, IsraAID used their humanitarian, technical, and mental health expertise to launch a large-scale response at home. In an op-ed for EJP, IsraAID CEO Yotam Polizer reflects on the unique challenges in Israel, and what it takes to rebuild resilience.

JCCSF recently hosted “Soul Vey,” an event celebrating Judaism, Black History Month, and Women’s History Month. The event brought Black and Jewish communities together to break bread over a culturally diverse Shabbat meal.

USC Shoah Foundation and the National Library of Israel signed an agreement to make Shoah’s full collection of survivor testimonies from the Holocaust and the October 7 attacks publicly available to all Israelis.

ANU Museum of the Jewish People recently opened a full, temporary exhibition entitled “October Seventh” featuring dozens of works by Israeli artists responding and related to the Hamas massacres and the ongoing war.

The California Department of Education recently launched an oral history speaker series to bring Holocaust testimony to public school districts across the state. With support from the JFCS, the series aims to give students a deeper understanding of the Holocaust by allowing them to hear directly from survivors and their family members.

Jewish Story Partners (JSP) believes that films generate empathy, inviting Jews and non-Jews alike to see each other across perceived boundaries and gain insight into the human condition. JSP has funded 85 films in its first two years, selected from well over 700 applications. We spoke with Roberta Grossman, JSP’s co-executive director, about the diversity of films JSP funds and the range of additional support it offers filmmakers to maximize impact.

MLK Day is the only federal holiday designated as a National Day of Service to encourage all Americans to volunteer in their communities, and the Bay Area Jewish community is hosting a number of events to honor his legacy through faith, social justice and service.

The USC Shoah Foundation, which was created to record and gather the testimonies of Holocaust survivors, is now working to do the same for the victims of Hamas’s attack in southern Israel, which was the largest number of Jews murdered in a single day since the Holocaust.

The San Francisco Jewish Film Festival has selected eight documentaries supported by Jewish Story Partners for this year’s event. Learn more about the selected movies and the event.