JCA - Teen Programs

JCA TEEN PROGRAMMING
	JTOV: Jewish Teens of the Valley is a collective of Upper Pioneer Valley teens from Beit Ahavah, Congregation B'nai Israel, JCA, Temple Israel of Greenfield, and unaffiliated teens. JTOV hosts the monthly Rosh Hodesh groups and regional events such as the Gleaning Project and Dreidel Dance.
	Rosh Hodesh: It’s a Girl Thing! is a fun, interactive program for Jewish girls featuring activities such as art, drama, group discussions, and creative movement to make Judaism feel more authentic and relevant. Girls meet once a month to talk, be heard, think, discover, eat, listen, create, and hang out with other Jewish girls their age. (Parents are not allowed at regular meetings.) Sponsored by JTOV, Rosh Hodesh will feature two groups for 2011–12 led by our fabulous facilitators: Amy Epstein for seventh and eighth grade and Becky Lederman for ninth and tenth grade.
	JVCorps: Jewish Volunteer Corps for Teens allows teens to prepare and serve meals at the Amherst Survival Center one Thursday per month. Teens may volunteer as often or as infrequently as their schedules permit. Participants may volunteer for the early slot (3:45–5:30 p.m.) or the late slot (5:15–7:00 p.m.). A trained madrich(a) — an assistant in eleventh or twelfth grade — and parent volunteers chaperone all sessions. This program is sponsored by the JCA and is open to teens in seventh grade or above (you do not need to be a JCA member to participate). All donations provide food for meals at the survival center.
JCAT: Jewish Community of Amherst Teens group hosts monthly programs at the JCA, at other locations in the Pioneer Valley, and outside of Western Massachusetts. Programming has included white-water rafting, movie nights, overnights, Rosh Hashanah teen services, chocolate making and more. This program is sponsored by the JCA and is open to any interested teens in seventh through ninth grade (you do not need to be a JCA member to participate). JCAT members may attend programs either for free or for a significant discount (the costs depend on the program). Rachael Goren-Watts is the director of teen programming at the JCA and the coordinator of JTOV: Jewish Teens of the Valley. As she enters her eighth year in these roles, she is excited to continue offering a variety of meaningful programs to the Jewish youth of the Pioneer Valley. Rachael has a B.A. in Near Eastern and Judaic studies and women's studies from Brandeis University and an MPH in community health education from UMass Amherst. She is currently finishing up a Psy.D. in clinical psychology at Antioch University New England. She has a great deal of experience working with youth and teens and has a background in college counseling. She has provided teen programming in the Boston and Philadelphia areas and also previously served as director of Camp Shemesh. She believes strongly in empowering teens to become leaders and make a difference in their communities. Teen programming staff: Eric DeLisle, education assistant Amy Epstein, Rosh Hodesh leader David Gamliel, assistant advisor Aaron Kagan, JVCorps advisor Becky Lederman, Rosh Hodesh leader Josefa Scherer-Williams, assistant advisor Cara Silverberg, teen program coordinator and TA liaison with the JCA School For additional information about any of our teen programs, please contact Rachael Goren-Watts, director of teen programming, at 256-0160, ext. 203, or at teendir@j-c-a.org.

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