Note: This event is for educators and administrators in Middle School and High School. Please help us spread the word by sharing this with your network.

A Deeper Dive with
Dr. Dean Bell and Dr. Keren Fraiman from the Spertus Institute

Sunday, December 8, 2024 | 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School
3751 N. Broadway, Chicago, IL 60613

Cost: $54 per attendee | Click here to register

Registration Closes, Tuesday, December 3

Intended Audience

• Individuals who attended our Part 1 Workshop on March 10 or September 29th, including:

  • Secondary School Faculty

  • Heads of School, Assistant Heads of School, Middle and High School Principals

  • DEIJ and DEIB Leaders

  • Middle and High School Curriculum Directors

Join us for a day-long seminar with Dr. Dean Bell and Dr. Keren Fraiman from the Spertus Institute and learn how to unpack case studies in an effort to recognize, respond to, and combat antisemitism.

Increasingly Jewish teens are confronting expressions of antisemitism in school, social settings, general media, and in the online space.  The connection between the Jewish people and Israel often exacerbates and complicates expressions of antisemitism. Their experiences are sadly consistent with a growing and disturbing trend of incidents of antisemitism nationwide, along with growing social polarization and the proliferation of hate crimes.  These experiences have caused Jewish teens increased anxiety, distress, fear, and a heightened sense of self, and, in some cases, struggling more generally. 

This workshop will help us to address several important questions and needs:

• How do Jews and Judaism appear in the DEI space and how can a more complex understanding of the diversity of the Jewish world and the complexity of Judaism (which is not simply a religion) impact and align with work in the DEI space?

• How to understand and teach about/represent the Israel-Palestinian Conflict (and Conflict Education) for our students and constituents; including guiding practices for thinking about, framing, and using information related to Israel and the Conflict; clarifying sought learning outcomes; and understanding the strategies and pedagogical approaches related to engaging with this topic.

• How to navigate antisemitism, anti-Zionism, and critique of Israel, with particular attention to various definitions of antisemitism.

Structure: 

As a follow-up for individuals who participated in “Combating Antisemitism in Secondary Schools Workshop: A Framework for Critical Conversations,” this workshop offers a deeper dive into specific topics that are core to the antisemitic challenges Jewish teens are facing today. This workshop will be grounded in participant experiences and a wide range of case studies, which we will unpack together. There will be an emphasis on the possible intersections between anti-Zionism and critique of Israel with antisemitism, with a special focus on how we engage with Israel pedagogically and when this discussion can become antisemitism and have significant negative impact on Jewish students, families, and communities The workshop also examines the place of Judaism as a religion as well as an ethno-cultural and -national reality and its role within DEI spaces and discussions. In both cases, the workshop will be grounded in participant experiences and a wide range of case studies, which we will unpack together.

Participation in this workshop requires participation in Workshop 1 (above) of the Workshop that was held in March & September 2024.

Lunch and snacks will be provided.

Instructor Bios:

Dr. Keren E. Fraiman is Spertus Institute’s Dean and Chief Academic Officer. She also holds a faculty appointment as Professor of Israel Studies. She previously served as Director of Research and Evaluation at The iCenter for Israel Education, where she continues to serve on the faculty of the iFellows Masters Concentration in Israel Education program. In January 2020, Dr. Fraiman was selected for the prestigious Wexner Field Fellowship, presented by the Wexner Foundation in partnership with the Jim Joseph Foundation. A former Schusterman Israel Scholar, Dr. Fraiman has worked at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis, served as an officer in the IDF, and led trips to Israel as a Facilitator both for Encounter and Birthright Israel. Her work has been supported by the US Institute of Peace, the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism, and the Chicago Project on Security and Terrorism. 

Fraiman is co-editor of The Routledge Handbook of Judaism in the 21st Century and author of the article “Barriers to Entry: Exploring Educator Reticence for Engaging with the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.”

Education: PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; BA, The University of Chicago.

Dr. Dean P. Bell is Spertus Institute’s ninth President and CEO. He also holds a faculty appointment as Professor of History. Dr. Bell has taught at DePaul University, Northwestern University, Hebrew Theological College, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the University of California, Berkeley. He has served as President, Vice-President, and Secretary-Treasurer of the Midwest Jewish Studies Association and has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Association for Jewish Studies. Dr. Bell is a widely published author in the areas of Medieval and Early Modern Jewish history. His current research focuses on interreligious dialogue and leadership and environmental history. Bell is author or editor of 13 books and monographs and dozens of articles, including co-author of Interreligious Resilience: Interreligious Leadership for a Pluralistic World; and co-editor of Jews, Judaism, and the Reformation in Sixteenth-Century Germany. He is Associate Editor of Antisemitism: A Historical Encyclopedia of Prejudice and Persecution.

Education: PhD, University of California, Berkeley; MA, University of California, Berkeley; 

BA, The University of Chicago.

Questions about the program or concerns about cost can be sent to leadership@bernardzell.org

This program is made possible thanks to the generosity of the Magda Brown Fund for Holocaust Education supported by the Lucas Family.

Click here to register

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Co-Sponsors