Ask a teen about their Jewish community and they may give you one of a few responses. Some might say they love their youth group. Others might say they are involved in community service organizations. A few may tell you that they go to day school or religious school and that is their Jewish life. They might tell you they go to Prozdor. Others will say they are a member of a synagogue and that is enough for them and their family. Interestingly enough, few of them would say that they are part of the Boston Jewish community.

There are so many wonderful programs in our community, each of which has fantastic things that happen throughout the year. There are travel weekends, international trips, service learning experiences, conventions and conclaves, boys and girls groups, and leadership programs for Jewish teens across the denominational spectrum. Despite the richness of our community’s offering, it is not often that the entire community comes together as one; we have the same goals but rarely work together to accomplish them!

Not this time.

Teens and professionals from Prozdor, CJP, USY, NFTY, BBYO, the JCC Diller Teen Fellowship, Moving Traditions, JSU and Alexander Muss High School in Israel have come together for a day of teen discovery at the first annual Greater Boston Jewish Youth Summit.

Teens between grades 8 and 12 are invited to Hebrew College on Sunday, May 20, from 2:00-6:00 pm to learn what being a Jewish teen is all about.

Teachers, Educators, Youth Directors and Jewish professionals from all over Greater Boston will be facilitating a wide variety of workshops all aimed at fostering and inspiring teen leadership in our community.

A few sample workshops will include:

• Pluralism: Easy to Say, Hard to Do
• Leadership: From Theory to Practice
• Social Media 101
• Jewish Resources for Teens
• Israel: Ways to Engage
• Real Life 101: How much do things REALLY cost?
• College: Truth or Fiction?

Teens from all areas of Jewish life are invited to attend this event.  To register, please visit http://bit.ly/xRvvJ7.

If you are interested in presenting at the Summit, please contact Matt Jerome at mjerome@hebrewcollege.edu or go to http://bit.ly/yqxF4h.