Jewish Teens Guide to Leadership & Fellowships

Teens looking for a structured, values-based learning and leadership experience that combines Jewish learning, community building, and real-world skill development will benefit from a fellowship experience.

Throughout the fellowship experience, teens will explore identity, purpose, and responsibility while connecting to peers and mentors who share their curiosity and values. The value of a fellowship lies in its intentionality: participants are invited into a cohort experience that emphasizes growth, reflection, and impact, rather than passive participation.

A fellowship is more than a program—it is a commitment to learning together, showing up consistently, and contributing meaningfully to a community. Teens choose to participate because a fellowship signals trust in their potential, offers leadership and experiential opportunities they would not otherwise have, and creates space for belonging, challenge, and personal transformation.

BBYO New England Region Leadership Opportunities

• Opportunities: Local (chapter), regional and international
• Interest areas: Leadership development, social and educational program planning
• Who: Grades 9-12
• Duration: Year-long (for regional and chapter boards), year-long or program-specific (for other positions)
• Contact: Jeff Hast, regional director, BBYO New England Region
• Social media: Instagram

The Bronfman Fellowship

• Interest areas: Jewish life and education, Israel, leadership
• Who: Grade 11
• Duration: Summer after grade 11 through the following year
• Commitments: Five-week summer Israel experience, followed by monthly virtual experiences and two in-person seminars
• Application information: Available in September
• Contact: The Bronfman Fellowship
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Diller Teen Fellowship (JCC Greater Boston)

• Interest areas: Leadership, community service, Jewish identity, Israel
• Who: Grades 10-11
• Duration: September to September
• Commitments: 12 Sunday afternoon workshops of five hours each, social action project, three weekend retreats, two full-day experiences, three-week Israel seminar, 10-day hosting exchange with a Haifa Diller Fellow
• Cost: $3,975
• Application information: Available in April
• Contact: Ellie Fromstein, assistant director of teen engagement, JCC Greater Boston
• Social Media: Instagram

Genesis (Brandeis Precollege Programs)

• Interest areas: Academic learning, college prep, communal leadership
• Who: Grades 10-12
• Duration: Three-week residential summer program
• Commitments: Residential academic program in partnership with the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program
• Cost: $5,850
• Application information: Available in the spring
• Contact: Laura Hyman, director of Genesis
• Social media: Instagram

jGirls+ Editorial & Photography Fellowship (Moving Traditions)

• Interest areas: Arts and culture, journalism, feminist leadership, photography
• Who: Female and nonbinary teens, ages 13-19
• Duration: Academic year
• Commitments: Two virtual meetings per month with bi-weekly meetings and independent work for editorial staff
• Stipend: $750 for editorial board members, $500 for staff photographers
• Application information: Available in early spring
• Contact: Bex Ehrmann
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Jewish Teen Foundation of Greater Boston (JCC Greater Boston)

• Interest areas: Philanthropy, leadership
• Who: Grades 9-12
• Duration: October to June
• Commitments: Meetings every two to four weeks for two hours; includes orientation, program kick-off, and a grant presentation ceremony in late spring; five to seven nonprofit site visits in spring; minimal work between sessions (approximately two hours per month); teens are expected to fundraise a minimum of $360
• Application information: Available in late spring/early summer
• Participation fee: $625
• Contact: Leah Finkelman Kagan, director of teen programs, JCC Greater Boston
• Social media: Instagram

JTI Peer Leadership Fellows (Jewish Teen Initiative at the JCC)

• Interest areas: Peer engagement, community connection, relationship building, leadership, mental health and wellness, community service
• Who: Grades 10-12
• Duration: September to May
• Commitments: Monthly training seminars on Sunday afternoons and/or evenings, one weekend retreat, relational engagement work, social action projects, blogging/social media content creation (estimated at eight hours per month)
• Stipend: $360
• Application information: Available in April
• Contact: Ellie Fromstein, assistant director of teen engagement, JCC Greater Boston
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Kol Koleinu Teen Feminist Fellowship (Moving Traditions)

• Interest areas: Feminism, social change, activism, leadership
• Who: Teens in grades 9-12 who identify as female, trans or nonbinary
• Duration: September to May
• Commitments: About seven hours per month on average (includes two-hour monthly virtual meetings and one-hour teen-leader-led sessions that involve learning together and mid-month bonding); monthly time commitment might increase by a couple of hours between December and March as teens develop their passion projects
• Cost: Sliding scale starting at $750 (financial assistance available)
• Application information: Available in March
• Contact: Paige GoldMarche, director, Kol Koleinu at Moving Traditions
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Kumi Justice Retreats (Moving Traditions)

• Interest areas: Social change, antiracism, antisemitism, activism, leadership
• Who: Grades 10-12
• Duration: September to December
• Commitments: Monthly sessions, end of semester retreat
• Cost: $500-$750 (financial assistance available)
• Application information: Available in March
• Contact: Rebecca Ezersky, Kumi Justice Retreats senior manager, Moving Traditions
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Leaders for Tomorrow (American Jewish Committee)

• Organization: American Jewish Committee
• Interest areas: Israel, advocacy, combating antisemitism, Jewish identity
• Who: Grades 9-12
• Duration: November to May
• Commitments: Monthly seminars
• Application information: Available in the spring
• Contact: LFT@ajc.org
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

RAC Teen Justice Fellowship (Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism)

• Interest areas: Civic engagement, social justice, advocacy, leadership
• Who: Grades 9-12
• Duration: March to May
• Commitments: Six weekly one-hour sessions, plus small tasks between sessions, a final civic engagement project that will take place between May through Election Day in November
• Cost: $250
• Application information: Available in March
• Contact: Israel Harris
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Rising Voices Fellowship (Jewish Women’s Archive)

• Interest areas: Writing, feminism, social justice, Jewish identity
• Who: Female-identifying teens in grades 10-12
• Duration: September to June
• Commitments: Two weekend-long retreats, eight to 10 hours per month on writing, peer editing and webinars
• Application information: Apply here
• Contact: Maya Garfinkel, Rising Voices Fellowship manager, Jewish Women’s Archive
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Sababa Society (Jewish National Fund)

• Interest areas: Israel, community service, leadership
• Who: Children and teens ages 10-14
• Duration: Year-long with summer trip
• Commitments: Monthly training sessions and webinars, fundraising goal, summer travel, attendance at national conference
• Cost: Free, with fundraising goal of $104 per year
• Application information: Register here
• Contact: education@jnf.org
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Shomrei Adamah Teen Internship on the Gann Farm (Gann Academy)

• Interest areas: Farming and agriculture, community-building, climate justice, social justice, Jewish learning
• Who: Grades 9-12
• Duration: Three-week summer internship
• Commitments: Three weeks farming, cooking and learning on the Gann Farm
• Stipend: $150
• Application information: Available in early spring
• Contact: Noah Weinberg, Jewish life and farm education coordinator, Gann Academy

StandWithUs Leventhal High School Internship (StandWithUs)

• Interest areas: Israel, antisemitism education and advocacy, leadership
• Who: Grades 11-12
• Duration: September to June
• Commitments: Monthly mentorship sessions, fall and spring conferences, organize and run at least four Israel educational events
• Application information: Nominations open now
• Contact: Lily Hersch, New England high school coordinator, StandWithUs
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

StandWithUs Teen Leadership Council (StandWithUs)

• Interest areas: Israel, antisemitism education and advocacy, leadership
• Who: Grades 9-12
• Duration: Fall or spring semester
• Commitments: Chapter meetings, mentoring sessions, program planning
• Application information: Available year-round
• Contact: Lily Hersch, New England high school coordinator, StandWithUs
• Social media: Facebook | Instagram

Teen JUST-US Summer Internship (Teen JUST-US)

• Interest areas: Social justice, leadership, Jewish learning, internship experience
• Who: Grades 11-12
• Duration: Six-week summer internship
• Commitments: Internship placement from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays; cohort learning from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays; Kabbalat Shabbat on Fridays
• Stipend: $1,000
• Application information: Available in December
• Contact: Teen JUST-US Boston
• Social media: Instagram

USY Regional Leadership Opportunities (USY)

• Opportunities: Local (chapter), regional and international
• Interest areas: Leadership development, social and educational program planning
• Who: Grades 9-12
• Duration: Year-long (for regional and chapter boards), year-long or program-specific (for other positions)
• Contact: Jason Kay, community director and program coordinator, USY New England
• Social media: Instagram