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Friday January 12, 2007

SFSU launches nation’s first Jewish service learning certificate

by stacey palevsky
staff writer

San Francisco State University will soon offer a graduate certificate in Jewish service learning — a program believed to be the first of its kind in the nation.

The certificate will connect Jewish values and civic engagement. Those who enroll will learn how to create and sustain community service projects that inspire Jewish learning and reflection.

“The powerful part about service learning is that it cuts across every possible denomination, identity and affiliation,” said Marc Dollinger, an SFSU professor of Jewish studies and social responsibility.

“The usual divisions between different types of Jews disappear when you talk about service. It’s very non-threatening,” he added. “What’s going to happen, ultimately, is that people show up who haven’t shown up before.”

The certificate program is intended for Jewish professionals who want to learn how to start a lasting service project in their organization. But, Dollinger said, anyone with an interest in volunteerism and Judaism can take the one-year course.

“The service learning concept is all the rage in higher education right now,” he said. “For the Jewish community to get on board is phenomenal.”

Service learning hinges on the idea that the most meaningful lessons take place outside of a classroom.

Judaism is a natural catalyst because of tikkun olam and the Jewish imperative to help the community, said Maggi Gains, director of the Baltimore-based Spark: Partnership for Service, a national nonprofit helping Dollinger develop the SFSU program.

“Service makes being Jewish relevant and meaningful,” she said.

“We live in a time when Jews think: What does it mean to be Jewish? We want to give them multiple entry points to their Jewish identity … Community service has the potential to reach beyond the pews.”

The program will practice what it preaches.

Though the first semester will be mostly classroom-based, the second semester in the fall will require students primarily to be out in the field, putting to use what they learned and developing a service project with the help of a mentor.

Jaré Akchin, the director of the Bureau of Jewish Education’s service learning project, helped create the SFSU program. She said she envisions a long-term impact from the projects created by the certificate students.

“Their programs must be needed, sustained and reciprocal,” she said. “Teens or adults who volunteer have to get as much out of the experience as the person they’re serving.

“Reciprocal learning will build Jewish identity and connections to Jewish institutions,” she added.

Students in the program will earn four credits for the course. The class will meet one evening a week during the spring and fall semesters for about two hours at a time. Tuition fees will be announced later this month, but Dollinger said they’ll be on the low side so no one is discouraged by the cost.

For more information, email Marc Dollinger at mdolling@sfsu.edu.

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