Tending Hope: 2023 Annual Impact Report Stories

President’s Message

Rabbi Sharon Cohen Anisfeld We are living through a historically challenging time. At times like this, when the winds of the present moment can threaten to overwhelm us, our tradition beckons us to look back and to look forward, to know that we are part of a larger story, to link our lives to memory and to hope.

In this Annual Impact Report for 2022-2023, we do just that. We draw inspiration from all that we have accomplished together over the past year, and we highlight the ways in which, collectively, we have been “Tending Hope.” Our faculty and staff, our students and alumni, our friends and supporters have been planting and nurturing seeds of Jewish learning, leadership, and communal life that are already blossoming, and will continue to grow and flourish for many years to come.

Thank you for your partnership and shared vision. (Read President Anisfeld’s full message below.)

With gratitude,

Rabbi Sharon Cohen Anisfeld
President, Hebrew College

Stories

Plant
Nurture
Blossom
President's Message
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Before we can reap, we must first plant. Hebrew College planted seeds for its future in the 2022-23 academic year. These seeds—including but not limited to our move to the new campus, the addition of new faces, a commitment to teen programming, and the dedication of donors to our long-term institutional health—are investments in our shared Jewish future and commitment to pluralism.

Feeling At Home In Our New Space

The extended Hebrew College community, through generosity and hospitality, has made the transition into a new space on the other side of Newton, MA a seamless one.

Tending to the Future: Thriving Teen Programs & Planned Giving

By investing in our future, we ensure our future. Our vibrant teen programs and planned giving opportunities point to a bright future for Hebrew College and the broader Jewish community of Greater Boston and beyond.

Looking to the Future with New Faces & New Roles

As we turn a new chapter, new faces and beloved community members with new roles help us look to a future of Jewish education at Hebrew College in continuity with our past through a commitment to innovation and pluralism.

Securing Our Future

Thank you Hebrew College: Living Legacy Society

This year Hebrew College not only planted new seeds but also tended to existing ones. By supporting, expanding, and cultivating our existing offerings and opportunities, we hope to contribute to a healthy and thriving pluralistic Jewish future. Highlights on this front include developing new partnerships and cultivating ones, innovating our professional development offerings, re-energizing our paths of community education, and nurturing the voices of our community through creative Torah learning.

Cultivating Partners: Old Friends, New Faces, Bold Collaborations

Jewish education and community is richer with more opportunities, varieties, and partnerships across thoughtful and meaning-making institutions. This is why we continue to partner and collaborate with bold and creative organizations, and it’s why we will continue to forge new partnerships and relationships amongst our peer institutions.

Hebrew College also co-sponsored many events throughout the year including the Big Bold Jewish ClimateFest, and events with MetroWest Jewish organizations and the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires.

Nurturing Creative Paths for Learning, Leadership, and Professional Development

Hebrew College has long been a champion of Jewish education of all sorts. With our rich Adult Learning course offerings—enrolling 1,740 learners—new master level opportunities, and innovative approaches to prayer leadership, we will continue to do so as we begin our next chapter.

New Torah Channels: Combining New Media and Torah Study

COVID-19 reshaped our world and forced many online. Following the pandemic, we have found it necessary to bring the Torah into new media spaces with the same vigor we’ve always taught Torah.

As planted seeds blossomed, the Hebrew College community celebrates the indelible marks we left on the Greater Boston Jewish community and the Jewish community more broadly in the 2022-23 academic year. Highlights include a branching of our interreligious connections; the many celebrations of our faculty members, honorees, and graduates; and another creative year of artistic and musical programming and innovation.

Kol Hakavod & Mazel Tov: Celebrating Together with Our Community

As we look to the new year, we first appreciate those who helped get us here and celebrate their achievements.

Branching our Interreligious Connections

Hebrew College is reimagining Jewish learning and leadership for an interconnected world; this work, as it relates to our interconnected world, is exemplified by the interreligious work of the Miller Center.

Creative Flourishing: Art & Music at Hebrew College

Creativity, one of the core values of Hebrew College, flourished in 2022-23. From art exhibits to concerts, we are blessed with a creative and creativity-loving community.

Dear friends,

We are living through a historically challenging time. At times like this, when the winds of the present moment can threaten to overwhelm us, our tradition beckons us to look back and to look forward, to know that we are part of a larger story, to link our lives to memory and to hope.

In this Annual Impact Report for 2022-2023, we do just that. We draw inspiration from all that we have accomplished together over the past year, and we highlight the ways in which, collectively, we have been “Tending Hope.” Our faculty and staff, our students and alumni, our friends and supporters have been planting and nurturing seeds of Jewish learning, leadership, and communal life that are already blossoming, and will
continue to grow and flourish for many years to come.

Plant. When we moved into our new shared campus in January 2023, we planted new roots for Hebrew College. Roots that intertwine with our extraordinary campus partners. Roots that tie us to our shared history and give depth and vitality to our shared study, song, and prayer. Roots that nourish new and creative expressions of Jewish life. We planted hope.

Nurture. Throughout the year, we have boldly reimagined our programs to respond to the changing needs of the communities we serve. Always staying true to our mission, we made intentional refinements to ensure that we infused our programs with our signature pluralism, creativity, flexibility, and academic rigor—all with an eye toward a post-COVID world that integrates new media and technologies. We nurtured hope.

Blossom. Together, we have created a vibrant communal hub that opens so many doors to Jewish life. Art, music, justice, movement, study, spiritual practice, prayer and more — each is an entryway, an opening to deeper learning, growth, and connection. We blossomed with hope.

This year’s Annual Impact Report is a tribute to our community’s sense of imagination and hope, and our commitment to a vibrant Jewish future I am pleased to share that, for the first time, it is hybrid in nature. We highlight events, stories, and important moments through photos and offer the stories behind them online — accessed via the QR code on the printed version or on this website.

Thank you so much for your partnership and shared vision. While this Annual Impact Report takes a look back at the past year, I hope it will also help us turn our eyes toward the future with renewed hope.

With deep gratitude,

Rabbi Sharon Cohen Anisfeld
President, Hebrew College

Read and download the full 2023 Annual Impact Report (pdf) here.

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