New York

FutureTense New York

 Naomi Less, a "Disruptor" at FutureTense: Education&The Arts, speaks about starting Jewish Chicks Rock.

FutureTense is a collective exploration of the cutting edge, a regular round table bringing together Jewish innovators from different fields to talk about what's next – and what will disrupt the way things have 'been done.' Inspired by Business 2.0's Disruptor's Round Table, which brought together leading technologists and thinkers from different media, FutureTense will feature leading Jewish pioneers in a moderated discussion to share best practices and build a better understanding of what is to come, and what can be done about it. 

This fall, join PresenTense and JESNA's Lippman Kanfer Institute for a series of FutureTense conversations around "Innovation in Jewish Learning."  When many individuals hear the words “Jewish education,” they think about traditional classes in conventional settings – synagogues, day schools, etc.  But much of the most exciting Jewish learning taking place today is happening in alternative venues using unconventional approaches – as part of service or social justice programs, online, using the arts and culture, in emergent spiritual communities, or within the context of new real and virtual communities that bring diverse populations of Jews together. 

We want to invite you, as someone involved in reshaping how we think about and do Jewish learning, to become a 2009-10 FutureTense participant.  Much of the power of FutureTense lies in having a group that thinks and shares together over the course of the year.  We are looking, therefore, for 20 individuals who will make a commitment to participate in five FutureTense sessions between October and June.

The FutureTense sessions will be held every other month, with the first session planned for October 22, from 5:00 – 7:00 pm on Jewish Learning Online. We have identified the following dates for the other four sessions, though these are subject to change should the group need and want to do so:

December 17, 2009: Jewish Learning through Service and Social Justice
February 18, 2010: Jewish Learning and The Arts
April TBA: Jewish Learning in Emergent Spiritual Communities
June 10, 2010: Jewish Learning and Community-building (real and virtual)

If you are interested and feel that you are in a position to commit to participating in the full set of conversations, please contact the coordinators as soon as possible as group size is limited. 

RSVP:  Monica Rozenfeld, FutureTense’s New York coordinator, at mrozenfeld@jesna.org