This virtual training program is for new and experienced Birthright Israel staff and will consist of three mandatory 2-hour workshops on Zoom. The sessions will give you the confidence and competence to create Shabbat experiences for your participants while elevating your own ability to transform Shabbat into a day of meaning and exploration—both in Israel and at home.

As part of the program, you’re required to host a OneTable Shabbat dinner modeling what you’ve learned during the training sessions. You’ll need to act as a Shabbat host prior to the end of November 2022.

The Zoom workshops will take place in October/November. To be considered for this training program, you must commit to fully participating in the three workshops. Each session will be offered twice to offer flexibility in scheduling.

Session One Options

• Sunday, October 23: 1:00-3:00pm EST // 10:00am-12:00pm PT
• Wednesday, October 26: 6:30-8:30pm EST // 3:30-5:30pm PT

Session Two

• Sunday, October 30: 1:00-3:00pm EST // 10:00am-12:00pm PT
• Wednesday, November 2: 6:30-8:30pm EST // 3:30-5:30pm PT

Session Three

• Sunday, November 6: 1:00-3:00pm EST // 10:00am-12:00pm PT
• Wednesday, November 9: 6:30-8:30pm EST // 3:30-5:30pm PT

The seminars will help you figure out Shabbat on your own terms, holding tradition in one hand and innovation in the other. You’ll leave the workshops feeling confident and prepared to facilitate the 25-hours of Shabbat on future Birthright Israel trips, allowing your participants to explore Judaism through their own Shabbat experiences when they return home. The trainings will be a deep dive into Shabbat, including:

• What is Shabbat? What can it do and what can it be for me and my participants?
• Preparation and programming for the full 25-hour Shabbat experience, including spiritual leadership, delegation to participants, one-on-one conversations, and large- and small-group activities.
• An interactive immersion into Shabbat rituals and customs, including where they come from and how to make them relevant.
• Skills to make the most of tradition and innovation.

In addition to your cohort of peers, you will have the opportunity to learn with master educators and staff and faculty from both OneTable and Birthright Israel.

Interested trip staff must first complete a brief online application. Selected applicants will then be invited to participate in the program. Acceptance will work largely on a first-come, first-served basis, assuming you meet the eligibility criteria.

Applicants must be identified as someone who will likely be staffing a Birthright Israel trip during the Winter 2021-2022 (December–March) or Summer 2022 (April–September) travel seasons. This includes experienced Birthright Israel madrichim (in good standing), and potential new staff who are known to Trip Organizers.

Confirmation of future trip status will be done in consultation with Birthright Israel Trip Organizers.

If you already have a commitment from a Trip Organizer or know that you will be staffing a Birthright Israel trip as part of your job within the next year (e.g. federation or campus professional), then you can apply to the program.

Yes, this program is for anyone passionate about becoming a better Birthright Israel trip leader and educator, regardless of your current level of experience!

Yes. If you want to become more confident, and educated, in leading Shabbat ritual and programming, then this training program is most definitely for you. The training will introduce, and touch upon, Birthright Israel’s Shabbat standards and modeling of practice.

If you’ve already participated in a prior Birthright Israel x OneTable Shabbat staff training program then you are not eligible to participate again. Birthright Israel Fellows are eligible to apply.

Being part of this leadership training requires that you’ll model your Shabbat practice and conversations around what you’ve learned. As such, you’ll need to act as a Shabbat host prior to January 31, 2022 or before you staff your next Birthright Israel trip (whichever comes first). Additionally, you’ll need to invite at least three guests to join in your Shabbat experience. (This can be in-person or online.) They can be friends, neighbors, family members, former Birthright Israel participants, etc.

After completing the workshops, you will be provided details on how to sign up to host your Shabbat dinner through OneTable. *Hosts will receive an e-gift card (Nourishment) to help cover their costs at a ratio of $10 per guest (inclusive of yourself) up to a maximum of $100! Hosts will only receive funding for guests who are 21 years old or older.

*Only people who host in North America will receive Nourishment and a physical box of Shabbat resources. Those who host outside of NA will still receive the written materials electronically.

You’ll have the opportunity to collaborate with other Birthright Israel madrichim and become a part of a network of skilled leaders and educators. You’ll be equipped with the knowledge and resources needed to prepare and program the Shabbat experience on Birthright Israel trips. Plus you’ll deepen your personal understanding of Shabbat and the rituals that elevate the 25 hours no matter where you find yourself!

You will board your bus with significant educational tools and resources to enrich the experiences of your participants in Israel and once they return home. However, your core responsibilities of staffing will not change, and the expectation is that you will work as a team with your co-staff to create a meaningful environment and implement the tools you’ve learned.

Ultimately there are no guarantees that you will be offered a trip to staff. And, given current circumstances, it’s impossible to know whether there will be a reduction in the number of opportunities to lead a trip over the course of the next year. That said, for the purposes of being accepted into this training program, a Trip Organizer will have to identify you as someone they plan to hire to lead a trip either in Winter 2021-2022 or Summer 2022.

As mentioned above, you must be committed to staffing at least one Birthright Israel trip following completion of the training program. Preference will be given to applicants with confirmed Winter 2021-2022 or Summer 2022 staffing assignments.