By COLlive staff
Photos by Bentzi Sasson
Learning pays off.
The Jewish Learning Institute (JLI) has received a grant of of $1.2 million to expand its educational reach, the organization’s chairman Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky announced at its annual conference at Queens College this week.
Rabbi Kotlarsky, who is also Vice Chair of Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch, said the donation was a joint gift of the major Chabad donor and hedge fund manager George Rohr and David Magerman, a former hedge fund manager who founded the Kohelet Foundation.
Addressing the conference, Magerman spoke movingly about his realization that amassing a fortune for the sake of the next generation’s Judaism would not result in Jewish commitment, and how he resolved to support JLI’s mission to encourage Jewish study across the globe.
Rabbi Kotlarsky also announced the purchase of a 5-story building on Eastern Parkway to house JLI’s growing staff of 39 and 12 divisions, and serve as an expanded resource and conference center for affiliate shluchim.
Close to 350 JLI instructors from all over the world came together to learn new skills for taking their chapters to the next level.
Workshops and main session presentations imparted essential cutting-edge tools and resources for pedagogical excellence, effective marketing and recruiting, and successful fundraising.
The creators of each of the new courses for the upcoming academic year introduced the concept and themes of each course: Fall course The Kabbalah of You, presented by Rabbi Naftali Silberberg; Winter course Living With Integrity, presented by Rabbi Shlomo Yaffe and Rabbi Mordechai Dinerman; and the Spring course, Curious Tales of the Talmud, presented by Rabbi Shmuel Braun and Rabbi Silberberg.
One of the most innovative and forward-looking developments at JLI is collaboration and partnership with a growing number of mainstream organizations.
These partnering relationships, through which JLI is becoming the foremost adult Jewish curriculum provider in the world, enables Chabad centers to reach entirely new target audiences through JLI’s vast course offerings.
Go JLI
This is not in keeping with the shita of the Rebbe – pouring money into administration and charge the field operations for the costs. Its a bit ridiculous. Meanwhile, shluchim cannot afford to have their children attend online school, many shluchim cannot afford the JLI programs, and they are going to build offices for 1.2 million. The priorities seem to be a bit messed up. The federations can’t stop talking about chabad, because of our success at the grassroots – why is JLI copying federation with big administrative buildings when their programs are becoming more and more out of reach… Read more »
nice peice of art!
and use it to purchase a building that will become a Crown heights Torah center- not only to serve other communities but also crown heights families?
They can use such a building to house their offices as well, and it can have a greater impact.
I really hope that someone can make that a reality.
mendel duchman is the chassidic Tony Robbins of lubavitch- wow -what motivation-his passion ,energy, and vareemkiet-
he blew me away……….with his keynote address…….
GO GO GO mendel………..
JLI has accomplished wonders.
The local JCC and chaburah requested that Chabad come teach JLI to its members and it is offered at hospitals and law firms for doctors and lawyers who actually receive credits for taking these courses.
This is an inspiration to us all!
The most effective organization in Chabad today!!
A wise investment, indeed.
Yasher Kaoch to Kohelet and JLI!
This is THE best investment for teaching and spreading Torah to the masses!!
Go David Magerman and Holly Cohen!! (Executive director of the Koheler Foundation!!)
Meshane Mokom…Letova
Yahser Koach to the whole Rohr JLI staff for the amazing projects they do.
Its a well deserved home for a great org.
in my experience, it too expensive. It seems that it is becoming even more top-heavy, more bureaucratic. This will only add to the expense of it and make it less reachable to the mass markets. Chaval.
yasher koach to JLI -you continue to be an integral part of my shlichos.********** WE APPRECIATE YOU***************
every year you strive to do something new……
DUCHMAN & DINNERMAN were this year’s best.
Is it the franklin ave site
Most of the buildings on Eastern Parkway don’t go above four stories. Is the basement being counted as the fifth story?
Shout out to YY Chodakov
why is everyone so serious?
Aryeh Kaltmann!!! I never saw you sit so quietly through a lesson when we were in school!!!