2018 National Ramah Spring Leadership Training Conference

The 2018 National Ramah Spring Leadership Training Conference --also known as Winer--was held from May 22-25 at Camp Ramah Darom in Clayton, GA. Shavuot was newly over, which meant that for the 50-plus Camp Ramah tzevet (staff members) in attendance at Winer, Kayitz (summer) 2018 was newly beginning.

The conference featured two tracks: Rosh edah (division head) training for both first-time and rashei edah vatikim (veterans), as well as Daber training for madrichim (counselors) on how to create joyous and meaningful Hebrew-infused programming. Daber participants also joined the Center for Israel Education during some of their sessions to learn about Israeli history and culture and how to create effective Israel programming at camp. Participants from both tracks were joined by National Ramah staff and visiting rabbis and educators; everyone came together for meals, davening, peulat erev (night programming), and of course--a daily rikud (dance) session.

Thirty rashei edah from eight Ramah overnight camps and from our day camps in Nyack and Washington, DC came together to learn, grow as leaders, and grow their own excitement for the start of summer. This was in addition to the 12 rashei edah who attended our Jerusalem-based training program in April. In the Daber track, 11 participants represented five of our overnight camps.

For both first-time and veteran rashei edah, the Louis and Shoshana Winer Institute for Rosh Edah Training provided intensive training to prepare them for their roles as leaders, educators, supervisors, and care providers. Sessions ranged from collective sharing of leadership wisdom to best organizational practices to how to plan an effective Shavua Hachana (staff training week). Samara Gottesman, a first-time rosh edah at Ramah Nyack, reflected on her time at Winer, “It was fantastic to be able to brainstorm with rashei edah from other Ramah camps. A highlight of this experience was learning about best practices at other camps and being able to bounce ideas off of each other, whether at formal sessions or during informal downtime.”

This year’s sessions were led by National Ramah Commission (NRC) Associate Director Amy Skopp Cooper and NRC Program Director Jared Skoff, with additional sessions led by Ramah Poconos Associate Director Michelle Sugarman and Ramah Day Camp in Nyack Director Rabbi Ami Hersh. We were also joined by Rabbi Dave Levy, Director of the brand new Ramah Sports Academy; Rabbi Ari Perten, Associate Director of Ramah Berkshires; Rabbi Avi Orlow, Vice President of Program and Innovation at the Foundation for Jewish Camp; and Josh Warshawsky, a rabbinical student at Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies, artist-in-residence, and Ramah Wisconsin alumnus.

In addition to sessions led by NRC staff, veteran rashei edah were empowered to lead sessions of their own. Gideon Weiss, Project Development Associate at NRC and rosh edah at Ramah Berkshires, worked with returning rashei edah to improve upon their work from the previous summer and set goals for higher-level projects. Emily Farbman and Emma Neusner, rashei edah from Ramah New England, led a role-playing session on providing appropriate discipline to both tzevet members and chanichim (campers). Leah Schatz, incoming Program Director at Ramah Poconos, taught a session on transition times, while Dani Nurick and Hannah Lorman, from Ramah Nyack and Ramah Berkshires, respectively, taught a series of quick games that incorporated Hebrew seamlessly and in fun ways. Davida Vogel, a veteran rosh edah from Ramah Poconos, led a brainstorming session on diversified tefillot (prayer) options for chanichim with different interests. “There is nothing more wonderful,” Davida wrote, “than gathering with leaders from other Ramah camps for a few days of learning, sharing of best practices, and celebration of excellence in informal Jewish education.”

In the Daber track, 11 participants from five Ramah camps split their time between Ramah-led sessions and sessions with the Center for Israel Education. Participants learned about Israeli history and discussed ways to bring elements of Israeli culture and history into camp programming. They also discussed the value of increasing Hebrew language usage at camp and spent their last day creating camp-wide Hebrew projects. Shari Boiskin, a Ramah Poconos madricha, enjoyed working with the rest of the cohort:  “A highlight was programming with people from camp and then receiving feedback from people from other camps! We also got to learn about Daber education and how it functions at other camps, which we could translate to our own camp.”

Michelle Sugarman introduced the Daber Fellows to “Meah Milim” (100 words), a Ramah movement-wide initiative that challenges tzevet and chanichim to learn and use 100 commonly-spoken camp words in Hebrew. Milim include “tzrif” (cabin), “mirpeset” (porch), “nikayon” (cleaning time), and “chadar ochel” (dining hall). Daber Fellows brainstormed ways to personalize the Meah Milim program for their own camps. Nyack participants plan to hang posters of Hebrew words with matching pictures around camp and reward both chanichim and tzevet weekly for their efforts to use more Hebrew. Elana Rebitzer, a Ramah Galim Daber Fellow, plans to introduce a “Milat Hayom” (word of the day) and have chanichim decorate small plaques that can be used both to beautify camp and to educate. Ramah Poconos participants plan to enhance their existing Meah Milim program by incorporating inter-edah competitions and prizes. Alex Kristal, madrich at Ramah Nyack, reflected, “I really enjoyed interacting with the fellows from the other camps and comparing how we all integrate Hebrew into our camp settings and getting to learn more about the broader Ramah community.”

In addition to rosh edah and Daber training, Winer of course included many of the elements that bring Ramah tzevet back to camp year after year. Josh Warshawsky taught several dynamic new tefillah melodies to participants, replete with hand and foot motions, harmonies, and even sign language. He led a beautiful Shacharit on the third day of the conference, as well as a sing-along bonfire session (held inside due to rain). For Camp Ramah in the Poconos Daber Fellow Sammy Turk-Tolub, earning new melodies with Josh was one of the highlights of the conference. Rikud was on the schedule as well, serving as an active break from seated sessions and a fun way to bring the many Ramah camps together. Even during unscheduled downtime, rashei edah and madrichim could be found setting up speakers in the chadar ochel and dancing for an extra ten minutes or so.

By Friday morning, it was time to leave the beautiful Ramah Darom. Participants were filled with excitement for the upcoming summer, knowledge of best practices, and the comfort of having an entire community behind them to ensure their success. As one Poconos rosh edah put it, “Winer is an opportunity to come together with people from all of the different Ramah camps and learn from them and alongside them. It provides the opportunity to be mentored by those who have been in your shoes and to also to pass along knowledge you've picked up on your own journey.” As the Ramah Camping Movement prepares to launch its 72nd summer, young leaders are prepared and empowered to provide Jewish enrichment to their chanichim.