Programs & Services for Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah Students, Families & Educators

1. B-Mitzvah! Family Adventure. Our founder, Rabbi Goldie Milgram did her doctorate studying rites of passage world-wide and has focused for over a decade on innovating methods, books, programs and resources for creating more meaningful b'nei mitzvah. Singled out for excellence by the Covenant Foundation for her groundbreaking work, Rabbi Goldie Milgram's b'nei mitzvah workshops and retreats are joyful, deep and dynamic experiential programs that enhance your community's existing forms of b'nei mitzvah preparation. For information contact

2. Jewish Spiritual Education: Maggid-Educator Ordination.

Faculty: Judith black, Danny Siegel, Goldie Milgram, Cherie Karo Schwartz, Mindy Shapiro and Cassandra Sagan (curriculum developed also with Peninnah Schram)

An Integrative Training in the Application of Maggid, Mitzvah & Mussar A Two-Year Distance Learning Certification Program for Jewish Educators (principals, teachers, b'nai mitzvah tutors, camp & guidance counselors, storytellers, youth leaders, JCC & Hillel staff, & clergy)

This program is designed to significantly advance the skills of those yearning to more effectively engage students and transmit the meaning, relevance and joy of Jewish learning and living.

When: Real-time one hour per week teleconference classes and monthly one-hour telephone supervision, plus one annual week-long residential retreat. Rolling admissions. Inquiries: Rebgoldie@gmail.com

Our goal for MITZVAH is to deepen your capacity to connect students to meaningful Jewish practices for daily living. We will use traditional and contemporary texts, rituals, practices and interpretations that bring the beauty and importance of mitzvah-centered living fully to life.

Our goal for MUSSAR is to prepare you to nurture the healthy physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual development of your students by learning the key principles of this mindfulness practice. You will learn core concepts, study from traditional Mussar texts and engage in the fundamentals of this practice.

Our goal for MAGGID is to ensure that you know how to select and shape traditional and contemporary mitzvah stories effectively for telling in regard to the major settings of Jewish life. You will be guided on how best to deliver stories with a quality of presence that engages and inspires your students and communities. A substantial repertoire will result.

EXAMPLE OF A MAGGID-EDUCATOR SM IN ACTION

The educator turns to the students saying: "Let me tell you a story!" The way that the educator tells the story turns on a light in each soul. The mitzvah being explored is "lo tikom—to refrain from holding a grudge" and the middah (ethical attribute) is savlanut—patience."

          The educator gives them InterPlay movements, sounds and gestures to express the feeling of a grudge, and then invites their personal "grudge" stories. Almost every hand goes up to share—from the youngest to the eldest. As the educator guides the soulful exploration of personal experience—burdens begin to lift. The light of Torah, mitzvah-centered lives, shines through the radiant faces and body language of all present.
         Returning to the text for the mitzvah and middah, the students dive in—for now they understand from the inside!

Learn more: Fees & Registration, Faculty Bios