Students excel at leadership

MICHELLE DODEK

What started as a school project in leadership ended as a transformative experience for students, parents and 24 nonprofit organizations. Spearheaded by Vancouver Talmud Torah (VTT) humanities teacher Sari Zack-Weintraub, the Mitzvah of Valuing Philanthropy (MVP) project has changed the lives of many of the participants.

The project sought to raise $20,000 in order to enable the two graduating classes of VTT to distribute the money in the same sort of way that Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver allocates funds. The challenge was to meet B.C. education ministry goals via a Judaic curriculum. The prongs of the project were leadership, tikkun olam (repairing the world) and writing assignments with presentations.

The money was raised through student gifts from their b'nai mitzvah, a matching grant from an anonymous Jewish community donor, $1,000 from the Lorne Cristall family and $5,000 from David Zack, Weintraub's father. Zack also gave a $25,000 donation to serve as an endowment for the project in years to come. Distributing the funds was the leadership development component.

Students made presentations – using essays, PowerPoint presentations and poster boards – in order to highlight the merits of the charity they had chosen. The aim was to secure the highest possible allocation for their charity, much like nonprofit agencies do in the real world. Each class met at the end of the presentation phase to reach consensus. "Twelve- and 13-year-olds were using terms like general revenues, overhead and direct costs and discussing mission statements. They learned financial literacy," said an enthusiastic Weintraub.

The tikkun olam element was achieved by students researching nonprofit organizations and choosing one that fulfilled a mitzvah to which they felt personally attached. Student Mitchell Rothman and his partner, Ryan Aceman, found the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society of British Columbia (C-PAWS) on the Internet. Rothman explained that, of the different charities at which they looked, C-PAWS did the best job at fulfilling the mitzvah of bal tashchit (caring for the environment). He was able to list a number of the projects C-PAWS works on here in the province, such as lobbying to save sponge reefs and protesting water degradation.

Other mitzvot encompassed by the project were tzedakah (charity), pat l'aniyim (caring for the hungry), bikkur cholim (caring for the sick) and ahavat Zion (love of Israel). Of the 24 agencies that received donations, only two were Jewish communal groups.

Weintraub said she had remarkably positive feedback about the focus on non-Jewish organizations. "One prominent community leader told me that we could not do a better kiddush Hashem [sanctification of God]."

It seems that the Jewish community has a good reputation for charity, if Deborah Kennedy's comments are a reflection. Kennedy is the director of locally based Nature Trust. Her organization received $550 from the MVP project. "We were honored and gratified to have been chosen, but not surprised. It is typical of the Jewish faith to look outside and give support."

Continued Kennedy, "This was one of the most remarkable and touching experiences that I have ever had." She admitted she was overwhelmed by the quality of the students' work and their dedication, as well as the many levels of learning the students received through all of the work that they did. "The courage it took for the students to call these charities and do the presentations was extremely remarkable ... it was life learning for the children and for all of us," she said. Kennedy also mentioned that one of the most moving parts of the entire project was how families got behind it and showed great leadership: "I have never seen that kind of work from parents, students and teachers coming together."

Ironically, Kennedy only saw the end result of a process that was not fully supported by all the parents. When Weintraub introduced the idea of students forgoing gifts from their peers for their b'nai mitzvah and donating $5 per student gift to the MVP project instead, she thought "it was a no-brainer. Students would make a small sacrifice, parents wouldn't have to spend on 42 b'nai mitzvah gifts and everyone in the class would be equal." However, a third of the parents were opposed to the idea. Weintraub persevered with the project though, making the donations anonymous and at the discretion of the families. She had a curriculum to teach and, even without the financial "buy in" from some parents, she was able to achieve all her aims.

"Some schools fulfil the B.C. leadership requirements by planning a Valentine's Day assembly!" said Weintraub. "These kids used serious money and took their responsibilities seriously. It was experiential education and they totally blossomed."

How did Rothman explain his transformation? "At first, I didn't agree with the project because I didn't understand what it meant to give away money to organizations and help people all over the world. Now, I understand and appreciate it. I know about a lot of different organizations now, and I'll definitely continue to give money in the future."

Michelle Dodek is a Vancouver freelance writer.

^TOP