Teva Learning Center
Encyclopedia
The Teva Learning Center is a Jewish-based environmental education 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
that teaches about Judaism and the environment at Jewish day schools, summer camps and Hebrew schools. It is the only full-time year-round program dedicated to innovative, experiential Jewish education taught through the lens of the natural world.
and Surprise Lake Camp
. Isabella Freedman has been Teva’s fall home since its founding in 1994.
With its educational approach,
The director is Nili Simhai, who won the 2009 Covenant Foundation award for Excellence in Jewish Education "for making significant marks in their communities, and for designing and using innovative educational approaches to achieve dramatic and lasting impact.".
Teva frequently, though not exclusively, caters to the educational needs of children in Jewish day schools and provides a hands on approach to environmental education. Teva also teaches synagogues, camps and youth groups.
Part of this is teaching students that they are Shomrei Adamah ("Keepers of the Earth"):
In June 2009, students from the Solomon Schechter Day School of Raritan Valley
in New Jersey were presented with the "Kids for Clean Communities Award" for the recycling program they developed at their school after attending the Teva program.
founder Ben Cohen (businessman) for use in environmental classes. The bus was incorporated into environmental awareness programs related to Birkat Hachamah or Blessing of the Sun. However, Orthodox Talmudic scholar Rabbi J. David Bleich
of Yeshiva University
, a specialist in Birkat Hachamah has been critical of the interpretation of Judaism as a notably environmental faith. He argues that environmental problems are "issues in and of themselves and are totally unrelated to the blessing of the sun," as the blessing is an occasion to acknowledge the wonder of God's creations, not a political statement. "I suppose you can connect anything," he says. "You can draw dots and lines; you don't have to be logical.".
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
that teaches about Judaism and the environment at Jewish day schools, summer camps and Hebrew schools. It is the only full-time year-round program dedicated to innovative, experiential Jewish education taught through the lens of the natural world.
History and mission
The Teva Learning Center was developed in 1994 by the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat CenterIsabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center
Originally incorporated in 1893 as the Jewish Working Girls Vacation Society, the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center was established as a summer camp offering Jewish working women, primarily immigrants in the New York garment industry, an affordable vacation. The camp paid for their vacation...
and Surprise Lake Camp
Surprise Lake Camp
Surprise Lake Camp is a non-profit sleepaway camp and is located on over in Cold Spring, New York . The mission of Surprise Lake Camp is to "provide a high quality Jewish camping experience where children and young adults will be safe, have fun, and grow as they engage in programs and activities...
. Isabella Freedman has been Teva’s fall home since its founding in 1994.
With its educational approach,
seeks to create awareness among Jews about their connection with and dependence upon the natural systems that support life. The Center seeks “to renew the ecological wisdom inherent in Judaism” by “immersing participants in the natural world.”
The director is Nili Simhai, who won the 2009 Covenant Foundation award for Excellence in Jewish Education "for making significant marks in their communities, and for designing and using innovative educational approaches to achieve dramatic and lasting impact.".
Programs
The Teva Learning Center is a Jewish education group which engages in environmental education and activism through the context of Judaism. Teva's education centers around the preservation of the environment through the eyes of Judaism.Teva frequently, though not exclusively, caters to the educational needs of children in Jewish day schools and provides a hands on approach to environmental education. Teva also teaches synagogues, camps and youth groups.
Bring It Back To Our School
Teva provides workshops on the environment and outdoor experiences along the East Coast at 45 different schools. They work with about 4,000 students annually.Part of this is teaching students that they are Shomrei Adamah ("Keepers of the Earth"):
Shomrei Adamah (“Keepers of the Earth”), is for fifth- and sixth-grade day-school students who visit a retreat center for four days and make a “brit adamah,” or covenant with the earth, to engage in environmental activity. The Center also runs a program for junior-high students, Achdoot (“Togetherness”), in which the teens camp in the wilderness, usually a state campground
In June 2009, students from the Solomon Schechter Day School of Raritan Valley
Solomon Schechter Day School of Raritan Valley
Solomon Schechter Day School Of Raritan Valley is a Conservative Jewish day school serving students in kindergarten through eighth grade located in East Brunswick Township, New Jersey, United States. It is affiliated with the Solomon Schechter Day School Association...
in New Jersey were presented with the "Kids for Clean Communities Award" for the recycling program they developed at their school after attending the Teva program.
Birkat HaChamah
Teva recently purchased a bus previously owned by Ben & Jerry'sBen & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's is an American ice cream company, a division of the British-Dutch Unilever conglomerate, that manufactures ice cream, frozen yogurt, sorbet, and ice cream novelty products, manufactured by Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings, Inc., headquartered in South Burlington, Vermont, United...
founder Ben Cohen (businessman) for use in environmental classes. The bus was incorporated into environmental awareness programs related to Birkat Hachamah or Blessing of the Sun. However, Orthodox Talmudic scholar Rabbi J. David Bleich
J. David Bleich
J. David Bleich is an authority on Jewish law and ethics, including Jewish medical ethics. He is rabbi of Cong. B'nei Jehuda...
of Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University is a private university in New York City, with six campuses in New York and one in Israel. Founded in 1886, it is a research university ranked as 45th in the US among national universities by U.S. News & World Report in 2012...
, a specialist in Birkat Hachamah has been critical of the interpretation of Judaism as a notably environmental faith. He argues that environmental problems are "issues in and of themselves and are totally unrelated to the blessing of the sun," as the blessing is an occasion to acknowledge the wonder of God's creations, not a political statement. "I suppose you can connect anything," he says. "You can draw dots and lines; you don't have to be logical.".