Tikvah Online Academy is excited to announce a new conversation series, addressing the animating spirit of our programs as they relate to the questions of the day. Rabbi Mark Gottlieb, Dean of Tikvah Online Academy and Senior Director at the Tikvah Fund, will be joined by some of America’s leading Jewish educators and public intellectuals—Dr. Christine Rosen, Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, and Dr. Rachel Fish—in conversation on important questions for Jewish parents. These conversations are an opportunity to explore essential issues in today’s parenting and educational landscape and to learn more about the growing role that Tikvah plays in addressing these challenges.
The series is open to all invested in the education of the rising generation, especially to parents, grandparents, and educators. We invite you to join the conversation and learn more about what Tikvah Online Academy plans to offer in the upcoming 2021-2022 academic year.
Tikvah believes young Jews deserve to understand the most important Jewish and Zionist ideas. We offer high-level online seminars—with master teachers—in the great books, key debates, and heroic figures of Jewish, American, and Western civilization. In the current moment, serious Jewish education is more essential than ever, and Tikvah Online Academy rises to meet the challenge. Applications for our fall semester open August 23rd.
For more information or to ask a question, please contact us at rainawein@tikvahfund.org.
How Can We Teach Our Children to Value Free Speech in Today’s Cancel Culture?
with Dr. Christine Rosen, Commentary Magazine
Sunday, August 29 | 7:30-8:30 PM EDT
Sensible Americans all over the country are rightfully worried about the future of free expression in our society. But do our children even recognize the value of free speech? Will they be prepared to defend the principles of a free society when confronted by politically correct peers and teachers—or will they conform to the woke pressure faced by so many young people today? These questions are essential if our children are to assume civic responsibility for the American way of life. Commentary columnist and scholar Dr. Christine Rosen will share her tips for every parent who wants to raise resilient children in the face of our cultural chaos.
How Can American History Prepare Us for the High Holidays?
with Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, Congregation Shearith Israel & Yeshiva University
Thursday, September 2nd, 7:30-8:30 PM EDT
What can American history teach us about the most profound ideas in Jewish life? Led by Rabbi Dr. Meir Soloveichik, we will explore a singular moment in American history that embodies the spirit of the High Holidays. In 1862, Union Major-General Ulysses S. Grant formally expelled all Jews from Tennessee, Mississippi, and Kentucky. Although quickly overturned by President Lincoln, this radically understudied act is remarkable for its overt anti-Semitism. Even more remarkable, however, is the story of Grant’s journey to atone and repair his relationship with American Jews. As we begin the Jewish New Year, American Jews should reflect on this salient example of repentance to inform our own journeys of teshuva.
Is My Child’s Zionist Education Enough?
with Dr. Rachel Fish, Schusterman Center for Israel Studies
Monday, September 13th, 7:30-8:30 PM EDT
Social media is rapidly changing the way people communicate, and the discourse on Israel is no exception. People of all ages—especially students—now engage in political debate on their phones and computers. Disinformation is rampant, and even the most ardent Zionists can feel lost in the new matrix of Instagram graphics and Snapchat stories maliciously accusing the Jewish state of unforgivable crimes. How can we educate young Jews to be confident Zionists in the digital age? Scholar and activist Dr. Rachel Fish will examine the current discourse on Israel among teens and will argue for a new approach to Israel advocacy.