The Moishe House program helps young Jewish adults from all levels of Jewish observance connect to being Jewish by creating an open, relevant and welcoming Jewish community based in their homes. The program design is simple: between three and five residents share an apartment and host a range of Jewish programming for their peers, including Shabbat dinners, holiday celebrations, learning sessions, social action initiatives and social and cultural events.

Outside of the US, Moishe House has more than 20 Houses throughout Europe, the FSU, South America, Australia, China, Israel and South Africa. In order to be able to develop and host interesting Jewish programming for other young adults, the residents participate in annual Resident Training Conferences and three annual Jewish Learning Retreats, where they learn leadership skills, explore Jewish topics and themes and acquire the skills they need to conduct programs.

The project component supported by the Pincus Fund is anchored in the hire of two new Directors of Education – one for Moishe Houses in Russian-speaking countries and one for Houses in English-speaking countries. The Directors work closely with the residents in their regions to help them grow their Jewish knowledge and abilities and assist them to develop and implement programming. They are responsible for building the content for the Jewish Learning Retreats, and serve as the lead educators at these seminars.

The Directors will visit each of their Houses at least twice a year to model hosting successful programming, meet local Jewish leaders and assist their residents to strengthen their relationships within their communities, and help residents identify local Jewish resources.

The project also offers incentive grants to residents to encourage them to take part in other Jewish learning opportunities (e.g., Limmud, seminars, etc.), which they will then share onward with other young adults through the programs they run at the Houses. This will only serve to strengthen the Jewish learning component of the Moishe House experience.

The Pincus Fund for Jewish Education has prioritized support for young adults so as to ensure continuity of Jewish communities around the world. The Fund is pleased to be supporting this project, which is enhancing the Jewish learning component of Moishe Houses outside the U.S.