The Penn Learning Initiative
Hear From the Students
Topics and Source Materials
The Story
Students studying
Rabbi Shulman founded the Penn Learning Initiative with Ariel Fisher (class of ’11) in the fall of 2010. They felt the need to create a forum to foster Jewish learning and dialogue among the diversity of Penn Jewry. The program met with immediate success, doubling to 35 participants by the second meeting. The goal of the program is to learn Torah, foster dialogue and discussion on meaningful and relevant topics among a diverse group, and to expand Jewish literacy. The basic fabric and structure of the program is peer-to-peer: students reaching out to other students, learning independently with a partner, and engaging in group discussion with a diverse group of peers.
The program is composed of two basic parts. One is the independent chevruta study. Each pair sets their own time to study together to finish a certain amount of material each week. Everyone is expected to finish the material which the group is learning by the end of a set amount of time. For example, Spring Semester 2011 we learned the Book of Esther and the Book of Ruth. This meant people learned about one chapter each week. Chevrutot can learn the material however they feel comfortable, and the group consisted of people who learned the text in English as well as those who learned in Hebrew, some with more commentary and some with little outside material. We provide a list of resources available as study aids, and make all materials easily accessible in the beit midrash at Hillel. In addition, we provide all participants with their own copy of the book which we are learning. The second part of the program is our gatherings which take place every other week. These are opportunities to learn and discuss an aspect of the material in more depth and to engage with the ideas of our peers. The gathering is composed of chevruta time to read and think about sources which Rabbi Shulman brings. Then we come together, discuss and share people’s questions and ideas. Examples of topics we have studied and discussed include the role of drinking in the Book of Esther and the holiday of Purim, searching for a hidden God, and the elements of Jewish identity and conversion.
Finishing the material we are learning is a crucial component to the program. This helps to develop Jewish literacy, but also provides a sense of empowerment and accomplishment.
The program is composed of two basic parts. One is the independent chevruta study. Each pair sets their own time to study together to finish a certain amount of material each week. Everyone is expected to finish the material which the group is learning by the end of a set amount of time. For example, Spring Semester 2011 we learned the Book of Esther and the Book of Ruth. This meant people learned about one chapter each week. Chevrutot can learn the material however they feel comfortable, and the group consisted of people who learned the text in English as well as those who learned in Hebrew, some with more commentary and some with little outside material. We provide a list of resources available as study aids, and make all materials easily accessible in the beit midrash at Hillel. In addition, we provide all participants with their own copy of the book which we are learning. The second part of the program is our gatherings which take place every other week. These are opportunities to learn and discuss an aspect of the material in more depth and to engage with the ideas of our peers. The gathering is composed of chevruta time to read and think about sources which Rabbi Shulman brings. Then we come together, discuss and share people’s questions and ideas. Examples of topics we have studied and discussed include the role of drinking in the Book of Esther and the holiday of Purim, searching for a hidden God, and the elements of Jewish identity and conversion.
Finishing the material we are learning is a crucial component to the program. This helps to develop Jewish literacy, but also provides a sense of empowerment and accomplishment.