Dr. Jeffrey Winter presents on “Understanding Your Personal Work Style” at ATT’s Teachers’ Educational Conference on Feb. 15.

Associated Talmud Torahs of Chicago’s annual Teachers’ Educational Conference took place on Monday, Feb. 15 at the ATT. The Conference featured many workshops for all ATT Day School and High School teachers, from pre-nursery through 12th grade. Close to 500 teachers attended.

Pre-nursery, nursery, and kindergarten teachers attended “Exploring Executive Functions in Early Childhood Education” presented by Rush Neurobehavioral Center and “Developing Language, Literacy, and Executive Functioning Experiences in the Classroom” presented by WEE Speech.

Teachers of Judaic studies attended workshops on the following: “Bringing Simcha into the Classroom” and “Chinuch Perspectives of Gedolei Yisroel” presented by Rabbi Mordecai Yaroslawitz; “Understanding Your Personal Work Style” presented by Dr. Jeffrey Winter; “Rashi Beneath the Surface” presented by Rabbi Michael Myers; and “Dealing with our Students Contemporary Challenges” presented by Mrs. Faigy Zelcer.

General studies teachers attended workshops on “Reading, Writing, and Thinking” and “Integrated Higher Order Thinking Skills” presented by Brian Pete; “Getting Started with Differentiation in Middle and High School” and Using Formative Assessment to Drive Differentiated Instruction” presented by Dr. Kristina Doubet; “Creating A Community of Leaners: The Responsive Classroom Approach” presented by Sari Donenberg and Adi Dimri; “Teaching Poetry to 21st Century Learners” presented by Ms. Sheri Goldstein; and “Teaching Literacy Using the Workshop Approach” presented by Carly Rosenberg and Sarah Weinstein.

There was a special workshop entitled “Data: The Driving Force behind Student Success” presented by the REACH Team for special education/resource teachers and a librarian/media specialist networking session facilitated by Debbie Feder and Sarah Burnstein. An administrative workshop entitled, “Facilitating Transfer form Staff Room to Classroom” was presented by Brian Pete for principals, assistant principals, and program coordinators.

This annual conference is for all religious and general studies teachers in the ATT’s affiliated day schools and high schools. Co-chairpersons of the conference are: Rabbi Avrohom Shimon Moller and Mrs. Chani Friedman. For further information, please contact 773-973-2828.

This annual conference day is part of the ATT’s Barbakoff Department of Teacher Education and Development.

As the world turns the page on 2015 and the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, there is an understanding that many fewer veterans and survivors will still be with us at the 75th anniversary in 2020. We will have to increasingly rely on recorded first-person oral biographies, published works, and physical remnants to understand the dark scar of the 20th century that claimed more than 65 million lives.

Friends of Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation and the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center are co-sponsoring Preserving a Place of Terror: The Remnants of Auschwitz-Birkenau on Wednesday, Feb. 24 featuring Dr. Piotr Cywinski, director of Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. The wide-ranging discussion will address: the anatomy of a death camp; the context of national memory; the challenges of physical preservation; and the legal aspects of international preservation.

Chicago area Auschwitz survivor Fritzie Fritzshall will also speak on the survival and importance of preservation.

The program will take place at the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center, 9603 Woods Drive, Skokie, beginning at 5:30 p.m. The event is free, but reservations are required.

Additional co-sponsors include: University of Haifa, ADL, Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania, Consulate General of the Republic of Poland, Consulate general of Germany, Consulate General of the Czech Republic, Consulate General of the State of Israel, Consulate General of Greece, Consulate General of Turkey, Catholic Theological Union, Polish American Association, Illinois Holocaust Museum, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Decalogue Society, Polish Roman Catholic Union of America, Shaarit Hapleita of Metropolitan Chicago, YIVO, Advocates Society of Polish Lawyers.

Write On for Israel Senior Fellows in a meeting with Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk in Washington, D.C.

The Senior Fellows of JUF’s Write On for Israel program visited Capitol Hill in early February for an intensive two-day experience focused on issues of importance to Chicago’s pro-Israel community.

Students met with both Illinois Sens. Richard Durbin and Mark Kirk, and nearly all members of the Illinois Congressional delegation or their members of their staff to advocate for the importance of U.S military aid to Israel, combatting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, and more. Additionally, they met with White House officials, representatives of think tanks and advocacy organizations and young Capitol Hill staffers.

The trip gave Fellows the chance to put a year and a half of learning facts as well as training on how to convey these facts to elected officials into action.

“Before I came to Washington, the political system was an enigma to me,” said Lorne Miller, a senior at New Trier High School. “Now, after lobbying congressmen, congresswomen, and senators, I know that I want to learn more about how the system works.”

Margalit Pogonitz, a senior at Ida Crown Jewish Academy, recounted how it felt to be sitting with Rep. Danny Davis as he regaled a small group of Write On Fellows with stories.

“His making jokes, telling personal stories and relating to our community made me feel like I could easily relate to him,” she said. “If I can meet with these people, who are in highly ranked positions voting on issues of extreme importance to the U.S. and the rest of the world, I can surely advocate on a college campus.”

Highland Park High School senior Jamie Hendler found that she was able to synthesize insights the group gained from briefings the day before going to Capitol Hill and use them to strengthen the case she presented to lawmakers.

“To be able to meet with real Congressmen and women felt like a once-in-a -lifetime opportunity,” she said. “I managed to take something away from each and every meeting. The experience on this trip will benefit me greatly on campus.”

Jacob Shiner, a senior at Ida Crown Jewish Academy, found himself caught up in the passionate exchange of ideas in Washington. “When I’m in college at University of Maryland, I will take up an internship with a Congressman,” he said. “This will give me an opportunity to advocate on a direct line to those that matter on Israel’s behalf.”

“I am very thankful for the Write On experience and I am anxious but excited to test my advocacy skills next year on campus,” said Amanda Sugar, a senior at Ida Crown.

Ariel Stern, a senior at the Latin School, admitted to feeling some trepidation at the start of the trip. “I walked into my first meeting feeling anxious that I was underqualified, but soon I had a completely different perspective … I knew that I was and will always be capable of advocating for Israel, but I began to see how many other routes my skills could go in college and beyond. I am most definitely qualified, and most definitely prepared for what’s to come.”

The Washington, D.C. Fly-In is a highlight of the senior year of the Write On for Israel program. Write On for Israel, a program of JUF’s Israel Education Center, trains motivated high school students to lead pro-Israel efforts on college campuses and prepares them for leadership roles in our Jewish community.

Current high school sophomores can submit their names to [email protected] to be notified when applications for the next cohort of Fellows are available.

Sydney Kaplan’s parents always told her she had “good stuffing,” meaning she was full of compassion and sensitivity. In particular, she was bothered by homelessness.

So she used her good stuffing to create Sydney’s Stuffing, a non-profit she founded to make and distribute pillows to at-risk children. The pillows are designed to be portable-they have a clip to attach them to bags. And they are emblazoned with an appropriate inspirational message: “It’s what inside that counts.”

“I learned that one in 30 kids-nearly 2.5 million children-are homeless in the U.S.,” Sydney wrote. “The thought of people, especially children, not sleeping in a bed with a pillow upsets me. Sleep gives me the ability to focus in school, work hard, and have a good day.”

The pillows come with a notepad and pen zipped into the pillowcase’s pocket. This, she explained, “is for the recipients to record their hopes, dreams, and ideas.”

In addition to homeless children, Sydney is distributing the pillows to kids in hospitals and generally going through tough times. Sydney also gave pillows to children she met in Israel last December, at an absorption center for Ethiopian immigrants in Kiryat Gat, a city in JUF’s Partnership Together region.

So far, Sydney’s Stuffing has given 2,000 pillows to children. She has raised over $10,000 to date, and will continuing fundraising at special events and online.

Sydney’s parents, her sisters Jessica and Danielle, her extended family, and her friends all helped her realize her dream. Reva Nathan & Associates and local company called Done Deal Productions assisted her in making her design a reality, and had the pillows manufactured at a low cost and high quality. Other local retailers-such as Just Between Friends, Such a Deal and Estreet-promoted sponsorship of pillows in exchange for discounts, and Sydney was mentored by Allowance for Good, which guides budding philanthropists.

JUF’s TOV Volunteer Network’s Concierge program-supported by a JUF Breakthrough Fund grant- helps people tailor projects customized to their time, interests and budget. Through the program, Sydney learned about the needs of homeless youth, and the opportunity to extend the project hospitalized and chronically ill children. And TOV helped Sydney coordinate with local shelters to place the pillows into the hands of children in need.

“Seeing a child realize her dream of helping others through an encouraging community has been incredible,” said Amy Kaplan, Syndey’s mother.

“I have dreams that this pillow will improve lives,” Sydney said. She wants all kids to “get a better night’s sleep and have a comfortable place to rest. At the same time, I hope it will give them confidence by knowing that people care.”

For more information, contact [email protected] or check out her Go Fund Me Page at www.gofundme.com/sydneystuffing .

To many people, conflict – whether physical, verbal, social or economic – has come to define the contemporary relationship between Jews and Muslims. Yet, despite substantial differences of opinion and perspective, some in each community are seeking to build bridges and understanding while still holding true to their values and beliefs.

The next episode of the public-affairs program “Sanctuary” – which airs at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 14, on ABC7-Channel 7 – visits one arena of such outreach: the college campus, a venue of increasing confrontation, yet also of sincere efforts at connection.

Discussing both the challenges and opportunities of those efforts are Tahera Ahmad, an assistant chaplain and director of interfaith engagement at Northwestern University, and Michael Simon, executive director of the Fiedler Hillel at Northwestern. Also featured are Asya Akca and Rachel Zucker, Turkish American and Jewish students, respectively, at the University of Chicago, who discuss their close friendship and their recent interfaith visit to Israel. Cindy Sher hosts.

Following the ABC7 broadcast, the program also will available for viewing on the Jewish United Fund website, www.juf.org/videos.

“Sanctuary” is a joint production of the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago and the Chicago Board of Rabbis, in cooperation with ABC7-Channel 7.

Human beings are hardwired for good, contends Dacher Keltner, author of the bestseller Born to Be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life. Armed with scientific evidence, he contends that kindness is the key for the survival of humanity.

Keltner will speak at the Jewish United Fund Agency Board Members & Non-Profit Professionals Dinner on Thursday, Feb. 25, at The Hyatt Regency Crystal Ballroom, 151 E. Wacker Dr., Chicago. The event begins at 5:30 p.m., and dietary laws will be observed. Reservations are required and may be made online at juf.org/bmnp. There is no charge to attend; however, a gift to the 2016 Jewish United Fund Annual Campaign is encouraged.

Keltner is a Professor of Psychology at the University of California at Berkeley, director of the Berkeley Social Interaction Lab, and faculty director of the Berkeley Greater Good Science Center. His decades of research focus on the biological and evolutionary origins of compassion, awe, love, and beauty, as well as power, social class, and inequality.

Most recently, Keltner was the scientific consultant for Pixar’s highly acclaimed film Inside Out , which features emotions as its main characters: Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust. Sadness becomes the hero of the story-a perspective supported by his research.

“[Sadness] probably begins in early attachment dynamics between parent and child,” he said. “Sadness and crying bring people closer. That’s massively important for a young baby and it’s important for adults as well. When we need assistance, sadness triggers assistance [behavior] in others.”

This message may be of interest to people in the non-profit sector, especially those who work directly with people experiencing emotional distress. “What’s relevant is that when you’re responding to people suffering, you’re dealing with the harder stuff,” he said. “The challenge is to remember the greater good you are doing with your work…I will be addressing some practical tools for managing that kind of stress.”

His interest in studying emotions developed early in his career. “I started my work on the hypothesis that humans have a lot of good in them,” he said. “I was reading about anger and fear and how they were the core substance of the human mind. I thought…there is a lot more to emotional life than anger and fear.”

He discovered the science-based foundation for his research in the work of Paul Ekman, who pioneered the study of emotions and their relation to facial expressions.

“We have powerful ancient tendencies to share and cooperate, to take care of people in need, and to reconcile conflict. It gets us out of this paradigm that we’ve been dominated by [in the past] that humans are just greedy and selfish. That’s a cynical view of human nature.

“Humans have to cooperate to survive. We have to share resources, we have to collaborate. When you study hunter-gatherer societies, you learn it really is survival of the kindest,” Keltner said. “The challenge is how do we create societies and neighborhoods and schools that bring out those tendencies?”

He said his research takes a scientific evolutionary approach to neurological development. “Our babies are born hyper-vulnerable,” he said. “We needed to take care of them or [they would] die.” People’s consistent physical responses to certain emotions demonstrate that the human nervous system adapted to requiring cooperation, empathy, and altruism to ensure survival of the species.

Keltner has published over 190 scientific articles, is the co-author of two textbooks, and is author of The Compassionate Instinct . He has twice presented his research to the Dalai Lama as part of a continuing dialogue between the Dalai Lama and scientists, and he has received outstanding teacher and research mentor awards from UC Berkeley. His forthcoming book, The Power Paradox (Penguin) will be released in May.

For more information on the JUF Agency Board and Non-Profit Professionals Dinner, contact Mindy Bass at 312-444-2839 or[email protected].

David Prystowsky, vice president of Campaign at JUF, has assumed the role as the senior professional leader of the annual Campaign.

After serving as executive director of JUF’s Jewish Community Relations Council for three years, Prystowsky returned to the Campaign department last fall, a place he began his JUF career as a Young Leadership Division Associate in 2001. Prystowsky’s broad campaign experience includes YLD, Trades, Industries and Professions (TIP), the Corporate Partners Program, and as the professional leader for the annual Nachshon Mission.

Prystowsky said he’s excited to take on the new role. “I feel very lucky to work with such a talented and dedicated group of colleagues and volunteers,” he said. “It’s humbling to think about JUF’s extraordinary history and the responsibility we have to so many who rely on our success, but also very exciting to seek new opportunities to engage more people and continue to reach new heights with our campaign.”

“I have full confidence in David’s ability to provide leadership and vision for the annual campaign,” JUF President Steven B. Nasatir said, “and I know that his creativity, experience, and ability to partner with many will result in much success.”

The Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center has kicked off the Midwest premiere of What We Carried: Stories by Iraqi Refugees, a photographic exhibition that explores the possessions that Iraqi refugees cherished enough to bring on their journey to the United States. The exhibition is on display at the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center now through June 26, 2016, and is available in both English and Arabic.

Over four million Iraqis have fled their homes since the American invasion in 2003, and over 140,000 have been admitted to the U.S. These refugees did not leave to get a better job or because of a natural disaster; they left because of a brutal dictator and warfare that had virtually destroyed their country. Behind the numbers are individuals with incredible stories of perseverance, stories that illustrate the struggle of uprooting lives and leaving families to search for safety.

The featured objects, photographed by award-winning Portland-based photographer Jim Lommasson, range from family photos to a Qur’an, from jewelry to a game of dominos. Refugees wrote their personal reflections directly on the printed photos before returning them to Lommasson, who then curated the exhibition.

In partnership with the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, an exhibition of an additional ten photographs will be on display at the Daley Center Concourse Gallery located in the Pedway in Downtown Chicago from now through April.

For more information, visit www.illinoisholocaustmuseum.org .

The Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center is a special grantee of the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago.

Congress returned in January after a hectic few final months as the House and Senate rushed to complete its work on must-pass legislation, including the federal fiscal year 2016 spending bill, or Omnibus Bill, legislation to extend tax provisions, and resolutions expressing support for Israel and concern about anti-Semitism.

Just days before the deadline to avoid a government shutdown, Congress passed a $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill to fund the federal government through the remainder of FY 2016 (September 30, 2016). The President signed the bill into law that same day. The Federation secured a few big wins including: a $7 million increase to a total of $20 million for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program; $120 million for the Emergency Food and Shelter Program; $3.1 billion in security assistance for Israel under the 2007 U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding; and continued funding for joint U.S.-Israel Defense Programs-Iron dome, short range ballistic missile defense, the Arrow System, and Israel’s overall missile defense infrastructure.

“With the active involvement of JUF’s Washington, D.C. office, 2015 saw several significant victories for the Federation,” said David Golder, JUF Government Affairs Committee Chair. “At a time when Congress was looking for ways to curb spending, a number of programs our affiliated agencies rely on not only survived, but in some cases, saw increases and were further strengthened.”

The Omnibus Bill also included provisions to extend a number of tax incentives that are important to the Federation. The excise tax, known as the “Cadillac” tax, on high cost employer-sponsored health coverage that was mandated as part of the Affordable Care Act in 2010 and scheduled to be implemented in 2018, is delayed for two years. In addition, the IRA charitable rollover provision was made permanent, thus making contributions by individuals for 2015 and succeeding years effective without needing annual congressional action.

Both the House of Representatives and Senate introduced bipartisan concurrent resolutions expressing support for the right of states to maintain economic sanctions against Iran for its sponsorship of terrorism, human rights violations, and other illicit activities. The House of Representatives also passed two resolutions aimed at combating anti-Israel incitement within the Palestinian Authority and curbing anti-Semitic attacks in Europe.

Lisa Shuger Hublitz is the director of the Jewish Federation’s Washington D.C. Office.