Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
CAMP RAMAH IN NEW ENGLAND
Maximizing Our Summer Impact and Expanding Ramah’s Impact Throughout the Year
A Five-Year Strategic Plan
For sixty years Ramah in New England has been a dynamic model of living Judaism. What takes place during the Ramah summer excites the imagination of campers, providing them with experiences that reflect and express the best of Jewish life.
We are very proud of our Camp and its accomplishments: Ramah is a unique Jewish environment. Campers tell of how they can’t wait to come back; they describe their experience as fun and over 80% return for the next season. Many of our alumni have become creative and important leaders of the Jewish community.
We pride ourselves in our ability, every few years, to reflect and discuss within the Camp community how we can enhance our core activity--the summer camp. Now, the beginning of a new decade is an appropriate time. We have made important strides in recruitment and program in the past several years, but we are not ready to rest. The physical plant needs attention. Scholarship funds do not meet the current demand. Our program can benefit from review. We will have to develop substantial financial resources for all these and more.
Ramah is more than a place. Ramah is a powerful community. Ramah is a culture, an environment difficult to replicate.
Synagogues and homes find it challenging to be Ramah or to replicate it in the off-season. Campers often feel incomplete and sad as they long for Ramah Shabbatot--when the ideal is real. They wonder how they can “take some of Ramah home….”
We, as well as other Conservative leaders, are concerned that our Movement has diminished in both size and vigor. For significant numbers of our alumni, our synagogues are not the "community” they came to appreciate and desire for themselves while at Ramah. This has been an ongoing problem since Ramah was established more than 60 years ago. Not finding the warmth and joy of community (hevra), Ramah alumni throughout the country have organized havurot, minyanim, often traditional—within or apart from their local Conservative congregations—and are actively building communities, Ramah-style yet frequently outside the Movement.
A success for Ramah, when viewed from the standpoint of Klal Yisrael, is viewed in our Conservative movement as a challenge to Ramah: What can Ramah do to bridge that gap? What can we do during the summer and throughout the year, with our rabbis, educators, campers, staff, and families, to bring home the Ramah message and experience? How can we partner with them Page | 1
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010 to ensure that in the 21st century Conservative entities can meet the needs of Jews along a continuum of practices, beliefs and experiences, including the needs of our alumni?
Camp Ramah is committed to improving the summer experience, our traditional core. Much needs to be done. Beyond this we also need to focus on year-round programming--to “turn the summer inside-out,” sparking a grassroots movement. If we succeed, we will extend the impact of Ramah throughout the year to campers and staff. We can indeed help them take some of Camp home with them.
With a clear vision and a well-developed and coordinated set of activities, both summer and year-round, we will continue to reinvigorate Ramah for the decade of the 2010’s. Beyond this, we can play a role in empowering the institutions of our Movement!
Mission Statement: Through its exceptional camp that each summer creates a dynamic model of living Judaism, Camp Ramah in New England nurtures the next generation of educated and committed Jews who embody the ideals and practices of Conservative Judaism.
Camp Ramah inspires and educates campers and staff through building a spiritual community and implementing programmatic excellence in Judaics and Israel, the arts, athletics, and environmental education.
By training and developing Jewish leaders and role models Ramah helps ensure the future viability and vibrancy of the Jewish people.
Ramah deepens its impact on its campers and staff as well as the broader Jewish community by fostering strong partnerships with families and Jewish organizations and institutions year round.
Vision: At the end of five years, Camp Ramah will leverage its reputation and capacity as a premier provider and resource for innovative experiential education and the builder of a community of committed and educated Jews during the summer to further spread its model and practices to individuals and communities throughout the year and across our region. As an institution that prides itself on self-evaluation, adaptability, inclusiveness, and innovation, we will continue to seek new ways to strengthen the connections we make between the experiences that take shape through our high-quality summer program and the lives of campers, staff and their families and communities outside the confines of camp.
TWO INTER-RELATED STRATEGIES
1. Maximizing the Summer’s Impact At its core, Camp Ramah is a summer camp. In making our summer experience even stronger, both staff and facility must be enhanced and every activity must be seen through the dual lens of Jewish educational opportunity and programmatic excellence.
Page | 2
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
Our number one goal is that campers at Camp Ramah must be inspired, learn, and internalize their experiences. To have an impact on young Jews, we must first recruit them to camp and, thus, we must focus on what it will take to recruit each camper. Camp Ramah both in reality and in its marketing must present a camp that is attractive to mainstream Conservative Jews, and that is affordable for Jewish families. Once at camp, the program must offer the best in both “typical” camp and Jewish programming. Only then can transformative experiences occur.
Staff members at Camp Ramah are both transmitters and receivers of the experience. As transmitters, they must embark on the Jewish journey with their campers. Additionally, they must receive ongoing training to be able to take advantage of teachable moments and increase their ability to deliver high quality programming. As recipients of the experience, they must engage in ongoing study and programs that inspire and teach them to become engaged, life-long Jews. Eighty one percent of campers who continue on to be staff at a Ramah camp for at least one year say that being Jewish is very important in their lives (Keysar and Kosmin study for the National Ramah Commission). We need to build on this strong identification and create the next wave of Jewish leaders. Toward this end, significant resources are necessary to enhance staff training and learning.
Goals: Develop program excellence that will attract a wide variety of campers Reduce financial barriers to enrollment in camp Expand cutting-edge Jewish experiential education, through an array of opportunities, to inspire life-long love of Judaism. Inspire campers to take the Camp Ramah experience home with them Continue to create industry-leading special needs, inclusion and access programming Model a vibrant and joyous Conservative Jewish community and lifestyle Develop leadership training programs that start in the upper age groups of campers and intentionally transform the receivers of the Camp Ramah experience into the transmitters of the experience Communicate to parents more effectively and using the latest technologies regarding what Camp Ramah is and does to increase their awareness of their children’s experiences Include parents in the educational experience by empowering them to help their children bring Camp Ramah home with them
Top Priorities for Summer Programming: A. Build upon our experiential education programs (Jewish education, Hebrew and prayer) by creating new curricula and programs that inspire campers at camp and in their home communities to learn Judaics, Hebrew, and build connections to Israel. B. Create leadership development programs for our campers and staff to empower them to be the future leaders of camp and the Jewish community.
Page | 3
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
C. Utilize Jewish art forms to engage and capture the interest of campers. D. Use environmental programs, outdoor education, and social action to teach both the importance of these areas in Judaism and the relevance of Judaism in today’s world.
Other Priorities for Summer Programming: E. Create a sports program that is an asset for recruiting efforts. F. Develop Tefila curriculum and methods that motivate campers to engage in prayer. G. Generate an even more joyous Conservative community that serves as a model for Jewish living throughout the week and Shabbat. H. Build upon our present special needs programs by mastering inclusion and access services. I. Develop teacher training programs for current staff members within the summer that will provide qualified staff for year round programs and local schools and youth programs. J. Expand initiatives to make camp affordable for families of all socioeconomic levels.
Measurable Objectives: KEY MEASURE: Attain camp capacity within three years. (Average 499 campers at a time) Increase by 20 percent per year for three years the number of campers who choose advanced curricula in Judaics (for example, Bet Midrash and Ulpan programs). Add three new advanced opportunities in the arts, outdoor education and sports. One new camper driven environmental objective adopted each year. As measured through surveys of camper families: o Increase the penetration of take-home projects, including universal awareness of each child’s project, 50% acknowledge increased participation, and 20% acknowledge consistent increased participation. o 25% self-reported increase in year round Shabbat participation both in home and at synagogue. o 25% yearly increase in customer satisfaction with performing arts, visual arts and sports instruction until 55% rank at the top level.
Sample Specific Activities and Tactics: The following items are included as suggested activities and tactics and are intended to help describe how the above-noted priorities may be addressed. Programmatic enhancements will evolve and adapt to take account of identified needs and available resources.
Develop more optional “challenge” programs like Bet Midrash and Ulpan for kids to stretch themselves. Refine our “Take Home Camp Ramah” projects and coordinate them better.
Page | 4
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
Transform campers who receive the Camp Ramah experience into transmitters of the experience through our leadership programs for entering 10th and 11th graders. In tenth grade campers will learn what the “Camp Ramah Experience” is and in 11th grade they will begin to practice being leaders of this experience through their Counselor in Training Program. Teach counselors leadership skills and give them opportunities to exercise them in their roles in camp. Train staff to identify experiential education opportunities and how to take advantage of them. Produce high quality plays in Hebrew that teach skills and build a sense of accomplishment. Strengthen instructional methods to teach the next generation of Israeli song and dance while maintaining our classic repertoire. Offer high level visual arts classes that combine skills with Judaic themes and content. Further develop on-site Teva (nature) activities that teach Jewish values of protecting our world. Teach environmentalism through a Jewish lens and inspire campers to implement new programs and objectives at camp. Implement fun activities in a Jewish educational context in outdoor education and adventure. Provide high level sports instruction designed to develop individual and team skills as well as Jewish values. Provide individual athletic opportunities such as fitness and yoga to attract campers that do not care for team sports. Rebuild Hebrew as the public language of camp through new experiential initiatives in partnership with National Ramah and the Avichai Foundation. Find new ways and programs to utilize our Israeli staff to bring Israel alive for children and serve as catalysts for lifelong connections to the land, state and people of Israel. Provide an array of social activities in a Jewish context that allows campers to develop interpersonal relationships and skills. Continue to provide our beloved Shabbat experience while expanding the experience to include more activities that are replicable outside our community. Develop an in-summer Hebrew school teacher training institute that certifies our staff to be experiential educators throughout the year. Make camp more accessible to physically challenged individuals. Bring parents to camp to facilitate the integration of camp experiences into home life. Encourage campers to participate in USY in their home communities as a means of developing year-round engagement in Jewish life.
Page | 5
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
2. Expanding Camp Ramah’s impact on our campers, the Conservative movement, and the greater Jewish community year round.
As we build our summer program to the level of excellence it deserves and demands, we will simultaneously create a system of expanding Camp Ramah first in our own region and then with the expectation that the practices and methods we employ here might be replicated and strengthened in other areas of North America over the coming years. We take these steps to contribute to the vitality of the Conservative movement and to ensure that the mission of Camp Ramah will not be compromised by weaknesses in the movement.
The essential question: how can Camp Ramah best leverage its assets (people, program and facility) to transfer the idealism, energy and knowledge-base of the camp experience to the Conservative movement and the wider community?
The following goals represent an effective way to categorize the work that will serve to expand the work of Camp Ramah beyond its current physical and conceptual borders:
Goals: Reinforce the summer experience of all campers, including campers with special needs, throughout the year. Develop youth leadership throughout the year. Strengthen lay and professional synagogue leadership through training and demonstration. Export Camp Ramah experiences to home communities. Leverage the Camp Ramah brand and facility to convene the community. Partner with communities to develop programs and activities to increase engagement with Conservative synagogues, Conservative day schools, USY and other parts of the Conservative movement. Utilize Camp Ramah’s expertise in experiential education, building community, and joyous Jewish practice to the benefit of the greater Jewish community. Engage parents/families and motivate and empower them to grow with their children. Brand Camp Ramah as a resource and presence of Conservative Judaism in the community. Energize and prepare lay leaders to serve as ambassadors in their communities.
Top Priorities for Expanding Camp Ramah’s Impact: A. Link summer take home projects and experiences to rest of year. B. Create a series of experiential programs that can be run at camp or in local communities to further Jewish education either during the week, on Shabbat or Sundays.
Page | 6
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
C. Develop and train a cadre of college age staff that can be deployed to help local communities with joyous religious experiences. D. Develop meaningful family programs that foster full family education and growth and are available to a broad population.
Other Priorities for Expanding Camp Ramah’s Impact: E. Generate consistent communication with local synagogues, schools, and communities to follow up on summer experience. F. Provide leadership training to staff and campers throughout the year. G. Partner with local organizations to improve Hebrew and day schools and make experiential education available to more young people. H. Create resource materials that local schools can use with their students to make experiential education available to more young people. I. Serve as a key resource for local organizations that want to effect change and improve the Jewish experiences for their constituents.
Measurable Objectives: Increased camper participation in synagogue life as reported by local rabbis. Increasing camper participation in take home projects as reported through camper surveys. Deployment of Camp Ramah trained staff into four new synagogues per year. Development of family camp. Partnership with CJP (Boston’s Jewish Federation) to help implement their new supplementary school initiative. Open teacher training institute for our current summer staff in 2011. Increase number of staff participating in year round training programs by 20% per year until a total of forty percent participates. Well-functioning year-round staffing model (“Ramah Corps”) that brings our summer staff to our partner organizations during the off-season. 3 – 5 strong partnerships with local schools and/or synagogues built over the next 3 years. At least two off-season events held in Palmer and run by the Camp Ramah staff Creation of a training program to teach Jewish professionals to utilize Camp Ramah educational methods in their local synagogues and schools. At least 60 percent of camper families engage regularly with our virtual communities via blogs, website, facebook, etc.
Specific Activities and Tactics: The following items are included as suggested activities and tactics and are intended to help describe how the above-noted priorities may be addressed. Programmatic enhancements will evolve and adapt to take account of identified needs and available resources.
Page | 7
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
Utilize technology to communicate and inspire campers to continue camp experiences at home Communicate directly with local rabbis and educators to remind and help them to incorporate what their campers did at camp in their local communities Create short-term teacher training institutes at camp to certify current teachers in experiential Jewish teaching methods as well as themed workshops on tefilot, teaching texts, Hebrew, and holidays Continue to utilize and build upon National Ramah and Foundation for Jewish Camp staff training programs Provide “one-off” experiential programs to local schools centered on important educational themes or holidays to enrich their curricula Deploy summer staff to work in synagogues to provide creative youth services Publish meaningful materials that can be used in summer and throughout the year to teach tefilot Launch family camp(s) that provide meaningful Jewish experiences for families Run staff weekend retreats (for staff from all Ramah camps) to rekindle the summer experience Partner with synagogues to develop vision and action plans to reinvigorate and improve current experiences during the year Develop an a la carte menu of programs that Jewish institutions can choose from when holding their own programs at camp during the year Create top-flight leadership development program for Jewish institutions, to take place during the summer and throughout the year
RESOURCES NEEDED To attain our goals, Camp Ramah needs the enthusiastic support of its Board of Directors and other lay leaders, and for these leaders to play an active role in obtaining the financial support needed to implement the strategic vision.
Many of the resources needed to maximize the summer’s impact will also significantly enhance our efforts to expand Camp Ramah’s impact on our campers, the Conservative movement, and the greater Jewish community year-round. These resources are listed below.
Staff Full-time education director to develop summer and year-round educational programs, train and develop year-round youth staff, and follow up on take home projects with campers, families and Jewish educators/rabbis. Support staff member for our development director to increase and enhance fundraising for facilities and programs. Support staff member will relieve the Development Director of daily administrative tasks to allow her to focus on the capital campaign.
Page | 8
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
Top-level professionals to raise the level of our general programming, song- leading, dance, drama, sports, and nature programs.
Capital New K’far Nivonim (housing for oldest campers) – better designed and more permanent structures to enhance educational mission, facilitate a better staffing model, and significantly increase the number of winterized housing units for off- season groups. Rebuild dining hall and kitchen (on present site) – better designed and winterized facility to maximize programmatic and community opportunities, provide market appropriate meals and foodservice in-season and off-season, and provide comfortable dining space for off-season groups. Multi-purpose athletic center that allows for a comprehensive sports program in inclement weather, a space for the entire camp to convene for theatrical productions and religious services, and for year-round recreational and other use. Dedicated theater space to enable the development of a top-notch program and to house performances. Year-round Camp Ramah lounge/community center for summer indoor programming and winter convening space Welcome Center and new office/program planning space with sufficient space and technological connections to allow for proper hosting of guests, administrative work, and program planning. Outdoor accessible amphitheater for use on Friday night and for other community events. Additional small indoor program spaces to enable camp to deliver high quality programs in all weather. Six new or renovated competition-level tennis courts. Swimming pool – to enhance swimming program and for evening activities. A swimming pool located in “Machaneh Gimmel” also would provide our Tikvah (special needs) campers with better access. Edah (division) sized outdoor prayer spaces to enhance spiritual opportunities and also provide additional gathering spots. Accessibility renovations to bunks, public buildings. Additional guest/visitor housing Finish renovating bunks to ensure that they are market appropriate.
Other Resources Establish an endowment to provide permanent financial support of Camp Ramah, including endowment funds to provide camper scholarships. Improve technology infrastructure to ensure sufficient and robust computing in the summer and year-round
Page | 9
Proposed Final-May 7, 2010
Obtain funding to develop and run staff training programs and for stipends for off-season work by part-time staff. Obtain funding for development of all education programs and resource materials. Obtain funding for development and implementation of family programs.
CONCLUSION By maximizing the summer experience and expanding our programming throughout the year and into our communities, Camp Ramah has a unique opportunity to change the Conservative movement and North American Judaism. As we face historic challenges in the Jewish community – challenges made sharper by the economic downturn – now is the time to take bold steps.
Camp Ramah holds a unique place in Conservative Judaism as the embodiment of our greatest ideals and possibilities and it can serve as a model for how to infuse the joy and power of Judaism into our daily lives. Camp Ramah in New England is poised to turn the challenges we face into opportunities. We are fiscally strong, we have stability in leadership, and we have a satisfied and growing constituency. We believe that when this strategic plan is implemented, we will see a vibrant and full camp, community partnerships that yield exciting new programs and an energized base, and camp alumni who will spearhead a revival of our values, our observance, and our movement.
Page | 10