We live up to our mission as an incubator for tomorrow's Jewish leaders on a daily basis, providing the avreichim with a broadening and deepening growth experience. Our goal is to prepare well-rounded avreichim, who will emerge from our program with the skills and experience to excel in the pulpit, in the classroom or in other positions of communal leadership.
Personal Growth and Development
During their two years in our Beit Midrash, our avreichim gain Torah knowledge through their morning, afternoon and evening sedarim, in which they study for at least 7 1/2 hours. They also hear shiurim in in-depth gemara and practical halachah.
In addition, avreichim work on a weekly Collaborative Shiur. Each week, the avreichim are given a "starter" source, and challenged to develop a shiur or a derashah [sermon] based on that material. At the end of the week, the avreichim compare notes and critique each other's work.
Each avreich also writes for our Toronto Torah publication, in a rotation of articles that challenge the avreichim to produce parshah- and calendar-related divrei torah, pieces on Spirituality, and biographical items on Jewish leaders and pieces on places in Israel. The Toronto Torah publication is circulated to more than 20 shuls in the Greater Toronto Area.
Each week, an avreich records a two-minute Dvar Torah, which is uploaded to our YouTube channel.
Video recordings of some of our shiurim are available on-line at KosherTube, and audio recordings of more than 1000 of these shiurim are available in our on-line archive, courtesy of YUTorah.org.
Rabbinic Assistantships and Professional Development
Each avreich is linked with a Toronto synagogue, taking the role of Rabbinic Assistant in the evenings and on Shabbat. Living in the communities where they are assistants, the avreichim get to know the population, and take on pastoral, programming and officiating roles. They receive mentorship from the rabbi of the synagogue, and provide educational, outreach and family activities for the community.
In addition, each of our avreichim is partnered with a Ram at Yeshivot Bnei Akiva - Or Chaim High School for Boys, working with individual students, groups of students and entire classes twice each week. Individual avreichim also offer breakfast and lunchtime shiurim for students at Or Chaim. These roles are structured to minimize interference with the personal learning of the avreich, while affording the avreich the opportunity to be paired with an experienced teacher in a classroom setting, as well as to develop independent programming.
Our avreichim also have the opportunity to work with the leading institutions of Jewish Toronto. Rabbis and staff from the Toronto Bais Din, Chaplaincy programs, UJA, the COR and more such institutions have agreed to lend their time to us for seminars with our avreichim, and they also have afforded our avreichim the opportunity to accompany them in their work, to learn the professional ropes firsthand.
Sessions from our first year (5769-5770) included, in chronological order:
Rabbi Kenneth Brander, Dean, Center for the Jewish Future at Yeshiva University
Richard Joel, President, Yeshiva University
Rabbi Baruch Taub, Rabbi, BAYT
Rabbi Mordechai Greenberg, Rosh Yeshiva, Yeshivat Kerem b'Yavneh
Rabbi Chaim Strauchler, Rabbi, Shaarei Shomayim Congregation
Zalman Goldman, Director, JACS Toronto
Rabbi Yair Kahn, Ram, Yeshivat Gush Etzion
Rabbi Boaz Genut, Executive Director, Torah miTzion
Rabbi Elie Karfunkel, Rabbi, Temmy Latner Forest Hill Jewish Centre
Rabbi Moshe Aberman, Ram, Yeshivat Gush Etzion; Board Member, Torah miTzion
Rabbi Dr. Nachum Berlat, Director of Pastoral Care, Baycrest
Howard English, VP of Communications, UJA Federation of Toronto
Rabbi Yosef Carmel, Rosh Kollel, Eretz Hemdah
Mo Lidsky, Director, Canadian Friends of Yeshiva University
Rabbi Jonathan Rosenblatt, Rabbi, Riverdale Jewish Center, NY
Rabbi Yossi Michalowicz, Rabbi, Westmount Shul and Outreach Centre
Rabbi Aaron Greenberg, Director, JLI on Campus - York University, University of Toronto
Rabbi Asher Vale, Director, Beis Din, Vaad haRabbonim of Toronto
Sessions from our second year (5770-5771) included, in chronological order:
Rabbi Chaim Strauchler, Rabbi, Shaarei Shomayim Congregation
Rabbi Mordechai Willig, Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary at YU
Rabbi Marc Penner, Director of Professional Development, Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary at YU
Brent Baer, President, Baer Essentials, Communications Coach
Rabbi Boaz Genut, Executive Director, Torah miTzion
Rabbi Yosef Zvi Rimon, Ram, Yeshivat Gush Etzion
Rabbi Tzvi Heber, COR
Rabbi Ronald Weiss, Director of Chaplaincy, Jewish Family and Childrens Services of Toronto
Rabbi David Horwitz, Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary at YU
Rabbi Dr. Eddie Reichman, Associate Professor, Albert Einstein College of Medicine at YU
Dr. David Pelcovitz, Gwendolyn and Joseph Straus Professor of Psychology and Jewish Education at the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration at YU
Rabbi Yosef Carmel, Rosh Kollel, Eretz Hemdah
Rabbi Chaim Ilson, Rosh Yeshiva, Yeshiva Derech haTalmud
With these components of Personal Growth and Professional Development, we are generating Torah Leadership for the future.
