Grants for the Study of Jewish Secularism and Secularization for University-Based Continuing Education Programs
The
Center for Cultural Judaism invites applications for Posen Foundation
grants for Adult Continuing Education programs to introduce courses in
the study of Jewish secularism and secularization. Recipients will
receive $50,000 annually, for up to three years, towards new courses of study.
These
grants are intended to provide adult learners with the opportunity to
explore this new field of study, which is growing at the undergraduate
level and now offered in more than three-dozen institutions.
University-Based Continuing Education programs in Jewish Studies,
Humanities, Religious Studies, History, Philosophy, Literature,
Sociology, Anthropology or other related disciplines are encouraged to
apply.
Grants will be awarded to support the teaching of at least three new courses per year, including a core course in the history, texts, philosophy, and literature of Jewish secularism and secularization. Selections will be made on the basis of a strong proposed core course; an understanding of what it means to teach courses in Jewish secularism and secularization; scholarship in this area; and the ability to integrate these courses over time and make them permanent.
The application deadline was December 29, 2008 with programs set to begin during the 2009-2010 academic year.
The Foundation introduced its first Adult Continuing Education program in North America at Lehrhaus Judaica,
a non-denominational Jewish Studies adult school in the San Francisco
Bay Area. The Foundation plans to significantly expand these efforts
and support new courses in Jewish secularism, primarily at
university-based continuing education programs throughout North America and
Israel.
In Israel, The Foundation is sponsoring a new
program at Katedra: The Center for Experiential Learning. The first course,
"Israelism, Judaism and Secularity," features a series of lectures by
renowned Israeli scholars on subjects including the roots of modern Jewish
nationalism; the break from tradition in modern Hebrew literature; the
"voice of the people" and its impact on secular thought in Israel and
the Jewish people; and the Israeli mosaics between secularism and religiosity.
