Program to Link Teens and Pre-Teens to Israel Via Live Video-Conferencing

Memphis, TN (8/1/07) – "Kesher Konnections," a program of the Memphis Jewish High School, will inform, educate and inspire the teens and pre-teens of Memphis about Israel – the culture, the State, the people and the land – with its "Kesher Konnections" program. With its unique ability for video-conferencing, Memphis Jewish High School will have real-time connections between Israeli teens and Memphis teens, further enhancing and solidifying the ties between this age group to Israel. In real-time, teens will have the opportunity to gain a greater appreciation of the culture and people of Israel.

"Kesher Konnections" will target and include all Jewish youth who are part of the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox denominations, as well as non-affiliated Jewish teens. Adrian Weissman, head of school for MJHS, said "We could not be more thrilled or proud of the recognition and confidence that the Lemsky Committee and the Board of Directors of the Memphis Jewish Federation have shown in the proposed program and our school's ability to execute it."

Andy Groveman, president of the Memphis Jewish High School, states "This is a perfect way for our school to give back to the community. We are excited about the potential for this program to reach a wide cross-section of our Jewish teens and, at the same time, leverage our technology for the benefit of our community. We have already had a number of live video-conferences with Israel and our students, and have experienced the impact that this can have on this age group. We will be working hand-in-hand with each of the synagogues, youth groups, religious schools, and formal day schools in our community in a collaborative manner to ensure maximum participation. Over the last year, the school has had live video-conferences with noted speakers Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, chief rabbi of Efrat, Rabbi Dr. Benny Lau, head of the Beit Midrash Programs at Beit Morasha of Jerusalem, and during Tu B'Shvat, we had a live video-conference between a school in Columbus and a school in Israel where the teens interacted and had the benefit of learning with one another."

Dean of Jewish Studies Avi Gellman is responsible for the implementation of this program and is looking forward to working with teens to create more and more "konnections" between the community's pre-teens and teens and their counterparts in Israel. Mr. Gellman marvels at the effectiveness and impact that technology has played in connecting MJHS students to Israel and he hopes to bring this to the broader community.

For more information on the "Kesher Konnections" program, please visit www.kesherkonnections.org or call the Memphis Jewish High School at (901) 767-4818 and ask for Avi Gellman. You may also learn more about Memphis Jewish High School by visiting www.mjhschool.org.