Gateways has been named one of the nation’s 50 most innovative Jewish nonprofits for the third year in a row in Slingshot 09-10, a resource guide for Jewish innovation.

Slingshot, now in its fifth year, features organizations, and programs that have taken an innovative approach to addressing age-old concerns of identity and community in Jewish life today. Gateways is proud to have been included in Slingshot, having made the cut again after an extensive evaluation process overseen by several dozen foundation professionals.

Gateways is one of only ten organizations in the 09/10 listing to receive a capacity building grant from the Slingshot Fund.

Inspired by the guidebook, a group of next-generation donors launched The Slingshot Fund, a collective giving mechanism to support the future of innovative Jewish life in North America. Now in its third year, the fund has already contributed over $1 million to innovative Jewish nonprofits. The full press release is available below. www.slingshotfund.org

The Jewish Funders Network recently chose Gateways as one of 25 Innovator organizations invited to participate in the Innovation Forum presented at their annual international conference in March 2009 in St. Petersburg, Florida.
www.jfunders.org

Barry Shrage, President of Combined Jewish Philanthropies, celebrating 20 years at the helm of Boston's Jewish Federation, the oldest in America:

Gateways is the gateway for every school in our community to access the expertise they need to support children with special needs. It's an opportunity to give all of our kids a Jewish education. There’s nothing more important than an educated Jewish future for our community and for American Jewry, and it will never be complete until every single kid has that right and that privilege…We are also indebted to the dedicated Gateways staff, to the day schools and the teachers that have embraced their methods, and to the parents who have worked so hard to ensure that their children get a Jewish education. Gateways represents our great dream, a dream of a Jewish community that is warm, welcoming and inclusive, and we look forward to continuing to doing great things together.

Liz, Mother of Harry, Bar Mitzvah, February 2008: I think what was important from our family's perspective is that we knew we wanted an "out of the box" event.Gateways supported our vision and gave Harry the tools and experience to make it a reality.

Nancy, Mother of Josh, as she prepares for his Bar Mitzvah in September, 2008: Without all these years of learning about being Jewish, Josh would not be as connected to the faith as he is. He so much enjoys reading the Hebrew, attending services, and attending other Jewish events...Gateways brought this to him, gave him the chance to mature and supported him until he was able to be the wonderful, young man he is today who values and can actively partake in Jewish life. It's hard to believe we're here after all these years and struggles. Please know that we value your efforts to ensure children such as mine have the opportunity to discover and rejoice in their Jewish heritage. You should be so proud not only of where you've taken the 'organization' but also that the organization itself is full of caring, educated, staff and volunteers (especially).

Mother from Western Canada who heard about us: Thank you so much for your helpfulness and for keeping me on your mailing list so that I can learn more about the activities of Gateways. Just knowing about the existence of this organization has inspired me to create new opportunities for my own child!"

Helayne, Parent of Teen Volunteer: I observed my daughter at your program and I was so touched. What a fabulous program and what an amazing opportunity you have afforded my daughter. I want you to know how thankful I am to you and Prozdor for allowing my daughter to make a difference in the life of a child. This experience will help to guide her in her college/career decisions. I really saw my daughter in a different light and it was wonderful.

Penina,who wrote her senior thesis at Tufts about Jewish education: Thank you for all that you do to make these children feel that they are an included part of the Jewish community.

Michael Gilbert, Director of Development for Hebrew College, and father of a three-year teen volunteer, commenting on our Inaugural Volunteer Appreciation Event in May, 2008: Thank you for a truly wonderful event. In its own modest and charming way, it was as profound and moving as any tribute evening that I have been to. Rebecca was really touched. It was a nice thing to do -- showing gratitude to the teens -- and it brought closure to what had been an important life experience for everyone involved.

Bil Zarch, Former Prozdor High School Director, Reflections on Inclusion: Inclusion… it's a buzz word that we educators use all the time. What does it mean to be inclusive? How do we make inclusion a real and natural part of any school community ...? We all know that the opposite of inclusion is exclusion. Many of us shudder to think about a time when we were excluded from something or some group. Feelings of sadness or despair may wash over us as we remember times when we were excluded...Inclusion in the classroom takes on many different levels. When a teacher purposely pre-assigns groups to work in, this is a form of inclusion... An inclusive community is one that accepts everyone for who they are. An inclusive community is not one that picks apart other members of the community because of perceived differences. A community that allows others to get bullied or teased because they look, act or say something differently is not an inclusive community. But inclusion isn’t limited to what we on the staff and faculty can do — it takes an entire community to make sure everyone feels a part of the whole...

Frank, father of Rachel, describes his daughter and her experience at Gateways in the attached article.

Attachment	(click to download)
	What music means to Rachel.doc
	Slingshot Gateways Press Release Oct 13 09.DOC