We are pleased to share this call for applications for a what looks to be a significant summer program that aims to foster scholarship and professionalism in Jewish cemetery — and genealogy — work: the second annual JewishGen Future Scholars Fellowship program.
It is planned take place in Poland from July 5, 2022 – July 14, 2022.
The deadline for applications is February 28, 2022.
Graduate students, along with current third and fourth-year undergraduate students, are invited to apply.
From the organizers:
This immersive program, created in partnership with The Matzevah Foundation and the Friends of Jewish Heritage in Poland, focuses on the role of Jewish cemeteries today in preserving the memory and legacy of former Jewish communities. (The Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage in Poland – FODZ is also a partner.)
The purpose of this program is to inspire and begin the training of the future generation of leaders in Jewish genealogical involvement. Focusing on Poland, we seek to explore basic tools of genealogical searching in Poland, once home to more than half of world Jewry, and share and protect the history that gave shape to that genealogy of the past and future.
Participants will help clean-up a cemetery, learn about symbols and epitaphs on tombstones, the general state of Jewish cemeteries in Poland after the Holocaust, efforts to preserve them from both a communal, political, and Halachic perspective, and what lessons can be gleaned to inform our own life choices today.
On this 10-day journey, participants will tour many Jewish heritage sites including Warsaw and Lublin, spend an inspirational Shabbat in Krakow, visit Auschwitz/Birkenau, and then travel to Przysucha, Poland, where the group will participate in the clean-up and preservation of the Jewish cemetery in partnership with a Polish university student group.
The trip will be led by hightly experienced staff, and participants will have an opportunity to learn from rabbis, scholars, dignitaries, and community leaders, who will offer first-hand insights regarding the imperative (and challenges) of cleaning-up cemeteries in accordance with Jewish law. They will address how local Polish communities view Jewish cemeteries in their towns, the need to preserve Jewish memory, and more.
During the trip, Fellows will play a leadership role in working with the Polish university students (in collaboration with the Historical Institute of the University of Szczecin), and will have nightly reflection exercises. Upon returning home, each Fellow will record a video and write an essay describing his or her experience. These recordings/essays will be made available on the JewishGen website.
This program is nearly fully subsidized, save for a $350 (to be paid upon acceptance and commitment to the program) non-refundable registration fee. All other expenses will be completely covered by JewishGen.org (including r/t travel from NY, transportation in Poland, meals, lodging, materials, etc). Dietary laws will be observed.
Questions may be sent to [email protected].
Click here for full details, itinerary, and link to application form
NOTE: All dates, etc subject to change, given the pandemic and/or other factors.