Above: Delegates to National Jewish Youth Institute, held at Emma Kaufmann Camp, circa 1950. Image: National Jewish Welfare Board Records, courtesy of American Jewish Historical Society.
Apply now to be a Junior Scholar at the Center for Jewish History this July! Space is limited.
The Junior Scholars Program at the Center for Jewish History is a free, two-week program open to any high school student who will be entering their junior or senior year in fall 2014. This nondenominational, pre-college program will give high school students the opportunity to develop research skills, work with historical material and explore behind-the-scenes operations at one of the most significant research institutions in the world.
Students will learn how to shape research projects, evaluate pieces of historical evidence and pursue their own academic interests. The theme of this year’s program is immigration, which students will explore through seminars, workshops, guided research time and field trips. The archive, museum and library workshops will allow students to interact with Center staff members and learn about different professional fields.
As part of the program, we will ask students to complete a modest independent research project that speaks to the theme and/or to their own family history. They will conduct guided research in the Center’s Lillian Goldman Reading Room and Ackman & Ziff Family Genealogy Institute.
This is a wonderful opportunity for any high-schooler, and we hope you will forward this information to potential applicants, parents and teachers. Please see below for the program application; if you’d like further information, feel free to contact us at 917.606.8209 or at Juniorscholars@cjh.org.
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IMPORTANT DATES:
Program duration: Monday, July 7, 2014 through Friday, July 18
Daily attendance: Mondays through Thursdays, 9am to 4:30pm; Fridays, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Application deadline: Friday, June 13, 2014 at 3 p.m. Apply online here.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:
To qualify for admission in the Junior Scholars Program, you must be a high school student entering your junior or senior year in fall 2014. Before you apply, make sure that you will be able to participate for the entire two weeks of the program: Monday, July 7, 2014 through Friday, July 18.
In addition to your online application, please provide two recommendations. At least one of these recommendations must come from a teacher. Recommendations should be a maximum of one page long. They should be emailed directly to the program administrator with the applicant’s name in the subject line: juniorscholars@cjh.org.
ADDITIONAL PROGRAM INFORMATION:
Students will be provided with notebooks, pens and other supplies. They may bring their own laptops but will be asked to put them away during certain workshops or sessions. All are welcome to use the computers at the Center during designated research times.
Kosher, vegetarian lunch will be provided for “welcome” and “see you soon” parties on the first and last days of the program. Otherwise, students are welcome to bring their own lunches or to buy lunch in the area. The Center will distribute a list of popular local eateries, including those with kosher and vegetarian options. Students who choose to leave the building for lunch will be unsupervised for their lunchtime.
The Junior Scholars Program will include New York-area field trips. Admission will be free of charge. Students will meet at the Center for Jewish History on field trip days and travel with their instructors. They will be asked to use their own MetroCards for field trips. Transit costs will not be covered as part of the program.
Accepted students and their parents/guardians will be invited to a pre-program orientation. The Center will distribute parent/guardian permission forms for the Junior Scholars Program and all field trips. We will also ask you to provide emergency contact information.
If you have any questions, please contact Miriam R. Haier at juniorscholars@cjh.org.
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ABOUT THE CENTER FOR JEWISH HISTORY:
The Center for Jewish History is home to five partner organizations: American Jewish Historical Society, American Sephardi Federation, Leo Baeck Institute, Yeshiva University Museum and YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. The partners’ archival collections span more than 700 years of history and total more than 500,000 volumes, 100 million documents, and thousands of artworks, textiles, ritual objects, recordings, films and photographs. At the Center, history is illuminated through scholarship and cultural programming, exhibitions and symposia, lectures and performances.