With Chanukah here already, why not give the teens in your life the gift that won’t stop giving – a spot in an NCSY Summer Program.
NCSY, the Orthodox Union’s international youth program, plays a pivotal role in the lives of Jewish teens around the world. The organization’s multitude of educational and fun-filled activities, retreats and programs, help Jewish teens to connect with and appreciate their Jewish heritage and the land of Israel, as an investment in the future of the Jewish people.
“NCSY Summer Programs are so much more than fun summers — they are life-changing experiences that last a lifetime,” noted David Cutler, Director of NCSY Summer Programs. “Last summer we had over 1,000 participants on NCSY programs and this year we are hoping to have even more.”
NCSY features a variety of summer programs that cater to the many interests of Jewish teens of different ages. Whether teens desire to spend the summer touring, developing their leadership qualities, kicking back and playing sports, performing, giving of themselves in social justice, or learning, NCSY Summer has a program that will fit their niche desires for Summer 2016.
Introducing for Summer 2016, JOLT Israel. As an offshoot of JOLT, this program will heavily focus on enhancing and gaining leadership skills. The teens will tour Israel extensively with incredible staff. A highlight of the summer will be spending ten days creating and running a camp for siblings of cancer patients.
Also brand new to the NCSY Summer programs for 2016, is Camp Maor, for girls grades 4-9 where every girl will get her chance to shine in the spotlight. Participants can look forward to sports, arts and crafts, but most of all the opportunity to develop their performance skills in music, acting and dance.
The summer 2016 NCSY programs include:
- BILT (Boys Israel Leadership Training) — a five-week program for high school boys in grades 9-12. BILT participants will volunteer at places such as a camp for Israeli children and an occupational factory for the blind; will camp out and cookout under the stars of Kfar Shamai (in Israel’s northern Galilee region) during a four-day trek across the country; build and race rafts on the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee); snorkel in Eilat; experience life on an Israeli kibbutz; and observe army training on an Israel Defense Force base.
- GIVE (Girls Israel Volunteer Experience) – Program for girls grades 9-12 that focuses heavily on volunteer opportunities. Some of the highlights include creating a carnival for children from Sderot; teaching Ethiopian children how to read Hebrew; and developing and participating in activities with special needs children and adults.
- GIVE WEST is for high school girls from grades 9-12, and also focuses heavily on volunteer opportunities. This trip takes place in the United States. This five-week program spends time on the West Coast. Last year, the program started out in Arizona and traveled to California, Oregon and Washington State.
- Euro ICE & ICE Israel – Tour exotic locations such as Italy, Slovenia, Hungary, Austria, and Czech Republic, then Israel. Experience great touring, educational programming and community service projects. A co-ed programs for grades 9-12.
- JOLT (Jewish Overseas Leadership Training) – a leadership program that begins in Poland at Majdanek, Treblinka, Lublin and Auschwitz; then goes to the Austrian Alps to be a counselor at an OU/NCSY summer camp, run in partnership with the Lauder Yeshurun Outreach Organization, to connect with Jewish children from across Eastern Europe. After Europe, participants travel to Israel. Co-ed program available to those in grades 10-12.
- Kollel – In Jerusalem, boys grades 9-12 will intensify their commitment to Judaism through learning, playing competitive sports, engaging in recreational activities and touring Israel.
- Michlelet – In Israel, girls grades 9-12 will learn Torah on beginners through advanced levels, while touring Israel and participating in recreational and volunteer activities.
- The Anne Samson Jerusalem Journey (TJJ) – Public school co-ed students in grades 9-12 will explore Israel by participating in activities such as archeological digs, hiking up Masada, visiting the Kotel, and swimming in the Kinneret.
- TJJ Ambassadors – Public school students in grades 10-12 participate in a leadership training program in areas such as social action and political advocacy, combined with high level study and touring in Israel.
- Camp Sports – Baltimore-based camp for boys in grades 8-11, featuring baseball, football, soccer, basketball, and Frisbee in competitive leagues and recreationally. Includes paintballing, trip to Hershey Park, watching a demolition derby, and 20 other field trips.
- Camp MAOR – Poconos-based camp for girls grades 4-9, gives campers the ability to step into the spotlight and explore their passions for the performing arts. Girls will have the opportunity, regardless of past experience, to learn from professionals in acting, dancing, and singing. Aside from the performing arts, campers will have the opportunity to play sports, swim, canoe, design arts and crafts, and travel to New York City to see a production. The summer will also include performance opportunities for campers internally and externally, in which campers will have the ability to perform for both their peers, and campers at Camp HASC for individuals with special needs.
- JOLT Israel – a leadership program that allows participants the chance to explore Israel from a new perspective; then gives them the opportunity to be a counselor at an NCSY summer camp, run in partnership with Zichron Menachem, to provide a memorable summer camp experience for siblings of children with cancer. Throughout the trip, teens will hike the Golan and sail the Kinneret all the while learning about their rich Jewish heritage, building character, and understanding their social responsibility to the world at large. Co-ed program available to those in grades 10 and 11.
- TJJ Ambassadors Poland — Public school students in grades 10-12 participate in a leadership training program in areas such as social action and political advocacy, combined with high-level study and touring in Poland and Israel. It challenges participants to confront Jewish history and develop leadership skills to impact the Jewish future. By the conclusion of the program, participants will develop the skills and knowledge necessary to independently implement educational, advocacy and social action programming in their local communities.
For more information on these programs, and to register, visit NCSY’s website at www.ncsysummer.com, call 1-888-TOUR-4-YOU, or e-mail David Cutler, NCSY Director of Summer Programs at summer@ncsy.org.