On October 31st, Libenu was privileged to host a visit of worldwide community leaders from the JDC/Kaplan Leadership Initiative – Global Jewish Leadership Seminar. In partnership with Spertus Institute, JDC picked a select group of local Jewish organizations to showcase to the international group of Jewish leaders. The fellows in the Kaplan Leadership Initiative are mid- to senior-level managers at a variety of Jewish institutions, including Jewish social services and welfare groups, Jewish community centers, Jewish schools, synagogues, educational programs, and Jewish media. All in all, 18 community leaders from Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, Israel, Great Britain, Argentina, and Brazil were in attendance.
The overarching goal of the visit was for the Kaplan Leadership Initiative fellows to see and learn how best practices are put into place within organizations, and how they could extract pieces from what they see/learn and take back to their communities all over the world. Libenu was chosen to be a “living laboratory” to help these Jewish community leaders learn how to address and provide best practices for providing the highest quality of life for individuals in our community with disabilities. The fellows spent time learning with Libenu’s Executive Director, Dr. Shana Erenberg, and then toured our Women’s Home to see first hand how effective a community can be at creating meaningful living arrangements inclusive of even its most vulnerable members.
