February is Jewish Disability Awareness and Inclusion Month (JDAIM), and one local program is working to help educate our community’s Jewish educators.
Sasone, which operates under the umbrella of Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, helps ensure that children with special needs in our community can successfully attend Jewish preschools, religious and Hebrew schools, Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy, and area Jewish summer camps.
Part of that is making sure Jewish educators in our community have access to training and educational resources. In conjunction with JDAIM, Sasone is hosting a community workshop for religious educators on Feb. 20. The featured speaker is Meredith Polsky, founder of Matan Kids, a national nonprofit that helps Jewish programs become more inclusive.
“We're really excited to have Matan on board and to hopefully partner with us for our workshops in the future,” said Lindsey Lipsky, director of Sasone.
Lipsky said this community workshop was offered to religious school educators because they are often “the gateway to a lot of young children's access to a Jewish education.”
Religious school educators face the unique challenge of only seeing their students once or twice a week. According to Lipsky, there are about 475 students enrolled in congregational schools in the Kansas City Jewish community. Statistically, one in five of those students could have an “invisible” learning disability that isn’t immediately recognized, such as ADHD or dyslexia.
“Oftentimes, teachers will be working with students, and they might not even realize that they have special needs,” Lipsky said.
The community workshop will focus on strategies that educators can use to support students with special needs – strategies that are good for all children, Lipsky notes – and how to make lessons engaging for them.
“The hope is that we get participants asking questions and help them change their mindsets about what access and inclusion looks like,” she said.
Another challenge for religious educators is that they might not have the resources to work with these students. Sasone can consult with schools, administrators and teachers to provide individualized program planning, and it also provides funding for training, equipment, supplies or professional staff required to meet students’ needs.
“We want to make sure that Sasone is providing the support that's needed,” Lipsky said. “Our hope is that students don't face a barrier to accessing Jewish education.”
Lipsky hopes this type of community workshop will become an annual event and said there are plans to provide training for early childhood educators in the future. Any educators in the community who want to learn more about the resources, support and training Sasone provides can contact Lipsky at .
Sasone, which is the Hebrew word for “joy,” was founded in 1995 by Steve and Sandy Passer, along with Alan Edelman. Sasone is funded by Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, Menorah Heritage Foundation, the Lowenstein Family Supporting Foundation, the Marion and Henry Bloch Family Foundation, The Sosland Foundation and philanthropic investment from generous community members.
To learn more or make a contribution to the program, visit sasone.org.
By Lacey Storer, Assistant Editor