Engage: Growing School and Community Partnerships

Applications for the Engage 2023-2024 Program are closed at this time.

If you are interested in learning more about the program, please contact Beth Rivkind, Director of Enrollment Growth.

What is Engage?

Engage, Prizmah’s signature year-long partnership program between Jewish day schools and PJ Library, offers schools and their local PJ Library partner grants to support community engagements designed to attract families to Jewish day schools. With the ultimate goal of increasing day school enrollment through generous funding from the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library Alliance, and Lisa and Arieh Coll, Jewish day schools and PJ Library are able to increase potential for expanded recruitment, stronger retention, and ultimately, higher enrollment, by positioning the school as a hub for Jewish communal life.

Why Participate in Engage?

Over the past six years, the Engage program has enabled more than 100 Jewish day schools to position themselves as centers of Jewish engagement for families with young children.

How do I know if Engage is right for my school and community?

• The head of school, admission professional, and PJ Library Program Partner should have experience in their role at their school or organization for at least 12 months.
• Your Jewish day school has dedicated admission professionals who can take the lead to work with their local PJ Library Program partner to design and meet the programming requirements. 
• Your school and community is committed to working together as participants in Engage.
• Your school and community is committed to building partnerships towards a goal of increasing recruitment and enrollment through strategic stewardship and programming.  

How does my school apply for the Engage program for 2023-2024?

Engage is a collaborative partnership program between the school and PJ Library Partner. Admission professionals and their local PJ Library program partners planning to apply, need to do so together.

Applications will open on April 3, 2023

What are the fees to participate?

There is no fee to participate in the Engage program.

• Schools receive a grant generously funded by The Harold Grinspoon Foundation, Lisa and Arieh Coll, and Prizmah toward engagements.
• Participating Jewish day schools receive a grant of $2,500 to support engagements or initiatives.
• PJ Library Program Partners receive $500 toward their participation.  

What are the requirements of the Engage program?

Accepted Engage program schools and PJ Library Partners will commit to the following:

• Plan a minimum of four new or expanded engagements throughout the school year.
• Collaborate with one another to develop, plan, and implement engagements.
• Admission professionals attend 12 (monthly) virtual one-hour sessions which offer:
  • Skill strengthening in capacities critical for engagement including, relationship-building, stewardship, market segmentation, communication/marketing, program planning, use of data, and more.
  • A supportive and informative network of professionals in which participants lean into each other to strengthen their practice.
  • Specialized training on how to mobilize ambassadors from their school to support engagements.
• Collect engagement data and deployment of participant surveys.
• Promote PJ Library subscriptions to participants throughout the program.

Engage Program Timeline

A complete timeline with session content and dates will be released at the start of the program.

Application Process

Applications for the Engage 2023-2024 Program are now closed.

Engage is a collaborative partnership program between the school and PJ Library Program Partner.

Admission professionals and their local PJ Library Program Partners apply for a limited number of spots in Engage. The application should be completed by the admission professional in collaboration with their local PJ Library Program Partner.

The application process requires review and online submission.

Step 1: Application questions should be completed thoughtfully with your PJ Library partner. We recommend meeting (in person or virtually) to complete the application together.

Step 2: Once the application has been reviewed and finalized, admission professionals should submit all completed questions through the online application below.

Step 3: Prizmah will contact applicants to schedule a brief interview.

Step 4: Once all applications have been reviewed, program acceptance notifications will be communicated to the school via email by June 16, 2023.

Questions?

Contact Beth Rivkind, Director of Enrollment Growth, at bethr@prizmah.org.

Engage is generously sponsored by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library Alliance Funders, and Lisa and Arieh Coll.