A qualified applicant:
Applications for Cohort I are now closed. Please sign up for our newsletter to get updates on the program.
AI Policy for Applicants to Mandel Institute for Nonprofit Leadership Programs
The Mandel Institute for Nonprofit Leadership recognizes the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI) tools in professional work. As part of our commitment to cultivating ethical, mission-driven leaders, we expect applicants to engage with these tools thoughtfully and responsibly.
We understand that some applicants may use generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Grammarly, AI-enhanced writing software) to assist in preparing their applications. While use of these tools is permitted, the following guidelines apply:
The Mandel Institute values integrity, intentionality, and authentic leadership. This policy reflects our belief that AI, when used mindfully, can enhance but never replace the human dimension of leadership.
An admissions committee drawn from the Mandel Institute’s faculty, staff and consultants makes admissions decisions.
The committee will select finalists based on evaluation of applications, notifying applicants of their status in mid-October. Finalists will be invited to the Institute in Boston for interviews with the admissions committee and a group activity with other finalists in November. Fellows will be notified in late-November.
The admissions committee seeks to create a cohort that represents the diversity of the Jewish community.
The program extends over approximately 18 months and includes four in-person seminars, virtual courses between seminars, one-on-one sessions with an adviser and small group consultations. Three seminars are held at the Mandel Institute’s space in Brookline, MA and one is held in Israel.
All program costs and travel expenses are covered by the Mandel Institute.
We believe that fellows’ growth will be best supported if faculty understand the fellows’ work contexts and supervisors understand the program curriculum. Thus, supervisors are invited to a group zoom meeting with other supervisors to learn about the program, and to a one-on-one meeting with the program director to discuss how to best support the fellows’ growth.
The program’s curriculum is organized around three stands:
This strand is premised on our belief that educators are most effective when they are equipped with conceptual tools that allow them to thoughtfully and intentionally craft their practice. It will include seminar-like discussions of important writings on teaching and learning more generally, and of different approaches to Jewish education, addressing questions like: What motivates people to learn? What are the purposes of Jewish education? It will also include opportunities to see these ideas in action through field observations at a wide range of sites, and to experience varied educational approaches as learners. Along the way, fellows will engage with inspiring and creative leaders and master educators as they seek to discern who they aspire to become as educators.
We believe that Jewish educators of all kinds are more effective when they are grounded in a broad foundation of Jewish knowledge. The Jewish Learning curricular strand aims to help grow that knowledge for all fellows, whether they enter the program as relative beginners or with advanced Jewish knowledge. The learning will focus on four key areas: Jewish History; Classical Jewish Text; Jewish Holidays and Traditions; and Hebrew Language. The exact structure and content of the learning will depend on the makeup of the cohort. Some Jewish learning will take place during seminars, but the majority will take place through virtual courses taught over Zoom between seminars.
This strand is premised on our belief that we can develop as human beings and professionals when we turn inward and gain awareness of the habits of heart and mind that underlie our accustomed responses. Our hope is that fellows will learn to respond more consistently with intention, and to show up as their most fully resourced selves. In this process, we will draw from the fields of adaptive leadership, non-violent communication, and immunity to change, paying special attention to early career challenges and opportunities. In tandem, we will engage with Jewish wisdom and the spiritual practice of tikkun middot–cultivating innate positive attributes that support us. The personal and the professional come together here in a journey of exploration, sharing, and growth.
Fellows must attend all four seminars in their entirety. Between seminars, fellows continue their learning through virtual courses, peer consultations, meetings with an adviser, and assignments. The typical time commitment for online sessions and readings between seminars is three hours per week, or twelve hours per month.
Seminar 1: Boston – January 25 – February 1, 2026 (includes a Shabbat experience with the cohort)
Seminar 2: Boston – June 21-25, 2026
Seminar 3: Israel – January 5-12, 2027 (excluding travel days to and from)
Seminar 4: Boston – June 20-24, 2027
A baseline understanding of Israeli society is helpful in grappling with the challenges of Jewish education today, no matter one’s political views. The Israel Seminar explores the complexity of Israeli society through engagement with a variety of educational institutions and leaders. including classroom observations, conversations with school leadership and teachers, and often, conversations with students. While it is impossible to be comprehensive, we try to plan touch points with a wide range of societal sectors, including hiloni (secular), haredi (ultra-Orthodox), Arab/Palestinian, dati leumi (national religious), Ethiopian, Mizrahi (Jews from the Middle East and North Africa and their descendants) and foreign workers/refugees.
The site visits to Israeli schools also give fellows the opportunity to encounter a range of educational visions, and during the seminar we devote time to analyzing our experiences and reflecting on how they might enrich our own educational visions.
No, you do not have to be Jewish to apply for the program. Any person who has worked in Jewish education for one to six years and is enthusiastic about the field is invited to apply for the program.
Fellows who are nursing are offered Milk Stork to help them ship home their pumped milk home. This applies to seminars in the United States and Israel. Fellows will be given a private space to pump when needed. Fellows who have a newborn under one year old may bring their baby with them to the seminar regardless of location. Fellows are encouraged to bring a family member or other caregiver to take care of the newborn during the seminar. MINL will cover the cost of the flight to bring the caregiver, and the caregiver and infant will be invited to meals when no programming occurs. If a fellow does not have a caregiver to bring to the seminar and must bring their baby, the fellow should find local childcare where the seminar takes place and is fully responsible for managing the childcare provider. MINL will reimburse the fellow up to $200 for each day of the seminar for the cost of childcare.
For finalists who are traveling to Boston for admissions interviews, Milk Stork is offered to ship pumped milk home. Finalists will be given a private space to pump when needed. If a finalist needs to bring an infant with them, the finalist will be responsible for ensuring childcare during their interview day.
Finalists who are unable to travel due to pregnancy or care of an infant will be offered the option of participating virtually.