Katz-Phillips Leadership Development Program Empowering and Developing Jewish Leaders in New Orleans since 1960

Historical Context The Lemann-Stern Young Leadership Program was begun in 1960 to train outstanding young men in Jewish New Orleans for positions of leadership. In 1967, a companion program for women was added, and the programs were combined in A mission to Israel was also added in Beginning in 2003, non-Jewish spouses were invited to join the program. In that same year, both partners in a relationship were nominated and asked jointly to participate (previously, nominations were strictly individual).

Evaluating the program Although the program was successful for more than 60 years, it needed to evolve. To that end, in 2012, Federation: – Hired an external consultant – Surveyed a sample of program alumni from the past 20 years – Held individual interviews and focus groups

What did we learn? Overall, respondents felt the program was successful—this is shown by the fact that 60% of alumni currently hold leadership positions within Jewish New Orleans. The overall findings were: – A need for more time devoted to tangible leadership skills – A stronger focus on second-year retention – Continued engagement with alumni through ongoing mentoring

Introducing the revitalized Katz-Phillips Leadership Development Program 3 rd Party Facilitator overseeing monthly sessions Added a day on the ground in Israel 2 nd year overnight weekend retreat focused on leadership skills Personalized mentoring while serving as intern on agency board

Monthly Sessions Non-staff facilitator adds an educational/skill-based slant 2 advisors – program alumni/ current community leaders – offer institutional perspective A comprehensive curriculum covers an array of topics, including: Social Justice: Jews in the Broader Community Israel, Global & American Jewry Understanding Federation’s Annual Campaign and Allocations Process How Federation Partners with Jewish Agencies & Organizations

Connecting to Israel What makes this mission different? - Held at the beginning of the program, it creates an immediate bond between the participants. - It instills a sense of identity and Jewish peoplehood by connecting participants with Israelis. - Participants learn the impact of the Annual Campaign dollars through JAFI/JDC site visits. - They hear from phenomenal guest speakers like Paul Liptz, Rachel Korazim and Reuven Hazan. (Each class member pays only $800 for 8 days on the ground in Israel, thanks to a corporate subsidy.)

Mentoring/Onboarding With the enhancements to Katz-Phillips, we’ve created a new mentoring program. - Program participants are paired with a Jewish community leader/program alumni to steer their lay leader onboarding process. - Participants intern on either an agency board or the Federation board for a year to develop meaningful leadership skills. - The mentoring relationship continues after the internship to help guide the next steps for emerging leaders.

Overnight Retreat In the second year of the program, participants attend an overnight retreat at no cost to them. - The Tolmas Leadership Retreat is held an hour outside of New Orleans at a retreat center. -The one-night trip allows participants to celebrate Shabbat together, while focusing on leadership skills through group exercises, discussions and role- playing.

Leadership Development Endowment Campaign A campaign was launched to endow the program in perpetuity, and has raised nearly $800,000. Total program cost over 2 years: $150, day mission to Israel Two program facilitators (a professor and a social worker) leading monthly educational sessions Overnight Leadership Skills Retreat Part-time administrative assistant Additional corporate sponsorship has lowered participants’ costs for the Israel mission. Currently, the endowment will offset half of the program’s operating budget.

Katz-Phillips 2.0 Stressing the importance of the program to our community—as stated earlier—over 60% of Jewish agency, organizational and congregational boards in New Orleans are comprised of program alumni. An astonishing 90% of Federation’s Executive Committee is made up of Katz-Phillips alumni. The Katz-Phillips Leadership Development Program is shaping the future of our Greater New Orleans Jewish community. And that’s our Fedovation. Thank you!