Cleveland's Jewish community played an active role helping Soviet Jews emigrate from the Soviet Union and resettle in the United States, and especially in Cleveland, from the 1960s to the 1990s.

Irina Parkman emigrated Russia and came to Cleveland in order to escape persecution. She is able to still be connected to her Russian heritage through a partnership with the Cleveland Public Library.

If you are a young Jewish Clevelander interested in Israel travel experiences, we have 3 great ways to get you to Israel this summer. Applications are being accepted now. Join us!

The experience of participating in Onward Israel helped Naomi to be able to combat BDS on her college campus as well as land a job in the field.

Dr. Maya Lugassi is the senior director of Pedagogy and Professional Development at Beit Yatziv, one of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) educational partners in Israel. She recently traveled to Cleveland as part of a delegation of Israeli educators, administrators, and municipal leadership to learn from Cleveland STEM education experts on ways to further implement STEM curriculum in Israel’s geographic and socio-economic periphery, including Cleveland’s sister community of Beit Shean and the Valley of Springs.

There was a time Vita didn’t know she was Jewish. Today, she is helping Jewish Clevelanders strengthen their Judaism.

Applications are now open for Onward Israel, a prestigious eight-week summer internship program in Tel Aviv for Jewish Cleveland young adults. The Jewish Federation of Cleveland, in partnership with Masa Israel Journey and The Jewish Agency for Israel, are now selecting college students and recent college graduates, ages 19 – 27, to live and intern in Tel Aviv from June 10 – August 4, 2020.

Since its inception, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland has taken a holistic approach to increasing the quality education in the low socio-economic areas in Israel’s periphery. From Parents and Children Together (PACT), designed to close the education gaps between Israelis and Ethiopians who came to Israel in the 1980s, to Youth Futures, which helps at-risk children and their families, Federation has been addressing the myriad of factors that can influence a child’s ability to learn.

I was born in Dushanbe, Tajikistan (part of the Former Soviet Union). Amongst a Muslim majority, my family lived in a small but strong Jewish community – considered one of the oldest ethno-religious groups of Central Asia.

Onward Israel is a two-month summer internship program in Tel Aviv for young adults to explore their professional passions while deepening their connection to Israel and their Jewish heritage. Here’s what a few alumni had to say about the experience of a lifetime.