Deadline: 2 May 2011
AJWS is pleased to announce that we are accepting applications for the Dvar Tzedek Lisa Goldberg Memorial Writers' Fellowship for 5772 / 2011-2012. AJWS Dvar Tzedek Fellows write insightful and articulate commentaries on the weekly Torah portion designed to inspire readers to engage in the pursuit of global justice. Fellows receive a generous stipend and attend a one-day orientation. Dvar Tzedek currently reaches over 6,000 subscribers a week over e-mail.
We’re particularly looking for talented writers who are comfortable/familiar with Jewish texts and interested in connecting them to social justice.
About Dvar Tzedek
Dvar Tzedek is a weekly Torah commentary that relates the parshah to the Jewish imperative for global justice. Designed to inspire readers to greater involvement in the work of AJWS through traditional exegesis and modern thought, Dvar Tzedek currently reaches over 6,000 e-mail subscribers each week.
About the Fellowship
• A Dvar Tzedek is an articulate, informative and inspiring piece about the intersection of Judaism and social justice. As part of the writing process, fellows are expected to present a first draft that is nearly print-ready and will receive editorial guidance from AJWS’s education and communications departments. Fellows must be open to being critiqued and edited.
• Each fellow will write approximately 10 Dvar Tzedek commentaries between September 2011 and September 2012, and will read and record his/her pieces as audio files for our weekly podcast.
• Fellows will each receive a stipend of $3,500.
• All are encouraged to apply, regardless of denominational affiliation, gender, race/ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation.
• Orientation: Fellows must attend a full-day orientation at AJWS’s New York City office on Sunday, August 28, 2011. AJWS will cover the costs of domestic travel. If you have a known conflict with this date, we invite you to apply next year.
Application Instructions
Please submit the following three items:
1. A cover letter articulating your interest in the fellowship.
2. A resume. Please be sure to include any Jewish, social/global justice and writing experience.
3. One dvar Torah on Parshat Ki Tisa .
The dvar Torah should be no more than 800 words in length; should relate the parshah to a specific global justice issue; and should conform to the current style of AJWS’s Dvar Tzedek. Please visit www.ajws.org/dvartzedek to view our archive.
Writing samples will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
• Articulate, informative and inspiring writing.
• Authentic and persuasive interpretation of Jewish text.
• Sophisticated and accurate engagement with global justice.
• Compelling and logically structured argument motivating readers to take specific action.
The deadline for applications is May 2, 2011, at 5:00 p.m. Please send all application materials as attachments in one e-mail to WritersFellowship@ajws.org. Be sure to include your name and e-mail address on every page. Finalists will be contacted no later than June 3, 2011. Finalists will engage in a revision process guided by AJWS staff and may be asked to submit a second dvar Torah. Fellows will be notified no later than June 17, 2011. Please email lexler@ajws.org with any questions.
About Lisa Goldberg
As president of the Charles S. Revson Foundation, Lisa Goldberg had a profound commitment to the Jewish community and to social justice. Lisa was a creative and vigorous supporter of leadership development, public interest law, women and public policy, and Jewish culture. Lisa died tragically at the age of 54. She was a good friend and generous supporter of AJWS. We are honored to name this writers’ fellowship, which embodies many of the values she held dear, in her memory.
Dvar Tzedek Writers’ Fellowship FAQs
What are the standards and format of Divrei Tzedek?
Divrei Tzedek are 800-word pieces that connect themes from the weekly Torah portion to global justice issues. The style and tone should reflect the goals of the Dvar Tzedek, which are to inspire American Jews to commit themselves to the pursuit of global justice and to educate about global justice issues. Divrei Tzedek strike a balance between expressing the unique voice of each writer and representing the values and perspectives of AJWS. Divrei Tzedek should refer to specific sources for both the biblical analysis and global justice portions and these sources should be footnoted.
What is global justice?
For the purposes of Dvar Tzedek, global justice relates to supporting the human rights of marginalized populations in developing countries in Asia, Africa and Central and South America. Divrei Tzedek have generally addressed global justice by focusing either on a particular issue (i.e., women’s empowerment, HIV/AIDS, education, hunger) facing populations in developing countries or on how we as American Jews respond to and interact with injustice and poverty in developing countries.
How will I get information about specific global justice issues?
At orientation, fellows are provided with a list of resources for researching global justice issues. The list includes websites, books and organizations. In addition, the educational resources staff is available to support fellows and may recommend particular articles or organizations relevant to a fellow’s topic.
What is expected of the fellows?
Fellows are expected to submit all drafts and podcasts on time. All drafts should be the writer’s best work, proofread and with properly formatted citations. Writers are expected to conform to AJWS’s style guide, which is distributed at orientation. Writers are also expected to incorporate feedback and edits in their revisions or to indicate if and why they disagree with editorial suggestions.
What is the editorial process like?
AJWS is committed to providing fellows with a value-added editorial process. Drafts are reviewed by an educational resources staff member as well as AJWS’s senior editor and writer. Fellows can expect to receive feedback about all aspects of their pieces, including relevance of the topic, sophistication of textual analysis, connection to global justice, structure of argument and writing style. Most communication will be via e-mail. Occasionally an educational resources staff person may call a writer to discuss a piece. Writers are also welcome to request phone conversations in order to clarify feedback or to work through challenges in choosing a topic or developing an argument. Pieces generally go through two or three drafts before being finalized, and the whole process takes about four to five weeks.
How much time will I spend on my fellowship commitments?
Fellows should expect to spend approximately 10-15 hours on each Dvar Tzedek. This includes reading the parshah, researching commentaries on the parshah , researching the global justice issue or angle, writing, revising, proofreading and recording the podcast. American Jewish World Service (AJWS) is an international development organization motivated by Judaism’s imperative to pursue justice. AJWS is dedicated to alleviating poverty, hunger and disease among the people of the developing world regardless of race, religion or nationality. Through grants to grassroots organizations, volunteer service, advocacy and education, AJWS fosters civil society, sustainable
development and human rights for all people, while promoting the values and responsibilities of global citizenship within the Jewish community.
Applications are due on May 2, 2011. For more information, please contact lexler@ajws.org.
More information here.
AJWS is pleased to announce that we are accepting applications for the Dvar Tzedek Lisa Goldberg Memorial Writers' Fellowship for 5772 / 2011-2012. AJWS Dvar Tzedek Fellows write insightful and articulate commentaries on the weekly Torah portion designed to inspire readers to engage in the pursuit of global justice. Fellows receive a generous stipend and attend a one-day orientation. Dvar Tzedek currently reaches over 6,000 subscribers a week over e-mail.
We’re particularly looking for talented writers who are comfortable/familiar with Jewish texts and interested in connecting them to social justice.
About Dvar Tzedek
Dvar Tzedek is a weekly Torah commentary that relates the parshah to the Jewish imperative for global justice. Designed to inspire readers to greater involvement in the work of AJWS through traditional exegesis and modern thought, Dvar Tzedek currently reaches over 6,000 e-mail subscribers each week.
About the Fellowship
• A Dvar Tzedek is an articulate, informative and inspiring piece about the intersection of Judaism and social justice. As part of the writing process, fellows are expected to present a first draft that is nearly print-ready and will receive editorial guidance from AJWS’s education and communications departments. Fellows must be open to being critiqued and edited.
• Each fellow will write approximately 10 Dvar Tzedek commentaries between September 2011 and September 2012, and will read and record his/her pieces as audio files for our weekly podcast.
• Fellows will each receive a stipend of $3,500.
• All are encouraged to apply, regardless of denominational affiliation, gender, race/ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation.
• Orientation: Fellows must attend a full-day orientation at AJWS’s New York City office on Sunday, August 28, 2011. AJWS will cover the costs of domestic travel. If you have a known conflict with this date, we invite you to apply next year.
Application Instructions
Please submit the following three items:
1. A cover letter articulating your interest in the fellowship.
2. A resume. Please be sure to include any Jewish, social/global justice and writing experience.
3. One dvar Torah on Parshat Ki Tisa .
The dvar Torah should be no more than 800 words in length; should relate the parshah to a specific global justice issue; and should conform to the current style of AJWS’s Dvar Tzedek. Please visit www.ajws.org/dvartzedek to view our archive.
Writing samples will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
• Articulate, informative and inspiring writing.
• Authentic and persuasive interpretation of Jewish text.
• Sophisticated and accurate engagement with global justice.
• Compelling and logically structured argument motivating readers to take specific action.
The deadline for applications is May 2, 2011, at 5:00 p.m. Please send all application materials as attachments in one e-mail to WritersFellowship@ajws.org. Be sure to include your name and e-mail address on every page. Finalists will be contacted no later than June 3, 2011. Finalists will engage in a revision process guided by AJWS staff and may be asked to submit a second dvar Torah. Fellows will be notified no later than June 17, 2011. Please email lexler@ajws.org with any questions.
About Lisa Goldberg
As president of the Charles S. Revson Foundation, Lisa Goldberg had a profound commitment to the Jewish community and to social justice. Lisa was a creative and vigorous supporter of leadership development, public interest law, women and public policy, and Jewish culture. Lisa died tragically at the age of 54. She was a good friend and generous supporter of AJWS. We are honored to name this writers’ fellowship, which embodies many of the values she held dear, in her memory.
Dvar Tzedek Writers’ Fellowship FAQs
What are the standards and format of Divrei Tzedek?
Divrei Tzedek are 800-word pieces that connect themes from the weekly Torah portion to global justice issues. The style and tone should reflect the goals of the Dvar Tzedek, which are to inspire American Jews to commit themselves to the pursuit of global justice and to educate about global justice issues. Divrei Tzedek strike a balance between expressing the unique voice of each writer and representing the values and perspectives of AJWS. Divrei Tzedek should refer to specific sources for both the biblical analysis and global justice portions and these sources should be footnoted.
What is global justice?
For the purposes of Dvar Tzedek, global justice relates to supporting the human rights of marginalized populations in developing countries in Asia, Africa and Central and South America. Divrei Tzedek have generally addressed global justice by focusing either on a particular issue (i.e., women’s empowerment, HIV/AIDS, education, hunger) facing populations in developing countries or on how we as American Jews respond to and interact with injustice and poverty in developing countries.
How will I get information about specific global justice issues?
At orientation, fellows are provided with a list of resources for researching global justice issues. The list includes websites, books and organizations. In addition, the educational resources staff is available to support fellows and may recommend particular articles or organizations relevant to a fellow’s topic.
What is expected of the fellows?
Fellows are expected to submit all drafts and podcasts on time. All drafts should be the writer’s best work, proofread and with properly formatted citations. Writers are expected to conform to AJWS’s style guide, which is distributed at orientation. Writers are also expected to incorporate feedback and edits in their revisions or to indicate if and why they disagree with editorial suggestions.
What is the editorial process like?
AJWS is committed to providing fellows with a value-added editorial process. Drafts are reviewed by an educational resources staff member as well as AJWS’s senior editor and writer. Fellows can expect to receive feedback about all aspects of their pieces, including relevance of the topic, sophistication of textual analysis, connection to global justice, structure of argument and writing style. Most communication will be via e-mail. Occasionally an educational resources staff person may call a writer to discuss a piece. Writers are also welcome to request phone conversations in order to clarify feedback or to work through challenges in choosing a topic or developing an argument. Pieces generally go through two or three drafts before being finalized, and the whole process takes about four to five weeks.
How much time will I spend on my fellowship commitments?
Fellows should expect to spend approximately 10-15 hours on each Dvar Tzedek. This includes reading the parshah, researching commentaries on the parshah , researching the global justice issue or angle, writing, revising, proofreading and recording the podcast. American Jewish World Service (AJWS) is an international development organization motivated by Judaism’s imperative to pursue justice. AJWS is dedicated to alleviating poverty, hunger and disease among the people of the developing world regardless of race, religion or nationality. Through grants to grassroots organizations, volunteer service, advocacy and education, AJWS fosters civil society, sustainable
development and human rights for all people, while promoting the values and responsibilities of global citizenship within the Jewish community.
Applications are due on May 2, 2011. For more information, please contact lexler@ajws.org.
More information here.
