High school students can explore modern Jewish lit this summer

AMHERST, MASS. – High school students can spend a week exploring the richness and diversity of modern Jewish literature at the 2016 Great Jewish Books Summer Program at the Yiddish Book Center here.

The competitive program, which is open to rising juniors and seniors, will offer two sessions in 2016: July 24-29 and July 31-Aug. 7. The deadline to apply for either session is April 1. 

At Great Jewish Books, students read and discuss a wide range of modern Jewish literature – including fiction and nonfiction, poetry, and graphic novels, by writers including Isaac Bashevis Singer, Grace Paley, Sholem Aleichem, Anna Deveare Smith, and Etgar Keret – in seminar-style classes led by college professors. After class, the students participate in small discussion groups, meet contemporary writers, and take part in recreational activities under the supervision of resident advisers from the program. They also experience a taste of college life, living in a dorm at Hampshire College, adjacent to the Yiddish Book Center. 

All students accepted to the program receive full scholarships covering the cost of tuition, room and board, books, and special events.

Now in its fifth year, Great Jewish Books has proven so popular that this summer the Yiddish Book Center will offer a second session to meet the demand.

The Yiddish Book Center is a nonprofit organization working to tell the whole Jewish story by rescuing, translating, and disseminating Yiddish books and presenting innovative educational programs that broaden understanding of modern Jewish identity. It is a recipient of the National Medal for Museum and Library Service.

For more information, visit yiddishbookcenter.org/educational-programs/great-jewish-books-summer-program.