NCSY Connects with Jewish teens through innovative, cutting-edge social and recreational programs to develop a positive Jewish identity.
LATTE & LEARNING
Our Special Blend: Coffee & Torah
Every week, cafés across the country transform into outreach learning centers. In addition to coffee, NCSY’s Latte & Learning initiative serves up Judaism in a relaxed, inspirational, and fun environment.
ASK NCSY
A Q&A service for teens and parents with important questions about topics that range from all facets of Jewish Life. The service is facilitated by Rabbi Jack Abramowitz and answers are provided in consultation with leading halakhic authorities.
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
NCSY delivers an unforgettable and inspirational Friday night experience through our unique FNL program, filling communities across the country with the spirit and lights of Shabbat.
JSU: Jewish Student Union Public School Clubs
JSU's mission is to help Jewish teens continuously enhance their personal Jewish identity, nurture their connection with the State of Israel and develop a deeper involvement with the Jewish community.
Inspire
NCSY inspires Jewish teens through informal Jewish education, retreats and summer programs.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
When our venerable Sages of the Talmud said, “No Flour… No Torah” they were essentially making the point that a bit of nosh makes it easier to engage in thoughtful learning. NCSY has taken this doctrine to heart and has introduced a series of Food & Learning programs listed below.
BURN & LEARN
This summer month variation provides teens with a plateful of barbeque (burn) and a side order of Torah (learn).
CHILLIN’ & CHOLENT
Every Friday night, NCSY staff from across the country open their
homes to teens for spectacular get-togethers filled with Torah, song, celebration, and of course, cholent.
DINNER & LEARNING (DNL)
In various locations across North America, teens gather for a laid back dinner and facilitated discussion with their favorite NCSY staff and advisors.
HOLIDAY PROGRAMS
NCSY organizes many holiday programs replete with meals, singing, dancing, informal learning, and so much more. A brief list of our events includes, Latke eating and menorah lighting parties for Chanukah, Passover seders, festive Purim seudahs (meals), Purim carnivals, community-wide Shalach Manos delivery for Purim, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services, Sukkah hops, Sukkos Simchas Beis HaShoevah celebrations, Simchatons replete with singing and dancing for Simchas Torah, and an all–night Tikkun Leil Shavuos (Learn-a-thon) for Shavuos.
INSPIRATIONAL RETREATS
Shabbatons bring together teens from observant and non-observant homes for a full weekend experience of informal Torah study, prayer, song, dance, celebration and bonding. NCSY celebrates the culmination of Shabbat with its famous Havdalah service, offering inspiring stories, singing and dancing. Each
year, NCSY runs hundreds of Shabbatons attended by thousands of teens.
REGIONAL CONVENTIONS
Regional is the pivotal event for every NCSY region. Depending on
location, Regionals take place two or three times a year and provide a forum for teens from several cities and states to convene for an extraordinary weekend. Regionals are creatively themed to provide a timely and substantive message appropriate for Jewish teens. Throughout the weekend, teens have social and learning opportunities, an inspirational Shabbat culminating with a Havdalah experience unique to NCSY, a moving Saturday night Kumsitz with Jewish friends and interaction with positive Jewish role models.
YARCHEI KALLAH
Yarchei Kallah, is an intensive five-day learning retreat during Winter Break, geared toward public school students from across North America ready for an all-inspiring, extraordinary Jewish experience. Yarchei Kallah is NCSY’s most impactful public school program, offering teens a focused Jewish learning opportunity, featuring the world’s top Jewish educators,
as well as a Shabbat experience unlike any other.
NCSY ROAD TRIP
During major school vacations, including Labor Day, Memorial Day, President’s Day Weekend, Winter and Spring Break, NCSY takes to the road, providing a fun and safe Jewish adventure to hot spots like New York and Orlando.
NCSY SUMMER PROGRAMS
Summer Programs are the most intensive and impactful kiruv and chizzuk tool in the NCSY arsenal. Each of our summer programs offer teens a minimum of four weeks of intensive summer learning and fun. Programs are tailored for yeshiva students, public school students, teens with a passion for travel, teens who want to build their learning skills, teens with an affinity for chesed projects (volunteering), and those who prefer programs rich with sports and recreational activity. More information and online applications are available at www.NCSYSUMMER.com.
NCSY CAMP SPORTS
Camp Sports is a sleep-away summer camp for teenage boys looking to stay in the USA for their summer vacation. Participants attend several trips weekly and spend time learning Torah with friendly advisors and rabbis. Of course, as the name suggests, this is a camp for serious sports enthusiasts who enjoy swimming, hockey, football, soccer and basketball. Camp Sports is located in Pikesville, Maryland, and is situated on the stunning 90-acre campus of Ner Yisroel Rabbinical College. Beginners through advanced learning.
NCSY EURO TRIP
Euro Trip offers teens the opportunity to explore their rich and vibrant Jewish past on a European adventure. Previous Euro Trips have included trips to Cordoba, Toledo, Madrid, Barcelona, Granada, Gibraltar, Lisbon, Venice, Florence and Rome. Participants see how the Jewish community in Europe still lives and how their lives have changed over the centuries. After their European adventure, NCSYers travel to Israel for an appreciation of how European Jewry helped create the State of Israel.
NCSY GIVE
NCSY’s GIVE (Girls Israel Volunteer Experience) is a unique opportunity for teenage girls to invest their summer in Israel as a chessed volunteer. Chessed projects include building and painting homes for the less fortunate, harvesting crops, and visiting the elderly and infirmed. Participants also learn from dynamic guest speakers and see thought provoking presentations, attend exciting hikes, and fun-filled tours around the country. GIVE is located at the campus of Yeshivat Machon Maayan in the beautiful Jerusalem community of Beit Shemesh.
NCSY ICE
ICE (Israel: Create your own Experience) is a co-ed Israel journey from the mountains of the Galilee to the canyons of the Negev Desert. This program is designed for Yeshiva Day School Teens with a spirit for adventure and a love of Israel. As part of a core four week program, teens select from various elective activities including a Yam L’Yam (sea-to-sea) eco-adventure, professional basketball training at Israel’s Wingate Olympic center, or one-on-one learning with Yerushalayim’s finest Torah scholars.
NCSY JOLT
JOLT (Jewish Overseas Leadership Training) is an intensive coed
leadership program for outstanding high school teens that hold
leadership positions in synagogues, schools, or NCSY chapters or regions. JOLTers begin by spending one week in Poland to learn about the country’s vast Jewish history and gain insights into the Holocaust. Following Poland, teens spend three weeks working as a counselor and mentor for underprivileged children at the OU/NCSY summer camp for Jewish children in Kharkov, Ukraine. JOLT concludes with a week of touring Israel in an all-new light: as a Jewish leader.
NCSY KOLLEL
NCSY KOLLEL provides high school boys with an opportunity to
strengthen their commitment to Judaism and Israel through a program focused on Torah study, competitive sports leagues, and touring. NCSY Kollel is staffed by highly experienced advisors and seasoned Torah educators and situated on the campus of Yeshivat Ohr Yerushalayim in the beautiful Jerusalem community of Beit Meir. Beginners through advanced learning.
NCSY MICHLELET
NCSY’s Michlelet provides high school girls with an opportunity to
develop a greater appreciation of Torah, chessed (volunteering), and the land of Israel through learning sessions with acclaimed Rabbis and advisors, and facilitated chessed projects across the breadth and width of Israel. Michlelet is situated on the exquisite campus of Yeshivat Reishit in the beautiful Jerusalem community of Beit Shemesh. Beginners through advanced learning.
NCSY SEG
SEG (Summer Experience for Girls) is an incredible opportunity for teenage girls to experience an amazing summer in the USA. In addition to amazing Torah classes, SEG offers great trips to Hershey Park, outdoor overnights, touring in New York City, and team sports. SEG is an incredible combination of fun, exciting and enriching experiences. Beginners through advanced learning.
NCSY TJJ
TJJ (The Jerusalem Journey) is a one-of-a-kind co-ed experience for public school teens interested in getting in touch with their Jewish roots through intensive hands-on experiences in the land of Israel. TJJ teens hike the Golan, relax in Eilat, swim in the Kinneret, visit the Kotel, experience an amazing Shabbat in Jerusalem and Tzfat, and visit many of the famous and important archaeological sites all over Israel.
Summer @ YU
Yeshiva University and NCSY proudly present SUMMER@YU. This unique summer college experience for high school students offers the independence of college life and the excitement of NYC, all within a Torah environment.
Jumpstart your college career, participate in enriching classes, and earn university credits. Network with renowned rabbis, professors, business professionals, and students. Live like a local, with the passion of a tourist.
www.yu.edu/summeratyu
TORAH-ON-DEMAND
Torah-on-Demand is NCSY’s incubator for innovative approaches to make formal and informal Jewish learning more accessible to Jewish teens.
TEEN TORAH CENTERS (TTC)
Teen Torah Centers across North America provide NCSYers with a safe, nurturing environment where they can do homework, hang out with friends, learn with a study-partner, or utilize our top-of-the-line equipment including pool, air hockey and x-box.
TORAH by PHONE
NCSY facilitates a Torah-by-Phone program where advisors and NCSYers are matched as study partners to learn about any Jewish subject of interest.
TORAH HIGH
Torah High is an accredited after-school Jewish studies program for public high school students. NCSY’s Torah High in Toronto has 250 teens at 12 different locations and is their only certified and accredited after school Jewish Studies program for high school students. Torah High is aimed to educate and engage Jewish public high school students who choose to devote their afternoons to study interesting Judaism topics. Torah High is looking to expand this successful program.
Empower
NCSY Empowers teens through leadership development and guidance to become passionately committed leaders of the Jewish community and instruments for positive change and renewal.
JOLT (Jewish Overseas Leadership Training)
JOLT is an also considered an Empower program as it is designed for NCSY leaders and encourages participants to get more involved in community roles and gain leadership skills. Please find its description under the Inspire section.
LTS: LEADERSHIP TRAINING SEMINAR
At the start of each year, Regional Boards spend a weekend bonding, attending leadership sessions, refining their leadership skills and preparing their strategy for the year. Members are role models for their peers and they take ownership of this important position in the organization.
REGIONAL AND CHAPTER BOARDS
Regional and Chapter Boards are volunteer teen leadership committees that are present in most NCSY communities. Board members convene regularly for “board meetings” to determine vision and goals and discuss any issues of concern to Jewish teens. These committees provide teens with real life experience as volunteer lay leaders.
YESHIVA FAIR
NCSY regions run fairs to showcase different yeshiva and seminary programs for NCSYers who wish to dedicate one year after graduation for intensive Jewish study and introspection.