Project Gesher

COJECO OUTREACH SCHOOL -To learn and To teach

Project Gesher is an initiative that allows COJECO to enter the Russian Jewish community’s existing structure of day care centers and through informal Jewish education provide meaningful identity-building experiences to émigré children ages 3-5.  The program functions in day care centers in all 5 boroughs of New York City.  The school engages not just young children – who are receiving priceless Jewish education, but also a group of talented and enthusiastic Russian Jewish college students who go through training and start working as informal Jewish educators.  These students by taking an active role in Project Gesher are becoming empowered activists and educators within the Jewish community. In this way, all the effects of Gesher play a dual role.

The Gesher School provides Jewish education to émigré children, and allows Russian Jewish college students to serve as role models while increasing their own Jewish knowledge and exploring their identity.  The initiative encourages children, college students, parents and the owners/ operators of the day care centers to function as a community with their Jewishness as a unifying factor.

This year, Project Gesher employs 27 student-teachers who work with 270 children in every borough of New York City. However, over the course of the last 5 years, Gesher has served over 1350 children and employed 150 student teachers.