Jewish Community Views on Partnerships with the Judaic Studies Department

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to better understand the dynamics of partnerships between Judaic studies departments and the Jewish community and to what degree Jewish community members find these partnerships useful through community-focused perspectives. This study utilized a qualitative approach with a narrative research design. A narrative design allowed Jewish community members to tell in-depth stories of their experiences in partnering with their local Judaic studies departments. Critical Social Theory (CST) combined with Community-Based research (CBR) formed the foundation of this study’s theoretical framework. Results showed that although Jewish community members noted many perceived benefits from partnering with their local Judaic studies department, they also emphasized that there were many instances where they saw room for improvement.