Chabad Jewish Center of Arlington Heights infuses adult education with cutting-edge pedagogic techniques

Beginning this fall, the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute will open its doors in Arlington Heights.

Rabbi Yaakov Kotlarsky has taught hundreds of Jewish classes since he first moved to Arlington Heights in 2018, but now he's taking it to a whole new level. This summer, Rabbi Kotlarsky attended a series of inaugural training seminars in advance of the upcoming launch of the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute (JLI) in our community.

"At the heart of Jewish culture there has always been Jewish learning - an engaged and vibrant meeting of minds," explains Kotlarsky. "We're excited to be able to bring this open and interactive learning environment to our community."

JLI is not only the largest network of Jewish adult education, it is also unparalleled among other Jewish institutions for its use of cutting-edge pedagogic techniques to unlock the wisdom and life-messages found within Judaism's ancient texts.

Founded on the understanding that people have different minds and different learning modalities, JLI incorporates personalization, visual aids, text analysis, peer discussion, learning activities, lectures and more, to address each of student's emotional, procedural, exploratory and analytical learning styles, in order to convey the material in a manner that will be assimilated by all.

JLI prides itself in its promise of "an aha! moment in every lesson," and according to JLI's central offices in Brooklyn, participants have come to expect this, which they say explains their unusually high return rate from course to course. JLI courses have become synonymous with Jewish wisdom that is relevant to people' lives, regardless of background or affiliation.

For the 2021-2022 academic year, JLI will be offering three new courses: In October 2021, "Outsmarting Antisemitism" will explore Jewish approaches to beating antisemitism with purpose, positivity and pride; in January 2022, "Meditation from Sinai," a new course, exploring deeply meaningful teachings about mindfulness, spirituality and meditative practices; and in May 2022, "Beyond Right," examines a number of key legal issues that disclose fundamental ethical considerations that serve as the engine of Jewish civil law.

All JLI courses are open to the entire Jewish community, and people do not need to be a member of any particular synagogue or temple in order to attend.

As an inaugural special offer, local community members are welcome to register for the course and sample the first lesson free of charge, with no obligation to continue.

The first course of the year, "Outsmarting Antisemitisim" will be offered in-

person as well as over Zoom, beginning on Oct. 26.

Interested students may call (224) 357-7002 or visit www.chabadah.org/jli for

registration and other course-related information.