Another shoe drops

CAJE, the Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education, is closing down their operations by the end of February. On January 9th, CAJE sent an email indicating that they would not be holding their annual conference as planned. CAJE 33 (the 33rd annual conference) was held this past summer at the University of Vermont. Judy Levine, our religious school principal attended. The CAJE conference had become a staple of the Jewish education world. CAJE was huge, transdenominational, attracted top scholars, performers and vendors, and worldwide. I went once - to CAJE 31 at Duke University - but the educators and many teachers with whom I worked have gone annually.

This is another shoe dropping in the financial crisis that hits the Jewish community as hard as it hits anywhere else. Here's how CAJE described their undoing:

For the past several years CAJE faced significant financial challenges.
These challenges were first brought to the attention of CAJE membership in
July/August 2007. Three principal factors explain the dramatic deterioration of
our financial condition:
1. Significant fall-off in school funding for professional development and related philanthropy over a number of years.
2. Slow response to changes in environment.
3. Loss of focus on the bottom line.

CAJE’s past debts, the troubled economy and the need to cancel this year’s
conference as a result, have all contributed to the decision to close CAJE’s
doors. Significant fall-off in school funding for professional development and
related philanthropy. Prior to 2001, CAJE had a stable membership of
approximately 4,000 educators and administrators and could count on a solid
annual conference attendance. With the stock market decline, the 9/11 attacks,
and subsequent economic decline, many Jewish organizations, CAJE included, noted
a significant drop in professional development funding.... Though the last
two years saw the beginning of a reversal in the membership and conference
attendance trends, the financial impact of the 2002-2006 years was
substantial.

read the full article here.