Israel’s Declaration of Independence: A Lesson in Each Sentence Presenter: Rich Moline
On May 14, 1948 (5th of Iyar, 5708), David Ben Gurion read the Megillat Ha’Atzmaut, Israel’s Declaration of Independence, in a 32-minute ceremony in Tel Aviv. While the ceremony was short, the Megillat Ha’Atmaut is intensively rich in both historical and contemporary content. The document can be used for teaching the history of Zionism, the people, land, and State of Israel, World War II, multiple narratives (Jewish and non-Jewish), religious pluralism, geography, geopolitics, and more. We will identify and examine some of these issues and discuss ways to use this Declaration of Independence as a tool in and out of the classroom. This session is designed for teachers working with grades 6 -12.
Rich S. Moline is the director of Israel education for the Community Foundation for Jewish Education at JUF and director of Ta’am Yisrael. He is the founding director of Reshet Ramah, the alumni and community engagement program for the National Ramah Commission, and held multiple positions with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism on a local and national level, most recently as Chief Outreach Officer. He is a past national president of the Jewish Youth Directors Association, past president of the Solomon Schechter Day School of Metropolitan Chicago, and a graduate of the Wexner Heritage Foundation. He has been featured as one of the top community leaders in the Chicago Jewish News, and has received numerous awards, including the “Exemplar of Excellence” award from Hillel International and the “Or Zarua” award from the Jewish Educators Assembly. Rich is a founding member of the Egalitarian Minyan in West Rogers Park, where he lives with his wife, Joni Crounse. Rich and Joni have a son, Noah, who lives in Jerusalem with his wife, Livia Levine, and their 20-month old grandson. As a life-long Chicago White Sox fan, Rich is familiar with hopes and aspirations.
