Any questions about the Selah Leadership Program can be directed to Sivan Battat, Selah Program Manager at [email protected]
Selah’s History
In 2002, Rockwood Leadership Institute partnered with Bend the Arc: A Jewish Partnership for Justice to co-create Bend the Arc’s Selah Leadership Program — the first leadership training program designed specifically for Jewish leaders working across the social change field. Selah draws on the core elements of Rockwood’s transformative leadership development curriculum and infuses the program with Jewish practice and wisdom to support leaders’ ability to work effectively, sustainably, and collaboratively for social change within and beyond the Jewish community. Rockwood has provided both content and training expertise to Selah from its inception, and continues to influence Selah’s evolution and impact.
In 2015, after thirteen cohorts with a majority of white Jews, Selah launched its first cohort specifically for Jewish People of Color (JPOC). We made this decision because while the American Jewish community is multiracial — current estimates are that between 10-20% of the American Jewish community identify as Jews of Color — there continues to be only a few prominent Jewish Leaders of Color in Jewish mainstream organizations.
Through four Selah Cohorts for Jewish Leaders of Color, participants have built deep, interdependent relationships to advance and support each other in their leadership inside and outside the Jewish community.
The final JPOC Cohort ended in February 2022, and we then took the remainder of 2022 to evaluate if the four JPOC cohorts achieved their goals. The evaluation process was conducted by Tiyuv, a Jewish women of color-led evaluation consulting firm.
Through four Selah Cohorts for Jewish Leaders of Color, participants have built deep, interdependent relationships to advance and support each other in their leadership inside and outside the Jewish community.
Since its founding in 2002, Selah has trained more than 400 leaders from over 200 organizations. You can read about Selah’s approach over the course of its history here.
Selah Now
Over its 20-year history, Selah has gone through multiple evolutions, with over 400 alumni now serving in leadership roles throughout the social justice ecosystem. In this current moment — defined by extreme political volatility, deepening polarization, and rising threats to democracy and Jewish communities — we believe it is essential to evolve Selah once again to meet the needs of Jewish leaders.
In this increasingly complex terrain, Selah alumni represent a powerful and diverse force for change. Our next phase of Selah focuses on building a multiracial alumni Community of Praxis focused on anti-racist, pro-Black praxis. Our approach remains the same: by transforming leaders, we are better able to transform society. Beginning Summer of 2025, we are launching a pilot alumni cohort focused on building a Community of Praxis.
