Learning One-on-One
Be Mitzvah where you are with One-on-One Learning!
1:1 learning, for both youth and adults, is a flexible program that meets families where they are, wherever they are. Keep scrolling to find a wealth of additional information. If you’re just looking to get more information, please click on the “General Inquiry Here” button. If you’re ready to register, click on the “Register Now” button. We are offering Open Houses for you to learn more directly from an educator. Please click on the “Open House” button below to learn more.
Our 1:1 program offers a personalized Be Mitzvah preparation path, building a strong one-on-one relationship between students and a mentor. It’s an ideal option for various situations, such as:
- Older teen students of all ages
- Students who prefer individual instruction
- Students residing outside of the Boulder/Denver metro area
- Students with a shorter timeframe for learning
- Students with specific learning needs that would thrive with customized instruction
Students design their own custom siddur (prayer book) after taking a deep dive into the prayers and themes within a Shabbat service. Sharing Torah (Jewish wisdom stories) is a key part of each students’ journey, whether it is inspired by biblical texts or lessons from personal growth. We cherish and value every student’s teachings equally. Students also select a focus track, whether it’s diving into exploring a text from the Torah, a 13 Challenges Jewish wisdom project, exploring the 4 Kabbalistic Worlds, or doing a research project.
Those interested in learning to chant from the Torah in Hebrew can work with a tutor at an additional cost, outside of class time. Judaism Your Way can provide a list of tutors for those seeking this skill.
Program Details for 2024/25
Location, Days & Times
The 1:1 program includes approximately 20 one-on-one sessions between the mentor and student, three family meetings for youth, one dress rehearsal and ceremony officiation. In general, students and mentor meet on Zoom twice a month, for 45-minutes, unless other arrangements have been made between the mentor and student. Days and times are flexible and modified to suit each student.
Custom Cohort
This is where our 1:1 program and our small group model converge. It is perfect for siblings or a group of people who want to work together but for whom the classroom program does not work. This is an option that is facilitated in a small group (2-6 students) and done virtually from anywhere around the world. The content mirrors our 1:1 program. For students who want more, we can add the Experiential Judaism 101 curriculum that is a hallmark of our classroom program. Please note that the Experiential Judaism 101 content is its own 9-month program and would precede the 1:1 program.
Cost for 2024/25
Tuition for Mentorship Your Way: $7,500
Includes bi-monthly meetings and ceremony officiation. For students outside the 7-county Metro Denver area, there are additional fees for mentor travel and lodging.
Tuition for Custom Cohort: $5,700 per student
Includes bi-monthly meetings and ceremony officiation for one joint ceremony. For students outside the 7-county Metro Denver area, there are additional fees for mentor travel and lodging. If there will be more than one ceremony it is $750 for each additional ceremony and additional fees for mentor travel and lodging for each additional ceremony. If you’re interested in the Experiential Judaism 101 add-on, that cost is $3,400 per student.
Enrollment Process
We have three enrollment periods for new 1:1 students. To figure out your enrollment period follow these steps:
- Determine the anticipated Month/Year for your Be Mitzvah ceremony.
- Work back 1 year from the date of the ceremony.
- Register for the enrollment period (as indicated in the chart below) that comes just before this one year mark.
| Enrollment Period | Registration Deadline | Student-Mentor Matched/ Sessions can begin | Anticipated Ceremony Dates |
| Spring Semester | Dec 15 | Mid-January | Jan. 2025-June 2025 |
| Summer Semester | May 15 | Mid-June | July 2025-Sept. 2025 |
| Fall Semester | Aug 15 | Mid-September | Oct. 2025-Dec. 2025 |
Meet Our Mentors
We have amazing educators who serve as mentors!
Lizzie Frankel is a meaning-seeker with a passion for cultivating healing in creative ways. She studied Linguistics and Translation Studies at Stanford, and her favorite languages include Yiddish, movement, and music. Lizzie is pursuing rabbinic ordination at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion with a concurrent MA in Jewish Nonprofit Management at the Zelikow School.
Elizheva Hurvich (she/they) grew up in Northern California with an eclectic and diverse Jewish practice. She started training for a bat mitzvah celebration in 7th grade, but didn’t feel ready for the rite of passage. So she continued to learn in the Teen program at her Hebrew school, and in her senior year in High school, she picked up her studies in earnest and did it “her way,” as part of graduating from high school. She is currently in her 6th year of Rabbinical School with ALEPH, Alliance for Jewish Renewal.
Daniel Schindelman Schoen (he/him) is a seasoned earth-based Jewish educator, mentor and rites-of-passage guide. Daniel grew up in an inclusive and creative Jewish Renewal community in the San Francisco Bay Area where he asked a Rabbi and a Zen Priest to co-facilitate his Bar Mitzvah. He now lives a semi-nomadic, multicultural life between the redwood coast of Northern California and the quartz mountains of Córdoba, Argentina. In addition, Daniel also loves gathering people together through music, engaging in individual and communal liberation practices and being a father to his bright and curious 5 year old son.
Ezra Weinberg works with individuals and groups across all denominations to help them claim an authentic relationship toward their Jewish heritage. As an ordained rabbi with a Master’s Degree in Conflict Transformation Reb Ezra uses study, prayer, play, creative expression and other ancient rituals to help people rediscover their voice. Whether he is working as a Jewish educator, camp professional, a song leader, or a ritual musician, his role in the Jewish community and beyond always comes back to his ability to lift spirits and recover the lost magic of the Jewish communal experience.
Yael shalom (she/her) was born and raised in Israel and moved to the US in 2005 after serving in the IDF. She is a passionate educator and believes in the journey of each Jewish milestone. Yael has been a Jewish educator for the past 15 years, teaching Hebrew, torah reading, and facilitating Jewish education curriculums, and officiating ceremonies. She is currently in her 1st year of Rabbinical School with ALEPH, Alliance for Jewish Renewal.
Want to learn more about the Open Tent Be Mitzvah program? We are here to help! If you would like to ask a question, or you’re looking for something that you can’t find, we encourage you to be in touch.
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