The ICJS Genesis High School project provided a chance for students with different perspectives to exchange ideas. The encounter delivered an enriching experience that is necessary for leadership in a religiously and ethnically diverse world. After reading biblical narratives such as The Binding of Isaac, Cain and Abel, and Jacob and Esau, we were given an opportunity to dissect the stories and come up with our own under-standings of the meaning. When the students recognized that this was a place where we could freely discuss and try out different ideas, then the learning began. There are complex-ities in life that go beyond these stories, and we were eager to explore the significance of issues that continue to affect today's world. Because the setting was safe, we were able to learn about others and ourselves. One perfect example of this occurred as one student seriously struggled for the first time with the fact that Jesus was a Jew. This student was pro-foundly affected, for it changed her whole perspective of her own religion as well as the Jewish religion. This is an achieve-ment that is rarely possible within the normal routines of the school week. Not only did we get better grounding within our own traditions, we also discovered how other people view the world differently.

This is the second year that I have participated in the Genesis High School Project, and it is a forum that is ideal for learning. Students of different races, religions, and economic back-grounds come together in mutual respect to hear each other's views. What a joy to work with these bright, insightful young people! After a full day of teaching, I arrive at the sessions exhausted, but I am soon energized by the quality of the discussions. The students at City College have matched my enthusiasm for the program, and they have engaged the sacred stories from Genesis with great imagination and intelligence.

The ICJS High School Project was funded this year by grants from the Jane and Worth B. Daniels, Jr. Fund and the Becker Family Fund of the Baltimore Community Foundation. Nineteen schools from public, parochial, and independent settings parti-cipated in discussions through weekly meetings in February and early March. The exchanges were coordinated by the ICJS staff and moderated by trained facilitators. Not only did par-ticipants consume significant quantities of pizza, but they also explored some complicated narratives utilizing a variety of pedagogical strategies. The Chautauqua Foundation made a new dimension of this project possible by funding the devel-opment of an interactive forum on the ICJS Web site. Hopefully this program will continue to grow in the years to come. I look forward to receiving the notice of Project Genesis next year!

Judy Frumkin
Teacher at Baltimore City College

Facilitators:
Emily Gaines Demsky, Donna Lee Frisch, Judy Frumkin, David Holland, Alice Jellema