Steven Scheck

In August, JCRC accompanied nine elected officials and a hospital executive on a Florida Legislators’ Mission to Israel. The goal was to build a deep, bipartisan understanding of the importance of Israel — not only for the Jewish people, but also as an essential, frontline safeguard for the world’s Western democracies against terror organizations and the governments that support them. The camaraderie among the five Republicans and four Democrats during our week together was an example that Congress should aspire to emulate.

We saw a whirlwind of sites and heard from a diverse perspective of Israelis. We had dinner on our first night with hostage families and former hostages, went to the Gaza Envelope to visit the Tribe of Nova Music Festival site and saw two kibbutzim impacted by the Hamas attacks. We met with five Members of Knesset from various parties, sat with US Ambassador Mike Huckabee and went to the Lebanese border for briefings from experts on the inner workings of Hezbollah, Iran, the Lebanese government and the Syrian regime. We toured Christian sites (most of the legislators were Catholic or Christian) in the Galilee and Jerusalem, had a powerful visit to Har Herzl — Israel’s national cemetery and memorial, where we participated in a Yahrzeit ceremony for fallen soldiers — and took a VIP tour of Yad Vashem.

The trip was profoundly impactful for the participants. They rejoiced with us when the living hostages were released earlier this month and many of them are looking forward to sponsoring legislation of great importance to the Jewish community in Tallahassee this upcoming session. We are excited about our continued partnership with them.

JCRC’s government affairs portfolio has expanded to include education policy with a focus on deepening engagement with Miami-Dade County Public Schools. This includes the county’s School Board members and United Teachers of Dade (UTD), the county’s teachers’ union.

Over the past six months, JCRC has met with seven of the nine School Board Members and with UTD leadership. In our meetings, we emphasized Federation’s role as the convener of Jewish life in the county and reiterated our desire to serve as a resource on issues relating to antisemitism and Israel. JCRC also highlighted the Jewish community’s educational priorities, such as advocating for increased Holocaust education in schools and ensuring that Jewish students and faculty receive adequate levels of support amidst a national and worldwide climate of rising Jew hatred and anti-Israel sentiment. We are grateful to the school district, which is, through our partnership, exploring the implementation of a curriculum that would help combat antisemitism in public schools.

In the upcoming year, JCRC plans to meet with the remaining two members of the School Board and continue working with UTD.

JCRC’s high school student-focused programs are expanding during the 2025-26 school year. Teens Advocating Together is returning, with cohorts in North Dade and South Dade, and a new program, Student-to-Student Miami, is launching.

Teens Advocating Together

A partnership between JCRC and NAACP’s Youth Council, this program focuses on building bridges between Black and Jewish teens in the county. Participants focus on creating shared experiences on the topics of community, civics and politics. The students learn about civic engagement through eight workshops, including a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service opportunity. The program culminates with a Student Advocacy Day at the Capitol in Tallahassee, where students use their newly learned skills to lobby elected officials on issues the teens have chosen together. In previous years, participants have advocated for legislation related to mental health resources in schools, the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) to protect Black and Jewish institutions, and the growing problem of online bullying.

This year’s North Dade cohort kicked off on October 23. If you know a student who might be interested in participating in the South Dade cohort in the spring, please email [email protected].

Student-to-Student Miami

Student-to-Student is a national program JCRC is bringing to Miami-Dade County in partnership with Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA). The intention is to create peer-to-peer relationships between Jewish and non-Jewish teens through personal storytelling about Jewish peoplehood and Judaism — thereby combating antisemitism in our schools.

The program has successfully worked in other communities through the premise that Jewish teens are the most effective narrators when it comes to sharing the Jewish story with other teens. It empowers Jewish presenters to speak before non-Jewish audiences in school classrooms, memorials and museums.

JCRC is launching this program in Miami Beach in collaboration with the Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach. If you know a student in grades 10-12 who may be interested in participating, please email [email protected] for an application by Monday, November 17.

In October 1965, the Catholic Church took a profound step in aligning with the Jewish community by issuing Nostra Aetate, a statement broadcasting a new embrace of Judaism and other non-Christian religions. Specific to Judaism, Nostra Aetate rejects Jewish culpability for the death of Jesus, condemns antisemitism and calls for dialogue, respect and cooperation between Catholics and Jews.

Beginning in October 2025, we celebrate the 60th anniversary of this statement and the partnerships it has generated between Catholic and Jewish communities worldwide. As a partner of the American Jewish Committee (AJC) of Miami and Broward, JCRC co-sponsored a Nostra Aetate 60th Anniversary event on October 20. More than 200 people attended the program at St. Thomas University, which featured such esteemed guests as His Eminence Christophe Cardinal Pierre, Apostolic Nuncio; Most Reverend Thomas Wenski, Archbishop of Miami; and Rabbi Mario Rojzman of Beth Torah Benny Rok Campus. The collection of speakers across the Catholic and Jewish communities reflected on the deep alliance that has grown between the two communities over the past 60 years.

Last month, JCRC, in partnership with NAACP, launched the first cohort of Rekindle Miami. This national program brings together young leaders in their 20s and 30s from the Black and Jewish communities over six months to learn about and share each other’s histories and traditions. Discussion topics include Israel, antisemitism and white supremacy.

As part of our local program, participants will tour Miami’s “red line,” which segregated populations starting in the 1930s and includes historically Black neighborhoods and sites such as Hampton House. Also included in the tour will be Virginia Key Beach, which was designated in 1945 as the only beach for the Black community. Jewish-focused sessions will take place at the Jewish Museum and Holocaust Memorial Miami Beach, where the cohort will meet with a Holocaust Survivor.

During Sukkot, the cohort gathered in the sukkah at the Miami Beach JCC to experience the festival together, hearing from Mishkan Miami’s Rabbi Frederick Klein and breaking bread together. In January, the cohort will participate in community service together in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Join us January 26-27, 2026 for Jewish Community Advocacy Day/Israel Day at the Capitol in Tallahassee. Meet with your legislators, advocate on Jewish priorities and educate others about Israel. Cost is $199; participants are responsible for their own travel. Click here to register.