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There's good news on the horizon for Jewish teenagers in the Bay Area.

Long underserved by local Jewish Agencies, local teenagers will soon have greater opportunities to serve and shmooze with their peers with the help of the "Teen Initiative."

Put forth by the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation's Task Force on Programs and Services for Teenagers, the initiative is designed to create a more vibrant teenage community that attracts and engages Jewish teens throughout their high school years.

Among the proposed ideas are the building of a dedicated "hangout space" for teens at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, an internship program and a South Peninsula program modeled after the successful San Francisco High School Havurah.

"Teens are our future and we're losing them," said Susan Rothenberg, co-chair of the teen task force, part of the JCF's Planning and Allocations department. "This is not a San Francisco problem; it's happening across the United States."

"We're one of the few communities to go beyond acknowledging the problem and take action towards correcting it," noted task force co-chair Toby Rubin.

To fund the various programs, the task force is seeking more than half a million dollars in funding from private foundations, as well as the JCF's Endowment Fund and annual campaign, to support existing youth organizations and provide new services and programs where gaps exist.

Currently around a dozen agencies and organizations offer programs for Jewish teens in the areas served by the JCF.

At the JCC of S.F., officials are consulting with architects to create a dedicated space where teens can "hang out." The first of its kind in the city, the teen lounge will be used as an area for teens to drop in, do homework, use computers, shmooze, read, play Ping-Pong and pool and hold meetings.

Once the space is created, a core group of teens will be recruited, under the supervision of a youth advisor, to help plan additional activities beyond those already in place at the center.

Another new proposed program is the Jewish Vocational Services internship program for teens. Modeled after the Kohn summer internship program for college students, it will allow for the placement of 15 high-school teens at Jewish agencies.

And as in the Kohn program, which has been in existence for more than a decade, teens will meet weekly as a group for workshops and community service projects.

Also in the works is a South Peninsula High School teen program, modeled after the San Francisco High School Havurah.

Now in its second year, the San Francisco Havurah was originally created to bring Bay Area Jewish teens together and ensure that Jewish education and community involvement do not conclude after 10th-grade confirmation.

Jointly co-sponsored by congregations Sherith Israel, Emanu-El, Beth Sholom and the JCF and Bureau of Jewish Education the Havurah attracts more than 160 teens on Monday nights for two hours of serious Jewish study.

The South Peninsula program would be sponsored by congregations Beth Am and Kol Emeth, and the JCF and Bureau of Jewish Education, and offered to Jewish teens in the Peninsula, where it is expected to attract some 140 students.

Two weeks ago, as part of the initiative, 10 Jewish youth professionals who work in these programs were sent to Israel to deepen ties with the country and learn to better recruit and educate teens back home about Israel.

In return for the subsidized trip, a collaboration between the BJE and JCF's Israel Center, participants commit to one year of work in the field of Jewish youth.

They will also be promoting such local Israel-centered programs as the Israel Experience, which provides financial assistance and serves as a resource for more than 100 teen Israel programs, and the Summer In Israel Youth Program, a five-week educational experience for synagogue confirmation class students.

Other new opportunities for teens will include: increased pre- and post-Israel trip programming and retreats; professional development for youth leaders; the creation of a resource guide for Jewish youth professionals and leaders; professional training to incorporate teens on the boards of youth-serving organizations (to be facilitated by the nationally recognized organization Youth On Board) and a conference fund to send selected teen leaders to workshops.

Rothenberg added that for programs already in effect, the JCF plans to offer an innovation grant fund.

According to Rothenberg, the fund would allow awards of up to $2,500 to be used by organizations and programs serving Jewish youth. The grants could be used for any aspect of innovative programming that aims to attract and involve Jewish youth, she said.

"The Teen Initiative is incredibly exciting," said Rubin, who added that "we have created a plan that serves a population with great needs and potential."