San Jose State offers Hebrew for high schoolers

San Jose State University’s Jewish Studies Program and Department of Foreign Languages are launching Hebrew classes for Bay Area high school students.

In collaboration with Shir Hadash and Congregation Beth David, SJSU will launch the new program in the fall for students wanting to take Hebrew as their high school foreign language class. The course is open to any high student whose school does not already offer Hebrew. In addition to high school credit, students enrolled in the course also will receive three SJSU credits.

The course, taught by Ora Avidan-Antonir of Yavneh Day School, will meet twice a week for 15 weeks. The Thursday class will meet in the early evening at Congregation Shir Hadash, 20 Cherry Blossom Way, Los Gatos; the Sunday class will meet in the late afternoon at Congregation Beth David, 19700 Prospect Road, Saratoga.

For more information on the classes, including rates, call SJSU Jewish studies coordinator Victoria Hudson at (408) 924-5547 or e-mail her at [email protected]

South Bay groups to host Katrina commemoration

To commemorate the third anniversary of the destruction of Hurricane Katrina, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Silicon Valley and other nonprofits are hosting “The Eye of Recovery” on Aug. 31.

Co-sponsored by the San Jose/Silicon Valley NAACP and the San Jose State University Gulf Coast Civic Works Project, the event is being held to educate the community on what it can do to help people still struggling with Katrina’s aftermath.

Speakers include California State Assembly Speaker Pro Tempore Sally Lieber, Katrina survivors, student activists and community leaders.

“The Eye of Recovery” is free and will take place 3 p.m., Aug. 31 in the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library, 150 E. San Fernando St., San Jose. To reserve space, call JCRC Executive Director Diane Fisher at (408) 357-7504 or e-mail her at [email protected]

ADL receives Microsoft grant

Microsoft awarded the S.F.-based office of the Anti-Defamation League a grant of about $3,500 to combat cyber-bullying.

The money will be used by the ADL to implement a one-day summit for educators, volunteers and ADL board members to learn about the problem of online bullying and discuss solutions and resources. A date for the summit has yet to be scheduled.

For more information on the summit, call ADL Education Director Nina Simone Grotch at (415) 981-3500, ext. 227.

Explore China with Jewish singles

Jewish singles from across the U.S can join a group traveling to post-Olympic China from Nov. 2 through Nov. 12.

The trip, “Amazing China,” is for Jewish singles in their 30s, 40s and 50s to explore Shanghai, Beijing and Xian. The Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh and Amazing Journeys are sponsoring the trip. Included in the package are international flights, nine nights in five-star accommodations, transportation within China and daily sightseeing led by tour guides.

Along with seeing traditional tourist attractions such as the Great Wall of China, the group also will explore the Olympic village and the main attractions from the Olympic games.

For more information and a complete itinerary, contact travel director Bill Cartiff at (412) 521-8011 ext. 849 or [email protected]

Petaluma kosher cook-off returns

The B’nai Israel Jewish Center of Petaluma will hold its second annual Men’s Club Kosher Cook-Off Competition on Sunday, Aug. 17, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Teams drawn from B’nai Israel Jewish Center members, synagogues and other local Jewish agencies will compete to create kosher appetizers, entrees and desserts. There will also be a scholarly debate to resolve once and for all the age-old question of which came first: chicken or egg.

Judges for this year’s competition will be Kay Baumhefner, chef-owner of Come Home to Cooking; Don Bennett, business writer and Petaluma Argus-Courier columnist; and trumpeter-bandleader Peter Welker. The emcee will be chef Bruce Riezenman of Park Avenue Catering.

The cook-off will be held at B’nai Israel Jewish Center, 740 Western Ave., Petaluma. Admission is free. For more information, call (707) 762-0340.

BlueStarPR wins video contest

BlueStarPR, an S.F.-based pro-Israel ad and marketing company, is a winner of the Israel Project’s [email protected] film competition.

Known for its many posters and postcards that present positive views of Israel, BlueStarPR also makes short films and 30-second spots. One of those, as well as a Spanish-language poster from BlueStarPR, won a $2,500 cash prize and is featured on www.youtube.com/group/israel60.