All good reporting starts with access to a community with a story to tell. This is one of the reasons why we started the JTA Teen Journalism Fellowship — to create a space for our audience to hear about what is happening around the world for Jewish teens.
Our current fellows come to us from three countries and eight U.S. states and have already hit the ground reporting on stories about a Sabbath-friendly youth hockey league and first-person piece about a teen’s conversion experience. You can read more about all 15 of them below.
Meet Our Spring 2023 JTA Teen Fellows
These 15 teens went into their schools, communities and synagogues to report on being young and Jewish all over the world.
Karni Katz (she/her) is a year 11 at Heathfield High School in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia. In her free time she loves to read and watch movies. She is very passionate about fashion and social justice issues.
Lydia Ettinger (she/her) is a junior at the Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, New York. She is a social media manager for her school newspaper and loves writing opinion pieces. In her free time she serves on DOROTS Next Generation council, plays school volleyball, and acts as co-president for her schools Craft Club.
Philip Efron (he/him) is a junior at the Abraham Joshua Heschel school in New York City. Philip loves writing, especially about finance, and is an editor for his school newspaper. He loves basketball, tennis and reading.
Arianna Hellman (she/her) is a high school sophomore in Arlington, Virginia, where she serves as a staff editor on her school’s newspaper. In her free time, she enjoys playing volleyball, baking and photography.
Micole Friedman (she/her) is a sophomore at SAR High School in Riverdale, New York. She enjoys writing and looks forward to honing her journalistic skills through this fellowship. She is a member of her school’s dance team and founded a Moth Storytelling Club. In her free time, she tutors grade schoolers in literacy and hangs out with friends and family.
Isaac Kofsky (he/him) is a senior at Westfield High School in Westfield, New Jersey, and is currently serving as the investigative editor of his school newspaper. Outside of journalism, he teaches religious school, plays Dungeons and Dragons, is a member of his school’s Science Olympiad team, and enjoys learning languages, watching MSNBC, and writing with fountain pens.
Ami Gelman (he/him) is freshman at Denver Academy of Torah in Denver Colorado. He is the editor-in-chief of his school newspaper, part of the model UN Team, and plays on the basketball team. Ami moved to Denver from Houston over the summer and has been passionate about journalism for several years. During his free time Ami likes to read, rewatch “Community,” keep up with the news and hike.
Isabelle Mondschein (she/her) is a sophomore at Hampshire Regional High School in Massachussetts. She loves singing, hanging out with her family/friends, and taking pictures of things that are inconspicuously beautiful. She also enjoys analyzing works of literature, artwork, etc, and is the founder of The Annotations Club at her school.
Maren Hettler (she/her) is a sophomore at Holland Hall in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is currently serving as an editor-in-chief for BBYO’s international newsletter, recruitment chair of her local BBYO chapter, and is an Eagle Scout and member of Youth Philanthropy Initiative. In her free time, she enjoys climbing, online shopping and reading.
Ary Hammerman (she/her) is a sophomore at the Leffell School in Hartsdale, New York. She enjoys history and English and is an aspiring writer as well as assistant editor-in-chief for her school newspaper. In her free time she listens to music, tutors and reads!
Jack Freeman (he/him) is a high school senior at the University of Toronto School in Toronto, Canada where he is the co-founder of his school’s Jewish Culture Club, and participates in artificial intelligence research. For work and volunteering, he tutors math and science. In his free time, Jack enjoys playing piano, reading Jewish publications, and spending time with friends and family.
Emma Levy (she/her) is on her gap year studying in Midreshet Lindenbaum in Jerusalem. In her free time, Emma is a Maharat Emerging Scholars Fellow and an intern at Interfaith Encounter. She loves politics, literature, languages and music!
Shira Nathan (they/them) is a junior at Centaurus High School in Lafayette, Colorado. They are currently co-Editor-in-Chief of their high school newspaper, as well as a costume designer for the school theater company and a member of various local climate action groups. They love fashion, environmentalism and photography. In their free time, they can be found at a local protest, playing Nintendo games, or ranting to their friends and family about their latest interest.
Aviva Schilowitz (she/her) is a junior at the Ramaz Upper School in Manhattan. She is an editor for the school newspaper, VP of the Feminist Club, a Jewish Women’s Archive Rising Voices Fellow, an Einayich Yonim Fellow, and plays varsity soccer. She enjoys listening to music in her free time.
Emmanuella Katz (she/her) is a junior at Maynard Jackson High School in Atlanta, Georgia who goes by Emma. She loves to watch baseball, Yankees specifically, and analyze movies. Her goal is to go to at least 100 live music concerts in her lifetime.
