Equipping Twin Cities Jewish teens to know their story, own their identity, and engage the world with knowledge and pride
Know Your Story is a community wide initiative built by and for the Twin Cities Jewish community. Through a modular, interactive curriculum developed in partnership with StandWithUs, teens gather three times per year for dynamic, immersive sessions that explore Jewish history, peoplehood, and values; how antisemitism evolves and how to recognize it; and how to think critically, navigate complexity, and stand confidently in their identity.
Know Your Story supplements — rather than replaces — existing Jewish educational and Jewish identity-building opportunities, and is specifically designed to reach teens across the engagement spectrum in Jewish life. The goal is not to hand teens talking points, but to empower them to ask hard questions, think critically, and engage others from a place of knowledge and pride. The program is inclusive of teens across all movements, denominations, and levels of prior or current Jewish engagement.
Launching December 2026
Know Your Story launches in the 2026–2027 school year with three Sunday sessions, planned in conjunction with community events in which the whole family can take part. Our first community event will take place in December 2026.
Who is Know Your Story for?
Know Your Story is for Jewish teens in grades 8–12 in the Twin Cities, with an invitation to teens not currently engaged in formal Jewish education or youth programming. We will endeavor to offer parents parallel programming to strengthen their own knowledge that will enable them to support their teens as they explore complex issues and engage in their unique Jewish journeys.
Sponsor Know Your Story’s pilot year
Know Your Story is seeking $50,000 in charitable support to fund its pilot year launch, covering curriculum development, facilitation, event programming, materials, and outreach.
Your gift directly funds the experiences that shape the next generation of confident, knowledgeable Jewish young people in our community. All donations to the Know Your Story initiative are tax-deductible to the extent of the law. Jewfolk, Inc. is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and our EIN is 27-4463056.
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Get in touch by email
The team behind Know Your Story
Wendy Bach, Founder
Tara Baumgarten, Program Manager
Key Partners: StandWithUs, Jewfolk, Inc., Minnesota JCC, synagogues, camps, schools, and youth organizations across the Twin Cities