Become a Teva Educator

Jewish Outdoor Environmental Education

About Teva

Teva is the premier Jewish environmental education program in the country. Our four-day program provides transformational experiences in nature for Jewish day school students. In 1994, Teva was founded with the goal of immersing participants in the natural world by providing structured experiences that sensitize participants to nature’s rhythms, help them develop a more meaningful relationship with nature, and deepen their personal connection to Jewish practices and traditions.

About Teva Educators

Educators will spend three months living together in a vibrant intentional community with fellow eco-conscious change-makers and share their passions with the next generation. Their days will be spent outside with a group of students teaching an interactive curriculum that focuses on awareness, interconnectedness, ecology, and responsibility. Teva’s engaged educator alumni are often inspired to continue on to careers in environmental, outdoor, farming, and Jewish communal leadership roles. 

We are looking for Teva educators with a diversity of backgrounds and skills to teach this enriching curriculum.  Musicians, teachers, wilderness leaders, artists, mentors, performers, athletes, scholars, and lovers of life are invited to apply! Educators are nature-inspired, creative, playful, flexible, hard-working, and excited to take part in this mission by leading, developing, and creating transformational experiences in nature for children. All Teva educators must demonstrate kindness, curiosity, eagerness to learn, and strong skills in working with children through prior experience.

Educators can apply for our Spring season at Pearlstone or our Fall season at Isabella Freedman

Visit our Teva Educator Job Listing for more details or to apply

Why be a Teva Educator?

Explore the deep connections between ecology and Judaism. 

Learn what Jewish tradition teaches us about how we relate to the Earth, and how the natural world can enhance our connection to Jewish practice. Together we will discover the ecological wisdom inherent in Judaism through teaching, learning, ritual, and daily experience. 

Learn—truly learn—how to teach. 

Our program supports and facilitates the growth of our educators into confident teachers. You will be guided by a structured and time-tested curriculum, weekly opportunities for feedback and reflection from teachers and mentors, and in-depth training workshops in experiential education. At the same time, you will enjoy the flexibility to be creative and discover your strengths as you develop your unique teaching style. Alumni have said that they learned as much about teaching from their Teva experience as in their Masters programs in education! 

Jumpstart a career in education. 

For those interested, Teva provides an excellent springboard to a teaching career. Jewish day schools tell us that they love to hire Teva educators as teachers because they know they will be creative, dynamic, and engaging in the classroom. Several Teva alumni currently work in day school classrooms; others are doing innovative work in informal education as camp directors, religious school teachers, non-profit professionals, and rabbis. 

Have fun. 

We believe joy and fun are prerequisites for a just and sustainable world, and we strive to embody that every day. We make up songs, wear costumes, jump in lakes, and generally celebrate being alive. With our students and among ourselves, we are serious about having fun. 

Live in a vibrant, pluralistic Jewish community. 

Communal celebrations of Shabbat, holidays, and day-to-day life include uplifting singing, stimulating learning, and a diversity of Jewish practices on the land at Pearlstone. 

Form lasting relationships. 

There’s no other way to describe it—the network of Teva staff from our 25+-year history is one big family, which is part of the even bigger families of JOFEE (Jewish Outdoor Food, Farming, and Environmental Education) organizations like Wilderness Torah, Adamah Farm, Eden Village Camp, Hazon and the broader Jewish environmental movement. As our community has grown across the world, it has retained and spread its sense of shared values, celebration, and love.