United Synagogue Youth (USY) is the United Synogogue of Conservative Judaism’s youth group for high school age teenagers, ages 14-18. The Temple Adath chapter (Nefesh) is part of the Empire Region (Tzafon).

Adath’s social, religious, and cultural youth group for grades 9th through 12. Contact person is Sabrina Victor, USY Advisor, at usy@adath.org.

Check out our Facebook page! Temple Adath USY.

USY Coat Drive
Help keep Syracuse area children warm this winter by sharing your warmth. Please bring any gently used children’s coats to the box located at Temple Adath’s lobby starting now and ending on March 1.

Don’t forget to clearly mark your package as “USY Coat Drive.” This program is not part of the synagogue’s Rummage Sale.

USY Summer Programs

USY on Wheels
While on this program, you will spend 6 and one half weeks trekking across the country on a bus with 47 other USYers, 5 staff members and one amazing bus driver. You'll tour the country with USYers from many different cities, visiting sites such as the Grand Canyon, the Jelly Belly factory, Washington D.C., the San Diego Zoo, Carlsbad Caverns, and much much more. You'll make the best friends of your life as you travel across the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Mission: Mitzvah
A brand new program of USY on Wheels with an exciting and full itinerary. Mission: Mitzvah Wheelniks will have the opportunity to interact with and learn about various communities throughout North America through carefully planned, intensive social action and mitzvah projects. In addition, they participate in many of the same social, educational, touring and sightseeing programs as the "classic" Wheels program!

USY Israel Pilgrimage
Have an incredibly exciting and stimulating summer in Israel with USY. For six weeks, you'll be exposed to the history and contemporary realities of Judaism and Israel. You'll climb the fortress of Masada, explore the stalactite caves of Netifin, swim in the waters of the Kinneret, pray at the Kotel and drink tea in a Bedouin tent on the sands of the Negev desert. You'll experience the sights and sounds of the Jewish homeland with new friends, friends who will share you love of Israel.

Spain/Israel Pilgrimage
Explore the great heritage of Jewish Spain including many famous philosophers, commentators, writers and poets, such as Maimonides, Abarbanel, Ibn Ezra, Rambam, and Ibn Gvirol. Expect to discover an important side of the Jewish roots in Spain. Celebrate Israel and Spain with your USY group, visiting such places as Madrid, Corboda, Sevilla, Granada, Toledo, and of course, Israel!

Eastern Europe/Israel Pilgrimage
In this six week program you'll spend two weeks exploring the history and cultures of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary. Emphasis is placed on the past, present, and future of these extraordinary Jewish communities. Then following an inspiring three day boat journey with representatives from other Jewish youth groups simulating the "illegal" Jewish immigration to Palestine in the 40's, you'll spend four more exciting weeks in Israel.

Israel Pilgrimage/Poland Seminar
Some Israel groups begin the summer with one week in Poland visiting Warsaw, Cracow and Lublin, including the Holocaust sites of Auschwitz, Birkenau, Treblinka, Sobibor and Majdanek. You'll spend your time in Poland exploring and studying the rich history of Polish Jewry, followed by five weeks in Israel.

Etgar! The Ultimage Israel Challenge
This five week program is for those who have already participated in Israel Pilgrimage or a similar program. This group will go beyond the souvenir stands and will discover the Israeli side of Israel. Participants will meet the challenge of study combined with volunteer work, hiking, and interaction with Noam (USY's sister movement in Israel). USY High Junior and seniors, why study Israel's history in a classroom when you can relive it at the top of a mountain in the Galilee, or from one of Bar Kochbah's caves in the Judean hills? And why just listen to stories about Israel from family and friends when you can see for yourself what's so special about the homeland. You'll spend two exciting months with USYers from all across North America, living the USY way with daily tefilot, incredible ruach, moving Shabbat experiences and the kind of programming that only USY can give you.

Nativ
Are you looking at all your option for after high school graduation? Then make sure to see if Nativ is right for you! Nativ is a unique program for those special USY graduates who demonstrate academic and leadership skills. It is a standard academic year from September to May. The first five months Nativers live in Jerusalem at Beit Nativ, and study either at Hebrew University or at the Conservative Yeshiva. The second half of the year Nativers live and work on Kibbutz Sa'ad, in the Negev. Nativ is a year-long College Leadership Program for the Conservative Movement in Israel and you will receive college credit at most colleges and universities. Today's USY is far larger and even more successful. 52 Conventions later, USY, now an international organization in its own right, has ties to NOAM, the Masorti youth group in both Britain and Israel. USYers can now spend part of their High School Careers at USY High, in Israel. The NATIV Israel Leadership training program also provides an educational year in Israel between highschool and college for USY graduates.

International Convention
Over 1,000 USYers from all 17 regions join together for five amazing days every year at the end of December. During this week, we will all engage in Social Action projects, getting-to-know-you games (icebreakers), touring the wondrous host city, reunions with friends from the summer (keep reading, you'll see), night programs that will knock your socks off, dances, and of course, International Executive Board elections. There is also either a Pre-Convention or Post-Convention program where our region joins one or two other regions for a smaller convention before or after the big event.

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