Advisor Guidelines
NCSY aims to inspire teenagers and young adults to love all things Jewish, and to be proud, active participants in building a Jewish today and creating the Jewish tomorrow.
NCSY’s volunteer advisors have always been the foundation of the success with which NCSY has reached teenagers and helped them see the beauty of Torah Judaism.
NCSY and the Orthodox Union strive to create an environment where NCSYers, volunteers, lay leaders, advisors, and NCSY staff professionals can grow and learn in a safe, tolerant and Halakhiclly appropriate environment.
Being an NCSY Advisor is a privilege, and with that privilege comes significant and constant responsibility. Advisors are role models for NCSYers and represent the standards and values of NCSY to the world at large, both while at a program or at home, “on duty” and off.
Employment and volunteer involvement in NCSY as staff or advisors requires a life lived as Bnei and Bnos Torah, in both the spirit and letter of halakha. As the outreach programming of New Jersey NCSY grows, we are graduating alumni from varying background with different levels of commitment to Torah and SHmiras HaMitzvos. Many of those who benefit from their years in NCSY seek to return and “give back” to the organization. While we welcome the contrabutions of all our Alumni, the role of “Advisor” is reserved for those who are living at a certain threshold of commitment to Torah and Mitzvos. We are articulating the guidelines below, which will seem obvious to many, in order to clarify our standards of expectations for everyone.
1. All Advisors and Staff should love Judaism, Torah and Am Yisrael. This should be evident in their personal commitment to studying Torah, in Tefillah, acts of Chesed and general shemiras ha’mitzvos
2. Advisors and Staff should exude a love and passion for Shabbos and observe Shabbos fully.
3. Advisors and Staff should always dress in a way personifying exemplary dedication to, and an understanding of, Tznius and modesty. This applies to men and women and both at NCSY programs and in their personal life.
(Ex: men must wear tzitzies and keep their heads covered, women must wear skirts and shirts with sleeves. No one should be wearing t-shirts with provocative or offensive messages)
1. All halakhot of physical contact (“negiah”) must be observed at all times.
2. Advisors and Staff must observe all laws of Orthodox Kashrus
3. Advisors and Staff always speak in a manner that respects the tzelem Elokhim in all. “Nekiyut halashon,” cleanliness of language, serves as their standard
4. Advisors and Staff understand that illegal substance use is strictly prohibited, and any legal substances are only to be used in moderation by those above age, both during and outside of NCSY events
5. NCSY Advisors and Staff are held to a high standard in public. Inappropriate Facebook/MySpace postings, Instant Messages, e-mails, phone calls, texts etc. are unacceptable.
Violations of these policies will be taken very seriously and are grounds for immediate dismissal from NCSY.
The NCSY Administration, in consultation with our Youth Commision, remains the sole and final arbiters of what actions are appropriate and whether a standard of halakha has been violated.
We recognize that people are human and have lapses, yet we need to make sure that advisors realize the tremendous responsibility they are entrusted with and we believe formalizing our standards and policies will lead to a better experience for NCSYers, advisors and staff.
