Contact: Leah Berkenwald, Online Communications Specialist (617) 383-2258.

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#JWAPEDIA: Tweeting the Encyclopedia Round 2

Jewish Women’s Archive launches second round of campaign to tweet online Encyclopedia

(Brookline, MA) – September 12, 2011 – As part of the lead up to Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish Women’s Archive (JWA) has launched the second round of #jwapedia, the campaign to tweet the online version of Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia.

The initial effort started in May, 2011, in honor of Jewish American Heritage Month. JWA invited a diverse group of influential Twitter users, including organizations, clergy, lay leaders, social media professionals, and fans of JWA, to help tweet the Encyclopedia using the hashtag “#jwapedia.” In a month’s time, the group tweeted over 200 articles from the Encyclopedia and generated lively discussion about using Twitter to exchange ideas about history.

Round 2 of the #jwapedia campaign begins on Monday, September 19 and runs through September 25th. Tweeters should choose at least one Encyclopedia article to answer each of three questions:

1. Who do you choose to inspire and guide you through the New Year?
2. Who do you choose to inspire and guide your community through the New Year?
3. Who do you choose to inspire and guide the world through the New Year?

“We’re inviting people to think about the role of Jewish women in our lives today and in our hopes for the future,” said JWA’s Executive Director Gail T. Reimer. “It’s fun to use the latest social media to get the word out about history, and in this case, the history of Jewish women. Many of the women featured in the Encyclopedia are unknown in spite of remarkable accomplishments.”

Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia, which includes over 1,700 biographies, 300 thematic essays, and 1,400 photographs and illustrations spanning the globe from biblical to contemporary times, is the first comprehensive online source for the history of Jewish women. In 2009, Gloria Steinem praised the Encyclopedia as "user-friendly and thoughtfully compiled, as much a joy for the casual browser as for those who come with a purpose. Whether you are a scholar in search of the past, a journalist in need of facts in the present, or a young Jewish girl looking for role models for dreams of the future, the encyclopedia is a treasure-trove." Originally created as a CD-ROM, the online version of the Encyclopedia was launched on March 1, 2009 with an improved user interface and Web 2.0 features, including the ability for users to discuss and add content.

Anyone can participate in the #jwapedia campaign by tweeting a link to the Encyclopedia using the hashtag #jwapedia. Follow the campaign at Twitter.com starting September 19th by searching for #jwapedia or following JWA at @jwaonline.

About the Jewish Women's Archive

The mission of the Jewish Women’s Archive (jwa.org) is to uncover, chronicle, and transmit the rich history of American Jewish women. JWA is nationally recognized as a vital contributor to a more expansive and inclusive vision of Jewish life, past, present and future. Through its innovative uses of technology and its collaborative partnerships, JWA has successfully changed the way history is researched, recorded, and taught.