Camp Ramah () is a network of Jewish summer camps affiliated with the Conservative Movement. The camps operate in the United States, Canada, and Israel. All Ramah camps serve kosher food and are Shabbat-observant. History During the 1940s, the Jewish Theological Seminary established Camp Ramah as a tool for furthering Jewish education. The founders, including Rabbi Ralph Simon of Chicago, envisioned an informal camp setting where Jewish youth would reconnect with the synagogue and Jewish tradition, and a new cadre of American-born Jewish leadership could be cultivated. The founders of Ramah camps were inspired by Camp Massad and Camp Cejwin. The first camp opened in Conover, Wisconsin in 1947. The program was drawn up by Moshe Davis and Sylvia Ettenberg of the JTS Teachers' Institute. In October 2007, Ettenberg was awarded Pras Ramah (the Ramah Prize) as part of Ramah's 60th anniversary celebrations. Many of the early staff were ex-Camp Massad people and JTS students. In 1950, the second Ramah camp opened in the Poconos and in 1953, the third Ramah camp opened in Connecticut (this camp was later moved to Massachusetts). In addition to typical summer camp activities, Ramah camps offer an educational program focusing on Judaism, Zionism, and Hebrew-language instruction on different levels. Camp Ramah offers sleep-away camps with an option to stay for either two, four, or eight weeks, day camps with busing, an Israel summer tour program for teenagers, a day camp in Jerusalem for American and Israeli children, and a variety of high school programs in Israel. In addition to its university-aged American counselors, specialists and educators, the staff of each camp is joined by a corps of emissaries from Israel known as the "mishlachat/מישלחת". Educational impact A Trinity College researcher, Ariella Keysar, documented a significant impact of Ramah on college students: She found that Ramah graduates were three times more likely to date only Jews, four times more likely to attend synagogue services, and three times as likely as the general Jewish population to spend significant time in Israel. According to the Jewish Agency for Israel, Camp Ramah "is not just a camp, it’s a lifestyle." Among North American olim, one finds communities of former Americans who attended Camp Ramah and reconnected later in life. Many spiritual leaders, social justice advocates, educators, and community board members in North America trace their strong Jewish values and commitment to Judaism to their summers at Ramah. An