BBYO to Hold Annual International Conference in Baltimore Over Presidents' Day Weekend

Get ready. It’s going to get loud in Charm City this weekend.

More than 2,500 Jewish teenagers from around North America and 40 nations will converge on Baltimore over Presidents’ Day Weekend, Feb. 17-22, for the annual BBYO International Convention. The convention will be held at multiple locations around the city.

BBYO is an international Jewish teen movement headquartered in Washington, D.C., that promotes Jewish identity, fellowship and leadership development skills.

Last year’s BBYO convention was held virtually due to the pandemic. The in-person gathering this weekend will follow extensive health and safety measures.

“BBYO IC 2022 will be a memorable and important opportunity for Jewish teens to address the divisiveness and isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and confront the myriad impacts on the youth of society and their communities over the past two years,” said Dr. Ivor Douglas, a member of BBYO’s Medical Advisory Committee. “Given the public health data about the lessened severity of Omicron, especially among young adults who are fully vaccinated, coupled with expectations that all participants strictly adhere to our health and safety protocols that were developed for IC, we are confident this can be a safe, memorable, and successful event.”

As one of the largest Jewish conferences in the world, the BBYO gathering immerses teens in a world-class environment to help develop and redefine their perspective on what it means to be in a Jewish space. This year’s theme is “The Power of Us,” a celebration of resiliency, vibrancy and hope for the future.

“This event is truly about celebrating the power of being together. There is simply no other segment in society that can match the enthusiasm, optimism and courage of this generation to build a better world for all of us,” said BBYO Chief Executive Officer Matthew Grossman. “IC is a place where people, ideas, opinions, and creativity come together, where diversity is celebrated, and the future defined.”

Among the speakers scheduled to address the conference attendees are Mike Posner, a Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and record producer; Josh Kraft, president of Kraft Family Philanthropies; Rabbi Angela Buchdahl of the Central Synagogue of New York; Simu Lu, an actor and writer for Marvel Cinematic Universe; Corey Stern, an attorney working on the Flint water crisis case in Michigan; freelance journalist Eve Barlow; Green Bay Packers running back A.J. Dillon; Jurnee Smollett, an Emmy-nominated actress and activist; and Nikki Fried, Florida’s commissioner of agriculture and consumer services.

This year’s event will also showcase the diversity of the BBYO community, with nearly 400 global delegates attending for the first time from South Africa, Sydney, Australia, Morocco and Romania. In addition, groups of more than 50 delegates each from Germany, Spain, and Argentina will attend this year.

As is customary at the conference, delegates will rally around a local organization to collect donations for those in need. This year, they are donating school supplies, fidget toys and health products to the St. Francis Neighborhood Center, Baltimore’s oldest youth enrichment center whose mission is to end generational poverty.

In addition, BBYO is announcing a first-of-its-kind collaboration with JWB Jewish Chaplains Council^,a signature program of JCC Association of North America that serves the religious needs of Jewish military personnel, their families and patients in VA hospitals.

JWB and BBYO have joined to provide all active U.S. military and diplomatic corps families around the world free membership to BBYO for their teens, as well as discounts and special offers to attend events, participate in conventions and partake in BBYO summer leadership and travel programs.

Other highlights of this year’s conference include:

Access to one-of-a-kind experiences with NASA, TED, the National Aquarium and the Autobahn Speedway (nearly 50 Leadership Labs and direct service projects in all);

An inaugural AZAA and BBGG Sports and Wellness Expo featuring health and nutrition workshops, competitive sports, and interactions with influencers and experts in the field;

Exclusive musical performances by Steve Aoki, Tai Verdes and Surfaces;

A reimagined IC Summit experience produced in conjunction with a coalition of partner agencies including ADL, National Council of Jewish Women, OpenDor Media, Pardes, Repair the World, Startup Experience and World Jewish Congress, among others;

A new Saturday night social experience, BBYO Block Party, including the world championship of BBYO’s global eSports tournament in partnership with Lost Tribe;

An expanded Jewish Learning Lab, a wider series of teen-led sessions and all-new networking events throughout convention;

A partnership with JCC Maccabi to deliver the new BBYO Sports and Wellness Expo, part of a rollout in 2022 of broader sports and wellness related programming across the BBYO global movement. For both organizations, which together comprise the two largest pluralistic youth-engaging platforms on the continent, this joining of forces at IC strives to provide more expansive collaboration opportunities including elevating one another’s involvement in their signature annual gatherings, BBYO International Convention and the summer JCC Maccabi Games, and future initiatives that engage Jewish teens through sports, fitness and travel.

For those unable to attend the conference, BBYO will be live streaming select sessions on Facebook Live and YouTube Live via BBYO’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Schedules for streaming throughout the weekend are posted on BBYO’s International Convention event page.