In his recent book Next Generation Judaism, Rabbi Mike Uram, Executive Director of Hillel at the University of Pennsylvania, shares insights into the future direction of American Judaism gained from years of work with college students. What can the rest of us learn from these young Jews? Join Rabbis Abe Friedman, Deborah Glanzberg-Krainin (Chief Program and Strategy Officer, Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia), and Joel Seltzer (Executive Director, Camp Ramah in the Poconos) in conversation with Rabbi Uram about how we might apply his ideas to Jewish communities beyond the college campus.
Stay after the conversation for a light dessert reception and book signing. The book will be available for purchase at the event for $18.00 and retails for $19.99.
Rabbi Mike Uram is the Executive Director and Campus Rabbi for the Hillel at University of Pennsylvania and the author of the new book entitled, Next Generation Judaism: How College Students and Hillel Can Help Reinvent Jewish Organizations, which recently won a National Jewish Book Award. He is a sought-after speaker and consultant on the changing nature of the American Jewish community, Jewish innovation, cutting-edge engagement and how legacy organizations can reinvent themselves in the age of millennials. Mike has won numerous awards, including the Edgar Bronfman Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement and leadership within the Hillel movement, and being named to the Forward list of 50 most influential leaders in 2012. He has spent time in all of the different denominations and is most passionate about breaking down the personal, spiritual and intellectual boundaries that prevent people from having full self-actualized Jewish identities.
Rabbi Joel Seltzer is originally from Philadelphia, PA and he himself is a home-grown product of Camp Ramah in the Poconos. Whether as a camper, a counselor, a Rosh Edah (Division Head), or Rosh Drama (Head of Performing Arts), Rabbi Joel learned countless personal and professional life lessons from his time at camp. A graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, Rabbi Joel served as a rabbi at Temple Emanu-El in Providence, RI for four years before returning to his spiritual home: Camp Ramah. Rabbi Joel lives in Philadelphia with his wife Eliana (whom he met at Camp!), and their daughters Ayelet, Talia, and Noa.
Rabbi Abe Friedman, the Senior Rabbi at BZBI, joined the congregation in 2015 after serving for five years as a rabbi at Anshe Emet Synagogue in Chicago. A native of Atlanta, Georgia, Rabbi Abe lived in Israel for a year as part of USY’s Nativ Leadership Program before attending Boston University. He received his rabbinic ordination from the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at Los Angeles’ American Jewish University, where he also earned an MBA in Nonprofit Management.
Co-sponsored by Penn Hillel.