Rabbi David Ellenson has announced the retirement of Dr. Samuel Greengus as Director of the School of Graduate Studies at HUC-JIR/Cincinnati, as of July 1, 2010. "As a distinguished scholar and teacher for nearly five decades at the College-Institute, Dr. Greengus has demonstrated his extraordinary breadth of knowledge and depth of expertise in subject areas including Bible, Commentaries, Biblical Theology, Ancient Near Eastern History; Hebrew, Aramaic, Akkadian, Sumerian -- Languages and Literatures; and Liturgy, Mishnah, Talmud, Codes," said Rabbi Ellenson. "Dr. Greengus has provided guidance and mentorship to generations of graduate and rabbinical students, ensuring that the chain of Jewish scholarship and tradition will be sustained, and has strengthened our institution's international renown as a venue for serious research and publication." Dr. Greengus has served in key administrative positions at HUC-JIR throughout the past 30 years, including Vice President for Academic Affairs (1990-96), Dean of Faculty, HUC-JIR/Cincinnati (1987-96), Director, School of Graduate Studies (1985-90), Dean of the Cincinnati campus (1985-87), and Dean of the Rabbinical School in Cincinnati (1979-84). A member of the HUC-JIR faculty for nearly five decades, he was appointed the Julian Morgenstern Professor of Bible and Near Eastern Literature in 1989, after serving as Professor of Semitic Languages (1970-88) and Instructor in Semitic Languages (1963-69).

Rabbi David Ellenson has appointed Dr. Nili S. Fox as Director of the School of Graduate Studies at HUC-JIR/incinnati as of July 1, 2010. Dr. Fox is Professor of Bible at HUC-JIR/Cincinnati, Director of the Archaeology Center - Skirball Museum on its campus, and Co-Director (with Dr. David Ilan) of the Tel Dan Excavations of the Nelson Glueck School of Biblical Archaeology at HUC-JIR/Jerusalem. "Dr. Fox brings scholarly excellence and pedagogical skill to her teaching in her areas of specialization: the study of Israelite history and culture in the context of the ancient Near East, with a special focus on religion, literacy and state-organization," said Rabbi David Ellenson. "She has enriched our institution's excavations at Tel Dan in Israel by expanding research opportunities for our graduate and rabbinical students , while creating a successful center for archaeological inquiry at our Cincinnati campus that welcomes students of all ages from throughout the greater Ohio-Kentucky area. We look forward to her extensive talents and creativity in advancing and consolidating the mission of the School of Graduate Studies in Cincinnati and across all our sites."

Nearly one thousand guests of all generations packed the sanctuary at Central Synagogue for "An Evening with Debbie & Friends" - a concert celebrating the creativity of world-renowned folk songwriter and performer Debbie Friedman - and raised $450,000 to benefit HUC-JIR and its School of Sacred Music (SSM). The concert on November 12th featured the music of Debbie Friedman performed by Debbie Friedman, the Afro-Semitic Experience, HaZamir: The International Jewish High School Choir, The Western Wind, Alumni, Faculty, Students, and surprise guests. Honorary Celebrity Co-Chairs were Jason Robert Brown, Mandy Patinkin, and Paul Schaffer. Concert Co-chairs were Barbara Friedman and Bonnie Tisch. Benefit Committee Co-Chairs were Marjorie and Morgan Miller. Rabbi David Ellenson set the tone for the evening in his welcoming remarks: "We celebrate Debbie Friedman, an esteemed member of our faculty, who is strengthening HUC-JIR's role in the area of worship renewal and revitalization in our day. She inspires and helps to guide our students' spiritual and leadership development, and provides them with innovative strategies to transform congregations into communities of meaning."

Richard A. Siegel, Director of the SJCS, served as editor of this volume and writes: The HUC-JIR School of Jewish Communal Service (SJCS) in Los Angeles was founded in 1968, enrolled its first students in 1969, and graduated its first class in 1970. Now 40 years later, the SJCS has established itself, not just as one of the leading graduate programs training professional leaders for the Jewish community but also as a shaper of the contemporary practice of the profession itself. The more than 600 graduates of the program provide informed, experienced, and Jewishly grounded direction, guidance, and leadership to Jewish communal agencies throughout the world; and the research and creative thought reflected in their master's theses has provided insight into the professional experience in the Jewish communal world and led to the exploration of new fields, issues, and constituencies. All of the articles in this Journal are written either by alumni or faculty of the school, and all relate to broad issues of concern to Jewish communal professionals wherever they are in the world and for whatever agencies they work. To order this special issue, please contact: info@jcsana.org.

Dr. Carol Ochs has retired as Director of Graduate Studies at HUC-JIR/New York, as of July 1, 2009. Dr. Ochs instituted the formal practice and teaching of spiritual guidance at the New York campus of HUC-JIR several years before it became available at other Jewish seminaries. During her fifteen years as a valued member of the faculty, she met with more than two hundred rabbinic and cantorial students in weekly one-on-one sessions, assisting them in facing their spiritual questions and helping them resolve their religious doubts. She introduced a course in Comparative Religion and also taught courses on Theology for Pastoral Care, Women and Spirituality, the Philosophy of Spinoza, and Jewish Spiritual Guidance. For the past ten years, she directed HUC-JIR's Doctor of Ministry program, which accepted and graduated ordained members of many faiths and from many countries.

Six new rabbis for Israel's Progressive Movement were ordained by Rabbi David Ellenson, President of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR), at the Ordination and Academic Convocation at HUC-JIR/Jerusalem on Friday, November 20, 2009. The ordinees are Judith Edelman-Green, Chen Ester Ben-Or Tsfoni, Jehiel Benjamin Gruber, Zipora Livneh, Oded Mazor, and Dalia Tibon Lagziel. These four women and two men join the 59 alumni of the Israel Rabbinical Program, established in 1975, which, with this new cohort, will have ordained 65 Israeli rabbis to date to serve Progressive congregations, schools, and communities throughout Israel. The academic convocation also featured the inaugural cohort of seven graduates receiving certificates in Specialization in Pluralistic Jewish Education, the HUC-JIR program that is part of the M.A. in Jewish Education from the Melton Centre for Jewish Education of the Hebrew University. The graduates receiving certificates are Michal Burstein-Azrieli, Maital Cohen-Sabag, Nitza Harel-Attias, Oded Mazor, Lior Nevo, Israela Ravid, and Rinat Safania. Rabbi Michael Melchior, former Deputy Foreign Minister, Deputy Minister of Education and Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's office and one of Israel's leading legislators, was presented with the Doctor of Humane Letters degree, honoris causa; Rabbi Edward Rettig received the Doctor of Hebrew Letters degree; and Larry Tishkoff received the Doctor of Jewish Religious Education, honoris causa.