HUC-JIR Announces Graduation and Ordination of the Class of 2024/5784

Graduates and honorees of the Class of 2024/5784

This inspiring cadre of ordinees and graduates are the newest professional leaders for the Reform Movement, the Jewish people, and the larger world. They will build and transform communities throughout North America, Israel, and around the globe.

Distinguished communal and civic leaders and alumni will be awarded honorary degrees and prizes in recognition of their service to Reform congregations and North American Jewry, and in honor of their humanitarian work.

Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D., HUC-JIR President, stated, “Congratulations to our ordinees, graduates, alumni honorees, and recipients of our honorary degrees and Joseph Prize at our upcoming Ordination and Graduation Ceremonies! In their vital roles transmitting Jewish values, tradition, and culture, these individuals help those seeking meaning and purpose grounded in our shared history and community. They have had, and will continue to have, a profound impact in strengthening inclusive, dynamic, and spiritually nourishing communities, while their advocacy for justice and human rights makes a tangible difference in our world. The challenges confronting us today make it clear that their vision and leadership are needed more than ever. May the courage of their convictions and ideals guide their sacred paths to building a bright, just, and promising future for the Jewish People and all humankind.”

Register to attend upcoming graduation and ordination

HUC-JIR will award 121 degrees:

Rabbinical School:

Ordination of 33 rabbis in Cincinnati, Jerusalem, Los Angeles, New York
18 Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters
10 Master of Arts in Hebrew Literature

Pines School of Graduate Studies:

1 Doctor of Philosophy in Judaic, Hebraic, and Cognate Studies
1 Doctor of Hebrew Letters
3 Master of Arts in Philosophy
3 Master of Arts in Jewish Studies

Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music:

Ordination of 6 cantors in New York
5 Master of Sacred Music

Zelikow School of Jewish Nonprofit Management:

8 Master of Arts in Jewish Nonprofit Management
7 Master of Science in Organizational Leadership and Innovation
3 Certificate in Jewish Organizational Leadership

School of Education:

3 Master of Arts in Educational Leadership
1 Master of Arts in Jewish Learning
9 Master of Arts degrees in Teaching
8 Certificates in Day School Teaching

Pastoral Care Programs:

1 Interfaith Doctor of Ministry for Education in Pastoral Care

Louchheim School for Judaic Studies:

1 Bachelor of Arts in Jewish Studies from University of Southern California

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Honors:

Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa, will be bestowed upon:

• Frederick M. Lawrence, Secretary and CEO, The Phi Beta Kappa Society; Distinguished Lecturer in Law, Georgetown Law Center
• Ambassador Tom Nides, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel

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Roger E. Joseph Prize:

Hand in Hand

Accepted by Lee Gordon, Co-Founder & Director of the American Friends of Hand in Hand

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Honoring Our Alumni from the Class of 1999:

Doctor of Divinity, honoris causa

41 rabbinical alumni of the Class of 1999

Doctor of Music, honoris causa

5 cantorial alumni of the Class of 1999

Doctor of Jewish Religious Education, honoris causa

3 education alumni

Doctor of Jewish Nonprofit Management, honoris causa

5 Jewish nonprofit management alumni

Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa

1 Pines School of Graduate Studies alumnus

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Featured Speakers

Cincinnati

• Ordination:
  Rabbi Leon Morris ‘97, President of Pardes
• Graduation:
  Frederick M. Lawrence, 10th Secretary and CEO of the Phi Beta Kappa Society

Los Angeles

• Ordination:
  Rabbi Candice Levy, Ph.D., Milken Community Schools
• Graduation:
  Janice Kamenir-Reznik ’75, Co-Founder, Jewish World Watch; Co-Founder Jews United for Democracy and Justice

New York

• Graduation / Recipient of Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters:
  Tom Nides, Vice Chairman of Strategy and Client Relations at Blackstone and former United States Ambassador to Israel
• Ordination:
  Rabbi Norman Cohen, Professor Emeritus of Midrash at HUC-JIR/NY

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The Graduation and Ordination Ceremonies of the 149th Academic Year

Register to Attend these Events in person or online

Jerusalem:

• Ordination and Academic Convocation: Thursday, November 16, 2023; Leo Baeck Education Center, 90 Zarfat Road, Haifa

New York:

• Graduation: Thursday, May 2, 2024 at 4 pm ET; Congregation Emanu-El of the City of New York, 10 East 66th Street, New York;
• Ordination: Sunday, May 5, 2024 at 9:30 am ET; Congregation Emanu-El of the City of New York, Fifth Avenue at 65th Street, New York

Contact Meredeth Kelly at mkelly@huc.edu or (212) 824-2224.

Los Angeles:

• Ordination: Sunday, May 12, 2024, at 10 am PT
• Graduation: Monday, May 13, 2024 at 11 am PT

Contact Yvette Joffe at yjoffe@huc.edu or (213) 765-2149.

Cincinnati:

• Graduation: Friday, May 31, 2024 at 11 am ET; Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, 3101 Clifton Avenue, Cincinnati
• Ordination: Saturday, June 1, 2024 at 9 am ET; Plum Street Temple, 720 Plum Street, Cincinnati

Contact Autumn Wheeler-Peterson at awheeler@huc.edu or (513) 487-3231.

Media:

Contact the Office of Communications and Marketing at news@huc.edu.