Tisch/Star Fellows Discuss Tools for Creating and Transforming Jewish Communities at Winter Retreat

As representatives of one of Hebrew Union College’s signature initiatives to cultivate dynamic leaders to enliven Judaism’s future, HUC’s Tisch/Star fellows recently participated in their 2025 winter retreat. The four-day gathering in Boston gave the rabbinical and cantorial students in the fellowship’s cohort diverse, interdisciplinary perspectives on how to build and nurture innovative and spiritually enriching Jewish communities.

The Tisch Initiative for Synagogue Excellence was established through the generosity of Bonnie and Daniel Tisch. Cantorial students in the program are funded by Sara Star.

“The fellowship’s mission is to provide rabbis and cantors with the cognitive tools necessary to transform synagogues into spiritual and moral centers for the twenty-first century, by providing ongoing dialogue on the future of the Jewish community in general, and the evolving nature of synagogues in particular,” said Tisch/Star fellowship creator and director Lawrence Hoffman, Ph.D., the Barbara and Stephen Friedman Professor Emeritus of Liturgy, Worship and Ritual. “Fellows experience three years of formal and informal learning that includes field seminars, discussions, and reflective readings and assignments, in addition to retreats like this winter’s.”

The fellows arrived in Boston on January 14 and kicked off their week together with lively conversation and Jewish comfort food at Zaftigs Delicatessen in Brookline. They then made their way to Temple Israel, which hosted many of the retreat’s sessions. “There, we participated in one of Tisch’s signature activities: a check-in—an opportunity for each fellow to share a bit about what they are thinking at the start of the retreat,” said the fellowship’s associate program director Rabbi Joseph Skloot, Ph.D., Rabbi Aaron D. Panken Associate Professor of Modern Jewish Intellectual History. “We then met with Temple Israel’s senior clergy—Rabbi Elaine Zecher and Cantor Alicia Stillman, a Tisch alumna—who guided us through an inspiring series of exercises centered on the delicate balance between humility and confidence.”

As part of this experience, Temple Israel clergy led the fellows on a tour of the synagogue’s building, showcasing how its design reflects a spirit of creativity and innovation for the congregation. The night concluded with a dinner where fellows had the chance to ask questions and delve deeper into discussion.

On January 15, fellows began with breakfast and a brief d’var Torah, setting an intentional tone for the day ahead. “Our learning continued at Harvard Law School, where we were fortunate to study with former Harvard Law School Dean, Professor Martha Minow and her former student, Talia Milgrom-Elcott, daughter of Tisch Initiative faculty member and HUC alumna Rabbi Shira Milgrom,” Skloot said. “The session opened with a facilitated conversation between Milgrom-Elcott and Professor Minow, followed by an immersion in constitutional law through an analysis of Repouille v. United States, a landmark case raising questions about punishment and forgiveness. This conversation set the stage for a dialogue about the relationship of law to ethics and state power.”

That evening, the fellows had dinner with two Tisch alumnae creating new kinds of Jewish organizations and communities—Rabbi Jennifer Gubitz and Rabbi Sara Luria—as well as executive coach and consultant David Trietsch. “The conversation was as enriching as the meal, and the students were particularly inspired by the stories of innovation, courage, and artistry that Rabbis Gubitz and Luria shared and as well as those about the challenges they have faced in their rabbinic work beyond the pulpit,” said Rabbi Sasha Baken-Rennert, Tisch program administrator and HUC alum.

The following day, January 16, the fellows once again began with a brief d’var Torah to frame the program. After breakfast, David Trietsch led the group through the Myers-Briggs personality test, offering insights on how to approach collaboration and work more effectively with colleagues. Following this, the group visited Grace Chapel, a “megachurch” that attracts over 2,000 attendees to its weekly services. There, fellows got the opportunity to learn from members of a different faith community about the ways in which they successfully make their large organization small and put into practice their religious mission.

Thursday evening concluded with a final private meal. Skloot said that gathering “provided students with a chance to reflect and process the variety of experiences they encountered throughout their four days together, and to celebrate our seniors, who, by that time, had all determined where the next steps in their professional journeys would lead.”