With a new name came a renewed mission: a commitment to welcome all professional Jewish educators—youth professionals, clergy educators, and the growing diversity of leaders shaping Jewish learning. It was a declaration that our field was broader, richer, and more interconnected than ever before.
By 2022, when I was privileged to step into the role of Executive Director, the ARJE had accomplished nearly all of the goals articulated a generation earlier. Religious school principals had become congregational educators and directors of lifelong learning. Their work was no longer confined to classrooms or calendars—it was strategic, visionary, and essential.
Educators had earned their place as senior leaders in congregations, as big-picture thinkers, and as respected partners shaping Jewish life. The ARJE like its members, didn’t just have a seat at the table—we had a voice that was sought out, trusted, and valued. And through it all we had a lay leadership that was strong, purposeful, and intentional. Plus over $1 million in endowment funds.
Tonight, as we celebrate our 70th anniversary, we find ourselves at another turning point – one that requires more than post-it notes and chart paper, dots or protocols.
We are living in a new era—one shaped by profound challenges and deep responsibility. The back-to-back crises of COVID and October 7 left budgets depleted, workplaces disrupted, and educators exhausted. The nonstop cycle of work has made it harder to discern the urgent from the important.
At the very same time, the sacred obligation of this profession has never felt more critical.
Though this moment seems unique - across settings, roles, and generations, we hear the same resounding chorus that our founders sang – A need for an organization that provides a deep connection, transformational gatherings, and inspirational learning.
The ARJE we are building today is rooted in that call, and our next chapter may involve different verses, but the future will no doubt enable us to sing the same chorus.
Our vision is for the ARJE to be more than an association. We want to be a hub: a web of professional support, a trusted pathway to meaningful resources, impactful learning, and timely training.
While we were founded as an organization of synagogue educators, we now know that regardless of where Jewish education takes place—synagogues, camps, schools, immersive programs, or new creative spaces—
Jewish educators will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that Jewish values, traditions, and stories shape the next generation.
The ARJE can—and must—be the organization that helps educators access a new world of ideas around part-time and immersive Jewish education. We can be the platform where veteran educators share, refine, and elevate innovative practices—and where new leaders find mentorship, belonging, and courage.
Seventy years ago our founders understood the need to plan for the future - they founded NATE on the belief that Jewish educators matter and are worthy of their own professional association.
We read in Yoel 2:28 The old shall dream dreams, and the youth shall see visions and our hopes
Tonight, we reaffirm that belief—and we recommit ourselves to the future.