URJ Ethics Accountability Update - February 13, 2026

The URJ remains committed to ensuring ethical practices in all of our spaces. We are pleased to share updates on our URJ Ethics work and commitments, which we will continue sharing with you on a regular basis.

Annual Ethics Training and Affirmation for URJ Lay Leaders

Key groups of URJ lay leaders, including members of the North American Board, Commission on Social Action, RAC state leadership bodies, and Camp Committees will receive their 2026 ethics training in the first half of the year. Trainings will include information about expectations and standards as well as exploration of case studies. All members of these leadership groups will be required to affirm upholding the URJ’s ethical commitments, as outlined in the URJ Ethics Code for Volunteers, which concerns the actions of URJ volunteers and interactions between volunteers and employees. The code makes clear that, “At the URJ, we hold ourselves and one another to the highest standards of personal and professional integrity, moral conscience and social responsibility.”

Ethical Commitments When We Gather

The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism’s flagship social justice conference, the Consultation on Conscience, held in December 2025, began with an explicit statement of ethical commitments delivered by Heidi Segal, Chair of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism. Heidi, along with senior staff members, also met on site with participants who raised concerns about ethics concerns that arose during the gathering. In addition, registration for each of the Consultation’s 400 attendees included a pledge to abide by the URJ’s ethics policies.

The success of this model builds on that established by Women of Reform Judaism at the Rabbi Marla J. Feldman Social Justice Conference in April 2025, which also began with a public statement of ethical commitments. A three-person team of WRJ leaders were introduced at the opening session and were available throughout the conference to meet with attendees about any ethics concerns arising on site. WRJ is providing similar on-site support at their district conventions this spring.

We encourage you to join us at the Dec. 10-13 2026 URJ Biennial in Philadelphia, PA, where we will further our ethical commitments.

Congregational Ethics Codes

As part of our ongoing work to create a culture that prioritizes safety and accountability, we encourage every congregation to craft and adopt a congregational ethics code. To date, 146 URJ congregations have adopted an ethics code. A 25-person task force of URJ lay leaders appointed by North American Board Chair Shelley Niceley Groff is engaging in a renewed round of outreach to URJ congregations, urging adoption of congregational ethics codes. To support congregational leaders in this effort, the URJ recently revised and refreshed the suggested processes for developing and implementing a congregational ethics code. It provides an ethics code template as well as sample codes that congregations can adapt for their own use. Upon request, we will also assign a coach to consult with congregations creating codes.

Ethics Training for Year-Round and Camp/Youth Program Staff 

The URJ extensively prepares and trains its staff to protect our people – especially our youth – and to prevent, identify, and respond to concerns and complaints related to abuse, misconduct, and other ethics issues. Every member of our camp staff is trained annually by national experts and camp leaders in how to prevent, recognize, report, and respond to abuse and misconduct. Every URJ/camp staff member is required to participate in annual anti-harassment and discrimination training as has been the case for the last decade. The URJ performs annual background checks on every youth program staff member and background checks every three years for every non-youth staff member. 

URJ Camps employ enhanced rigorous Incident Reporting protocols with escalation procedures for decision making to Camp Directors and Executive Directors, Vice President of Camps and Immersives, and Vice President, People & Culture. Our ethics work continues to prioritize the cultivation of a culture of accountability for the safety and protection of every person in our community.

Help us find a new URJ Ombuds

Since 2022, the URJ Ombuds, Caroline Cuneo, has served as an external, neutral, independent, and supportive guide assisting with the resolution of questions and concerns related to the reporting of misconduct and abuse, and to take complaints and reports from those who seek confidentiality or are not comfortable reporting through traditional URJ reporting channels. The ombuds also refers individuals to appropriate resources for formal complaint filing, restorative justice, or other interventions as needed. We deeply appreciate Caroline’s highly compassionate professionalism and will miss her presence when she departs in early Spring.

We are now seeking to retain a new Ombuds. View the job posting. Please encourage any qualified individuals to apply and help us strengthen the URJ’s ethics work.

To reach the URJ Ombuds about issues of misconduct and abuse, email ombudsurj@gmail.com.