Rabbi Elliott A. Kleinman, the regional director of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations' Northeast Lakes Council for the past five years, has been named the UAHC's new Director of Program. He succeeds Rabbi Daniel Freelander who was elected vice-president of the UAHC in December.
As director of program, Kleinman, 41, will coordinate the work of the departments that create resources for and provide counseling to the UAHC's 913 member congregations. He will also take responsibility for the programmatic elements of the UAHC Biennial Convention, a five-day event that brings together more than 5,000 Reform Jews to study, worship, and network with their peers from across the continent. Kleinman will relocate to UAHC headquarters in New York City, where he will assume his new duties on July 1, 2002.
"We're looking forward to the energy and enthusiasm that Elliott Kleinman will be bringing to our New York headquarters," said Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the UAHC. "He is a capable, extraordinarily intelligent leader who invests every aspect of his work with an enthusiasm for Jewish life. Under his guidance, the Northeast Lakes Council has grown and flourished, and I have no doubt that he will continue his wonderful work here in New York."
As regional director, Kleinman serves as a direct link between the UAHC and the 67 Reform synagogues in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and western New York State, providing technical expertise, resources, and direct counseling on issues those congregations faced daily.
Rabbi Kleinman, who was awarded the title of Reform Jewish Educator (RJE), has long been involved in the Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education and is a lecturer in Judaic studies and Jewish education at the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies. The chair of the Jewish Leaders Council of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, he serves on its board as well as the boards of Myriam's Dream Foundation and Planned Parenthood of Cleveland.
A graduate of DePaul University and Xavier University, Rabbi Kleinman was ordained by the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 1992, and worked 10 years in politics in his native Chicago before entering rabbinic school. Prior to joining the UAHC, Kleinman served at Temple Sholom of Chicago. He and his wife, Diane, have two children.