Ethics Accountability

A message to anyone who has been subject to abuse or harm within the URJ - or by the URJ as a result - and to the wider URJ communities, from Dr. Guila Benchimol and Dr. Alissa Ackerman.

As part of the URJ’s ongoing ethics work, we are writing to let you know of new and expanded reporting channels and protocols, including the hiring of a new Ombuds.  These steps have been informed by our field experts and the courageous voices of victims and survivors who have publicly and privately shared their experiences and feedback.

We are sharing this update on our ethics accountability work as part of our ongoing commitment to transparency, protection of every member of our community, and to the implementation of recommendations from the Debevoise & Plimpton investigation report. 

When the URJ released the Ethics Report following the independent investigation into sexual misconduct in URJ workplaces and programs in February, we committed to implementing the recommendations and keeping our community apprised of our progress. It is in that spirit that we share this update on the key milestones and outcomes we expect to achieve over the next several months.