The AARC board is so excited to announce that Dr. Marcy Epstein has taken the reins as Beit Sefer’s new director! As “Rosh”, Marcy has some very exciting plans for the students this year. Marcy has been a teacher with Beit Sefer for many years and has a strong background in secular and Jewish education.
Raised in Orthodox Hillel, Conservative Hebrew school, and Jewish Ccomunity Center (JCC) life, Marcy pursued a career in literature, language, and literacy, ultimately landing back at the University of Michigan to teach a seminar on race and ethnicity. She trained at Bat Kol, a feminist beit midrash in Jerusalem, volunteering for Aisha, Israel’s secular women’s center. After teaching sixth grade and adult education at Temple Beth Emeth, she began associate publishing for Moment Magazine in Washington, D.C. Many of you know Marcy for her work over the years for AARC; she has served on the board, administrated the High Holy Days, led services and our Sukkot retreat, and most recently led our goodbye event for Rabbi Ora Nitkin-Kaner. Her interests continue to be in developmental literacy, environmentalism and racial justice, Judaic art, and l’dor v’dor, a generational awareness of Jewish Civilization. One of her favorite accomplishments is having designed a bejeweled Tzedek collar, which she was blessed to present personally to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, z”l.
Marcy hopes to continue, after Clare Kinberg’s retirement, the emphasis on earth-based, anti-racist Judaism as well as deepening our children’s connections and skills to Avodah (prayer), Torah, and Mitzvah (deeds and action). This year’s Beit Sefer will continue to explore the Jewish world through immersion at the Farm on Jennings (Carole Caplan’s beautiful homestead) and outdoors at the JCC as much as weather permits. All our children will be developing their Hebrew skills along with an exciting program of Holiday festivals, Jewish arts and cooking, midrash and ethics, and most of all, connection to each other and our community.
Beit Sefer starts on September 18th, 10am-12pm, with a parent meeting at 10:45am at the JCC of Ann Arbor.
Our registration form covers COVID safety, disability accommodation, and a place to tell us about your child. Scholarships are available. You can contact Marcy at beitsefer@aarecon.org
