| IN THE MEMBERS SECTION: |
The Cantor Search Committee has identified one candidate whose fit for Beth El dramatically exceeds every other applicant for our clergy vacancy. Vigorously endorsed by the Board of Directors and the Search Committee and enthusiastically supported by Rabbi Breindel, we are eager to introduce this candidate to you. We look forward to sharing her name in the near future; we are protecting her confidentiality at this time.
fThis cantor was ordained at Hebrew College, where she also earned her master’s in Jewish education. She brings 7 years of pulpit leadership experience in a synagogue, which, like Beth El, identifies as Reform while integrating strong pluralistic practices. She is vibrant, creative, highly professional, and hard-working. We have observed her leading Shabbat services on 3 occasions and were impressed with her ability to engage with youth, older adults, and in collaboration with the larger community. This cantor is clearly dedicated to tikkun olam. The ways in which she lives out her social action values are evident in the professional choices she makes and are integrated into the davening she leads.
| Cantor Search Committee
cantorsearch@bethelsudbury.org Judy Goldberg (co-chair) |
Importantly, we found that this cantor draws from a very wide musical repertoire, ranging from traditional to recent influences in Jewish music as well as Ladino, Yiddish, world folksong, and much more. As someone who expresses her spirituality through music and tikkun olam, we think she is an excellent choice for Beth El, and we find it easy to see how her passions drew her to seek out Beth El months before we’d officially opened our revised search.
In the last 10 months, search co-chairs have consulted with deans and placement directors at four cantorial and rabbinic schools and kept in contact with them throughout the search. The Search Committee reviewed applications from 23 cantors, rabbis, and cantorial soloists from three continents and across the U.S. representing Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist, pluralist, and nondenominational backgrounds. The committee interviewed many of the best candidates. None, apart from this candidate, has warranted this level of consideration for the role of Beth El cantor.
We look forward to introducing this candidate to you. The dates scheduled so far include Shabbat Rinah on March 17 and Shabbat morning March 25. In addition, a program geared towards youth and families is being coordinated between the cantor and Scott, and other meetings with various cohorts of the congregation will be arranged. We are eager for your feedback and will provide forms for your written input at and after each of the candidate’s visits.
As our congregation did in its selection of Rabbi Breindel, Rabbi Thomas, and clergy before them, we are bringing forward one candidate to the congregation. We want you to engage with her, talk with members of the Search Committee, give us feedback, and join us Thursday evening, March 30 for the congregational meeting and cantor election. We are excited to look towards the next phase in Beth El’s life as a community.
You may recall that the Cantorial Search Committee set among its intentions to cast our net far and wide in seeking candidates to fill our clergy position. We’ve been pleased to have received applications from Israel, Latin America, and across North America, from candidates identifying with Reform, Conservative, pluralistic, and non-denominational backgrounds and perspectives. As we near the end of first round interviews, we are more than satisfied with the range of candidates whom we’ve had the privilege to consider.
We were advised along the way to make use of the network of clergy placement professionals from various cantorial and rabbinic schools and others who could help inform us in this process. It was excellent advice. We’ve been particularly grateful to Rabbi Dan Judson at Hebrew College, Cantor Jeremy Lipton at the Cantors Assembly, and Rabbi Beth Kramer-Mazer –a former Beth El “kid”–now at Academy of Jewish Religion. They have been more than generous with their time in helping us navigate the search process.
Second-round interviewers are preparing to start their work. Those the Search Committee recommends to move forward will soon meet with a team comprised of Rabbi Breindel, Board President Michelle Fineblum, VP of Tefilah/Ritual Judith Lytel, Temple Administrator Beth Schine, Melissa Novakoff representing parents of children in our Educational Program, together with the Search Committee co-chairs Judy Goldberg and Janet Strassman Perlmutter.
We know it’s been a long process. Thank you for your patience, your support, and your trust in our hardworking committee.
We’re pleased to report that this has been an incredibly busy few weeks in moving the cantor search forward. Earlier this month we posted the position with Hebrew College, Cantors Assembly, Academy of Jewish Religion, Guild of Temple Musicians, and at JewishJobs.com. We also reached out to each of the individuals who contacted Beth El this summer and early fall to inquire about the vacancy.
Resumes began arriving immediately. The Search Committee has logged, acknowledged, and reviewed 10 resumes, from ordained cantors, rabbis, cantorial soloists, and those studying towards ordination as cantors and/or rabbis. We promptly reached out to the candidates who seemed most promising and began scheduling interviews. The interviewing team, now expanded to include our Board President, Michelle Fineblum, had a rich and inspiring meeting with one candidate this past Sunday and have two more interviews scheduled over the next week. We will continue to assess the resumes and music samples received to consider who else to interview. We have been told by various referral sources that we can expect more resumes to arrive in the weeks to come. We are excited about the quality of the resumes we are receiving and feel positive about the candidates applying.
It is our goal to create a unifying process in assessing and selecting Beth El’s next cantor. Towards that end, we have been working in close contact with Rabbi Breindel and Michelle. We’re setting up a schedule of frequent meetings with the rabbi to ensure that we stay “on the same page” throughout this process. We’re grateful to Michelle for making time to join us in the interview process at this early stage. Further, we intend to keep the entire congregation apprised of our work through these updates as frequently as we have information to share.
Last week the Cantor Search Committee shared our proposal with the Board of Directors, asking them to approve our request to post the clergy vacancy as a full-time position. We are thrilled to report that their support was unanimous. The Search Committee is putting finishing touches on the job description, which we expect to post widely in the next couple of weeks. We’re pleased to share below the essence of our conversations with the Board.
Some have asked, What leads us to expect a different outcome this year from last? For starters, there truly have been lessons learned. We’ll be casting a broader net. In addition to Hebrew College, we’ll be posting the position with the two campuses of the Academy for Jewish Religion, the Conservative-based Cantor’s Assembly, the Guild of Temple Musicians (an organization of Reform cantorial soloists), and various Jewish job search websites.
The revised job description will specify that we primarily seek an energetic, spiritual prayer leader. We intend to consider candidates who may be ordained cantors, may come from a rabbinic background, or bring spiritual and musical leadership experience without any ordination.
Additionally, with time and experience, and continued conversations, we have a deeper understanding of this congregation’s needs and wants. It is clear to us that the Beth El community yearns for an energetic cantor; someone who conveys their spirit; who has the ability to draw in participants and bring us with them in song and prayer; who complements the rabbi; and, in time, will get to know us and help us get to know them–a connecting presence.
Further, we were advised by placement professionals from 3 different Jewish organizations that the salary we posted last year was very likely not high enough to recruit the vibrant, substantial full-time professional which this congregation wants and deserves.
Accordingly, we proposed to the Board a higher salary range than was requested last year. We are grateful to report that they resoundingly supported this investment in the future of Beth El.
Next steps include finalizing the job description, posting it and reviewing resumes as they arrive at our designated mailbox cantorsearch@bethelsudbury.org.
We are excited to be opening the mail soon! We will keep you posted.
Judy Goldberg and Janet Strassman-Perlmutter
Co-chairs, Cantor Search Committee
We’re writing to update you on the work of the Cantorial Search Committee over the last month.
The early stages of the committee are really about setting the groundwork for posting the position this fall and screening and interviewing candidates this winter. We will continue to keep you informed all along the way.
We are pleased to share updates on the preliminary work towards identifying and hiring Beth El’s next cantor. Meeting more than weekly, we (Judy and Janet) feel like we’re off to a strong start, thanks to the groundwork laid by last year’s committee. The prior co-chairs, Howard Boles and Bonnie Jensen, and their dedicated and skillful committee, identified resources and designed a robust search process. We stand on their shoulders as we move forward with the new search. Gratitude goes out to all who participated in last year’s process as well as to Rabbi Breindel and our former and current presidents, Jim Billings and Michelle Fineblum, who have helped us get up to speed.
We offer abundant thanks to the many congregants who have been in touch to offer to serve on the committee and/or to share observations, suggestions, and support regarding the work ahead. We are a congregation blessed with many incredibly hardworking volunteers, and we are moved by how many who already give much time and talent to Beth El shared their eagerness to do so as part of the Search Committee. Ultimately, we had to choose a committee of a functional size, representative of the congregation in numerous ways, to share the tasks of the next 9 months or so. We regret that, as a result, many who could be terrific contributors will not be on the working committee. We want all congregants to know that your input is welcome, and towards that end, we have set up a dedicated email address at cantorsearch@bethelsudbury.org. On our end, we are committed to communicating regularly with Beth El congregants and leadership about the process and progress of the search.
We welcome the newly formed Cantorial Search Committee, a blend of those who served on the prior committee and those new to the process:
Jessica Baker
Janet Buchwald
Jim Billings
Dan Goodman
Nancy Silver
Emily Steinmann
Marty Weiskoff
Judy Goldberg, co-chair
Janet Strassman Perlmutter, co-chair
This committee, reflecting many years of tremendous dedication to Beth El as a spiritual home for ourselves, our families, and our community, will begin meeting in the next few weeks. We feel confident that the diverse talents, experiences, and backgrounds of this group, regarding music, prayer, Jewish life, leadership, and much more, will serve the community’s goals well. In addition, we will solicit input from our talented staff and lay leadership as the search proceeds.
A key task this summer has been identifying organizations that can send us candidates for the role of Beth El Cantor. Knowing that we are a congregation that defies easy definition, we intend to cast a wide net. We have already had valuable conversations with placement leadership at the Cantorial Assembly (Conservative-based) and the Guild of Temple Musicians (Reform-based), who represent a broad mix of cantorial candidates, both ordained and non-ordained, from wide-ranging backgrounds. We expect to resume our relationship with the placement staff at Hebrew College (non-denominational), as well as network with recent guest cantors and others. And we will post the position on relevant websites. Even though we have not yet posted the opening anywhere, we’ve begun receiving resumes; so clearly word is out that Beth El is looking for an engaging ritual leader for our music-loving congregation.
Please know that the timeline of a Cantor Search is shaped in part by the institutions who train and place cantorial candidates. This means that organizations such as the Cantorial Assembly will not send applicants our way until November at the earliest and that January is not particularly late to be hearing from candidates. So the crux of our work will take place this winter, with a goal of selecting our next cantor this spring, to start work next summer.
Given this year-long timeline, we are particularly grateful to the tenacious work of Carolyn Schwartz, Rabbi Breindel, and others who have created a robust, creative, and exciting plan for cantorial leadership in this interim year, including the upcoming High Holidays. Their efforts help pave the way for the long term cantorial leader we expect to welcome next summer.
We write today to update you on the clergy search process. Jim Billings, as Beth El president, has asked us, Judy Goldberg and Janet Strassman-Perlmutter, to chair the next phase of the search for Beth El’s next cantor, and we have begun our work.
We have met with outgoing chairs, Bonnie Jenson and Howard Boles, who have generously offered to continue to work as advisors to the process. Howard and Bonnie have debriefed us on the committee’s work of the past year and remain available to us. We are grateful for their tireless dedication to the search and the work of the past year’s committee. We look forward to building from their experience as we move ahead.
We’ve met with Rabbi Breindel, as we expect to do regularly until the search is complete, to exchange information with one another with the goal of finding the cantor who will be the best fit to meet the needs of this community.
We understand, with these meetings as background, that we have agreed to take on a holy task, embedded with an array of practical challenges. In the coming weeks we will be (in an order yet to be determined):
We intend to provide regular updates to the congregation as we complete these tasks and move forward with the search.
Please note, a separate group is working on recruiting an interim cantor. Stay tuned for separate communications on that front.
105 Hudson Road, Sudbury, MA 01776
(978) 443-9622|Email Us
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