Rabbinic Search Committee

Welcome to the Rabbi Search Committee information page. Below you will find updates from the Rabbinic Search Committee. Stay tuned for more information as the search continues. If you have a specific concern or question, please reach out to the Committee at emmal@shirtikvahpdx.org.

Read the letter from the Rabbi here: Our Rabbi's History of Shir Tikvah and Perspective on Change

Read the letter from the Board of Directors about the upcoming Rabbinic search here: From the Board:

Check out a wonderful overview of the selection process here: Shir Tikvah’s Rabbinic Search Process and Timeline

Congregation Shir Tikva held a series of conversations to get into the heart of who we are as a community and what qualities we hope to attract in our next rabbinic leader. All members were invited to participate in these facilitated World Cafe style conversations. Here are the graphic results of these conversations.

July 2024 update

Your Rabbinic Search Committee has been busy. Here’s what we’ve been up to: 

• We’ve met several times in person and over Zoom to get to know each other and fully understand the process by which we will assess and ultimately recommend our newest rabbinic team member to the Board of Directors. 

• We all learned Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) principles. We will put these principles into place to ensure that our hiring process is inclusive. 

• We have reviewed and revised the timeline for the hiring of our new Rabbi.

• The World Cafe events through which every congregant will get to share their vision, dreams, and hopes for our congregation and our Rabbi are happening!

• We have reviewed rabbinic job posts and developed the format for Shir Tikvah’s post.  Once we have concluded our listening sessions and have integrated the congregation’s input, job postings will be submitted to a variety of different Rabbinic sites.

• We have discussed the search for a new Rabbi with other congregations in Portland and the USA to find out positive features to emulate and pitfalls to avoid.  

• We have developed a budget for the Rabbinic Search process. 

We are open to discussing any of the non-confidential aspects of the search process with members. Contact us at emmal@shirtikvahpdx.org

Rabbinic Search Committee Members

Emma Lugo: Board Chair

Nehama Teasdale-Bennett: Board Vice Chair

Seymour Hanfling: Board Treasurer

Morgan Senkal: Board member at large

Rachel Crawford: Congregant

Bob Lowe: Congregant

Bruce Birk, MD: Congregant

Non-voting, advisory members: Rabbi Ariel Stone, Amelia Schroth

Volunteer Opportunities

The Rabbinic Search Committee wants you to join us in volunteering to help us find, interview, and welcome a Rabbi to our congregation. There are a lot of committees/teams that are being formed to manage the various aspects of the hiring process. If you are interested in joining any of these teams please send an email to Rachel Crawford at crawford.rose11@gmail.com. Please be aware that there is a maximum number of participants on each committee. 

• Candidate Application/Interview Team (coordinates and conducts the interviews of the Rabbinical candidates)

• Congregational Input (plans questions and sets up dates and logistics for the World Cafe events) 

• Media/ Communications Team (updates this page and assists in communications to our congregation)

• Logistics Team (coordinates visits for interviewees)

• Contract Negotiations Team  (negotiate and write the contract)

• Transition Committee/Onboarding Team (works with the new Rabbi and congregation in their first year)