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Recommendations
To Whom It May
Concern;
This letter is a
recommendation for Yael Unterman. Ms. Unterman spoke at our shul on Dec. 13-14, 2003
as a scholar in residence. She was outstanding.
Her talk on
"the legacy of Nehama Leibowitz" was very engaging. She was relaxed,
informative, conversational, and she made you want to go out and study more
Nehama. Her talk on "The Day Ben Azai Died, a tale of spirituality beyond
the ordinary" was also fascinating. She took us through the various
passages of Talmud, making the text alive and accessible to all. Her personal
reflections on these texts and topics really bring you in and she creates a real
intimacy with the audience as she lets you in to her world view.
In a small format
she did a biblio-drama workshop for teachers, and we all gained so much from
it. I personally went out the next week and used some elements of it in a
sermon.
Overall, I highly
recommend Ms. Unterman as a scholar in residence and as a lecturer and teacher.
The comments about her and her talks were in the superlative. She has my
highest recommendations.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Joel M.
Finkelstein
Anshei Sphard-Beth
El Emeth Cong. Memphis, TN
Yael
Unterman was
the Lena S. Mirvis Scholar for 2003 at the Ansehi Sphard Beth El Emeth
Synagogue in Memphis, Tennessee. Her creative ability to empathize
with her audience and her gift for communicating complex Torah ideas
makes her a sought after teacher. Following in the footsteps of Nechama
Leibowitz, whose life she is so painstakingly researching for an up-coming
book, Yael is also forging her own unique path by bringing the Torah to
life through dramatic possibilities of "enter-texting" and original
insights. From high school students to seniors, everyone was swept up with
Yael's riveting approach and her broad knowledge of both Torah and
Madah. She has received high praise from all who have learned with her and
follows an illustrious group of scholars, including Rabbi Saul Berman, Dr.
Tamar Ross, Devorah Zlochower, and Rabbi Meir Soloveitchik.
I
recommend Yael Unterman as a gifted teacher and scholar who will bring creative
Torah knowledge and inspiration wherever she teaches.
Lynnie
Mirvis
educator
and storyteller
Dear
Yael,
It was such an honor for our Rabbinical School - Yeshivat
Chovevei Torah - to have you as a guest lecturer this past month (Dec. 2003).
The students and members of our faculty really enjoyed your content and the
manner in which you were able to express your ideas. It was really a treat and
I hope that you can come back next year when you are in the states again.
Kol Tuv,
Rabbi Dov Weiss -
Director of Operations, Instructor of History of Halakha
Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School
www.yctorah.org p (212)666-0036 f (212)666-5633
To Whom it May Concern,
We hosted Yael
Unterman in December 2003 at Ma'ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls in New
Jersey (Principal: Mrs. Esther Krauss). Yael did two bibliodrama sessions for
our students. We found the technique very interesting. It really
drew the students into the story, making them think about issues they hadn't
thought about before, and it brought the story to life. It was a very
exciting way to relate to the text.
Sincerely,
Suzanne Cohen
Tanakh teacher,
Maayanot Yeshiva High School
To whom it may concern:
My name is Stuart
Dow, I am Head of the Emery/Weiner School - a non-Orthodox, pluralistic, Jewish
community middle and high school in Houston, Texas. I am writing in
reference to Ms. Yael Unterman, who recently made several different
presentations at our school: she spoke at large public gathering with nearly
150 people, ranging from 9th graders to adults; she taught several small classes
of 10th and 11th graders; and she gave an interactive, dvar-torah like lesson
for a select group of potential donors at a private reception. In all,
she excelled. From the engaging overview of Nehama Leibovitz that she did
in the largest forum; to the dynamic text-centered study she lead with the
sophomores; to the spiritual journey into tefillah that she helped the juniors
navigate; to the inspiring call to action she made to those knowingly being
solicited: it was an extraordinary one-day effort from a bright and
apparently tireless woman!
If you are looking
for a Judaics scholar who is warm, intelligent, passionate, open-minded and has
a sense of humor, Yael Unterman should be on your list! I strongly
recommend her. If I can be of any further assistance, please do not
hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Stuart J. Dow
Head of School,
The Emery/Weiner School
9825 Stella Link,
Houston, Texas 77027
www.emeryweiner.org
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