Rabbi Selch Appointed in New England Region Effects Unclear For Now
By Charles Lebovitz ‘10
News Staff Reporter
TCI, The Curriculum Initiative, announced a new group of coordinators for the New England region. Rabbi Charni Flame Selch, Mira Green, and Jason Beckendorf were appointed October 10, 2006. Rabbi Charni Flame Selch will have the most impact on the Choate Community since she will be helping student life and many boarding schools in the New England region, including Choate.
TCI is the “leading Jewish educational organization serving independent schools.” They help spread Jewish awareness through extra curricular activities. Choate has been a hubbub of TCI affairs. In fact Jewbilee, brought Jewish students from California to New England to Choate to spread Jewish awareness. TCI is based in New York and holds a summer institute for teachers in humanities and religion.
Rabbi Selch is an experienced Rabbi who has served at many synagogues including ones in Watertown, New York and Omer, Israel. She earned her rabbinic ordination at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York. She has also made a documentary called the “Structure of Memory” about the building of a Holocaust memorial in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and received an honorable mention in the Tel Aviv Diaspora Museum’s International contest.
Will the change have a significant impact on Choate? Reverend Trister, Head of Campus Ministry, says “No.” In fact, TCI has only helped Choate get speakers for Holocaust program last year and will be helping Choate recruit speakers this year as well. “The curriculum will not change that much,” said Trister. who has met Selch.
The change of coordinators may be important to TCI in general but at the moment probably won’t affect Choate that much. In fact, according to Reverend Trister the old coordinator went to graduate school and left her position.
