Dr. Ruth Pinkenson Feldman is a recipient of the prestigious Covenant Award for Outstanding Jewish Educators. For 12 years she had the privilege of being the Director of Early Childhood Services for the Jewish Community Centers Association of North America. In that capacity, she developed groundbreaking initiatives in the field of Jewish early childhood education utilizing new technologies, traditional Jewish texts and cutting-edge research in the fields of child development and early education. During her tenure at the JCC Association, Ruth convened an extraordinary team of artists and educators who together produced "An Ethical Start" a program for the JCCs to learn and incorporate the teachings from Pirkei Avot, a classic Jewish text which has given guidance for ethical behavior for thousands of years. A graduate of Tufts University, with honors in both Child Study and in Philosophy, Ruth holds a Masters Degree from the Bank Street College of Education, and a doctorate from Temple University. Her dissertation on "The Impact of Jewish Day Care on Parental Jewish Identity" is frequently cited in the literature. Ruth's secular credentials have enabled her to teach in universities and her varied interests for continuing education have taken her to Reggio Emilia and to work closely with world-class educators and leaders. She was a Jerusalem Fellow and lived with her family for a year in Israel studying and 're-conceptualizing' Jewish early childhood education. In addition to her national and regional speaking engagements and consultations, Ruth has created a new intergenerational initiative to address the realities and needs of our contemporary Jewish culture: with the publication of her book, "The Green Bubbie: Nurturing the Future" Available on Amazon. Notwithstanding her decades of work in the field of early childhood education, if you go to the www.RuthFeldmanArt.com. you will see her life and accomplishments as an artist- Since 2009 she has been a professional artist. Her work is deeply spiritual drawing on traditional Jewish texts, creating a new language of expression, translating the language of prayer into color. However, most of her attention is showered on her many grandchildren which over the past decade have reinforced her observation skills as an 'early childhood specialist' and mentor to many local 'sprouts' those young budding artists who live nearby or travel to be with her in her garden.