We continue a period on the Jewish calendar called the Omer — the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot that our tradition observes through a practice of counting, day by day, week by week. We imbue these days with meaning by assigning a different theme to each week that encourages self-reflection and self-improvement for the betterment of the whole community. In that spirit, we’re doing a series of interviews featuring people who have made their life’s work an extension of their lives’ purpose.

This week, we dive into the fourth theme of the Omer, netzach, or endurance, with Ilana Gleicher-Bloom.

Ilana is the Vision Director of Mensch Academy at Mishkan. In this episode she joins Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann to talk about her passion for Jewish education, and her desire to do it a little differently at Mishkan. She speaks on the hidden curriculum that informs her work at Mensch Academy and speaks to the power of making children feel heard as they study Torah. 

If you have an interest in early childhood education, parenting, radical inclusivity, implicit and explicit learning, then this episode is for you. Get to know the Omer, Ilana, and Mensch Academy in this 30-minute conversation!

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About Our Guest: Ilana Gleicher-Bloom
Ilana Ilana is a graduate of Brandeis University, a Pardes Fellow, and was a member of the inaugural cohort of the Melamdim Teacher Education MA Program at the Shalom Hartman Institute and Tel Aviv University. Before launching Mensch Academy, Ilana taught Talmud and Tanakh at Rochelle Zell Jewish High School in Deerfield, IL, and before that at the Heschel High School in Manhattan. Ilana also taught Judaic Studies at the Alexander Muss High School in Israel, Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim, and the Beit Midrash Program at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. She is currently pursuing a doctorate in Jewish Education at JTS and received the 2018 Pomegranate Prize from the Covenant Foundation for her work. Ilana is a true visionary who has had an enduring love for Judaism and education.

About Mishkan Chicago
Mishkan is a spiritual community in Chicago reclaiming Judaism’s inspiration and transformative essence. Not bound by a particular location, we create radically inclusive spaces for Jewish spiritual practice and community, engaging, educating, and empowering people across the spectrum of identity, background, age, and belief.