Miriam Roochvarg’s upbringing consisted of deep Jewish involvement, which carried over into her education and college experiences before moving to the professional world.
After two years of working at Teach For America, Roochvarg realized a passion for creating Jewish educational opportunities. She moved to Arlington, Virginia, where she took a job as the director of Jewish learning and programming at Congregation Etz Hayim.
Roochvarg has been popular within the Etz Hayim community for her educational work and hopes to provide those opportunities for years to come.
Can you tell me about your background and Jewish upbringing?
I’m originally from North Carolina; my dad was a cantor for a Conservative shul. I grew up pretty much going through everything with my family and in public school and was really involved. [I was in] youth groups, things like Jewish sleepaway camp and then, for high school, I went to a pluralistic Jewish boarding school that was in Greensboro, North Carolina. And that’s where I think I really started developing my own sense of being a Jewish adult, post 13 years old. And this is an opportunity for me to explore what a meaningful Jewish life could look like for me.
I really thrived being able to explore different aspects of Judaism there, both in terms of studying and in terms of different practices.
I went to college at N.C. State University in Raleigh … and my undergrad was in communications, so I wasn’t really thinking about working in the Jewish professional world. After college, I moved to Memphis, Tennessee, to work for Teach For America, and I was involved with a Conservative shul there as a lay leader, tutor and participant, and I formed strong bonds with a close community of other young Jewish adults, which helped me continue to explore my own practices and beliefs.
After two years at Teach For America, I decided it was time for me to leave the classroom. It just so happened a couple months later that Jewish Federation in Memphis was looking for someone to do some PJ Library programming, so I started doing that. And the Conservative shul I was involved in was looking for a youth educator part time. And so I started getting back into the Jewish world through those opportunities and realized how much I really enjoy being able to create meaningful, both formal and informal, Jewish experience learning opportunities for kids and adults.
What are some aspects of your work that bring out the passion you have for it?
One of the things I’m passionate about whether it’s my Hillel work, my informal work before I even got into the Jewish world and, even now, is helping people rewrite the stories they tell themselves when it comes to what it means to be Jewish. Because I think a lot of us think, “I’m not Jewish enough to walk into a conservative shul, or I’m not Jewish enough to [do] whatever it may be.” And that doesn’t help anyone, and that’s not true.
But this idea of being Jewish enough, I think a lot of us grew up with this idea of Judaism as a one dinner plate method, and you either eat the things that are on your plate, or you go hungry. The approach I try and bring when I’m in conversations with people is it’s a buffet meal. You might like certain components and not others, and that’s OK because there’s plenty of opportunities to feel connected. I try and be that facilitator for kids, teens and adults.
What are your responsibilities as the director of Jewish learning and programming?
The biggest bucket is religious school. I run our religious school, which is pre-K through ninth grade. I also do programming for all other ages — I like to say it is from zero to 120. So I work with a rabbi on adult programs. I work on putting together programs for families with young children, which is very successful, with special thanks to a grant we got from the Federation this past year. And I connect with other Jewish professionals who we’ve partnered with.
How do you connect to students and provide them with a tie to their Judaism?
It’s a whole student approach. It’s not just focusing on how they are doing academically; it’s focusing on how they are doing socially and at home. It’s caring about the whole person, not just one side of it. The way I approach my work and supporting the community, growing Etz Hayim, supporting the larger Jewish community in a DMV is similar, [it’s] getting to know the kids a little bit more. What they love, what they don’t love … We’d rather you show up [to programming] as you are and, even if you have to leave early, it’s totally fine. And we genuinely mean that … the majority of our programs are completely open to the public … I am passionate about being a facilitator and empowering people to define what is meaningful for them.
If that means exploring and shul hopping, going to different synagogues and trying that out or going to certain types of programs at one [synagogue] and certain types of programs at others, amazing. [It involves] a lot of deep conversations, a lot of asking questions, not just so I can better understand where the person’s coming from … I don’t force it. It’s a journey, and it’s a personal experience for everyone.
What skills are you hoping to continue improving as you advance through your career?
I’m actually starting my master’s in education with a concentration in Jewish instruction this fall online through Gratz College. I’ve done different Jewish learning programs and Hadar. And I do all these things because I genuinely want to learn and grow and be better for myself, and it makes me a better facilitator and guide for other people.
I’ve been really blessed to have amazing friends and guides in my life who have made helpful recommendations to me when it comes to books to read given where I am in my journey, or podcasts to listen to, whatever it may be. And so I see myself continuing to learn because I think it’s important to learn, both for myself and for the community. I can help using my experience, my knowledge, to continue to support those who are currently active in our community and those who are involved in the larger community.