Clergy and Leadership

Rabbi Eric Rosin became our rabbi in July of 2023.

Hasidic tradition notes that 600,000 Israelites took part in the Exodus from Egypt and also that the text of the Torah contains approximately 600,000 individual letters. From this seeming coincidence, the rebbes learn that just as a Torah scroll is not kosher if even a single letter is missing, so too, the Jewish people is incomplete if even a single soul goes unnoticed. In each congregation that he has served, Rabbi Rosin has dedicated his rabbinate to noticing every member of each community.

Rabbi Rosin’s life has always been imbued with a love of the Jewish tradition. Growing up in Michigan, he was very active in the Jewish community as a teenager, serving as the President of Michigan State Temple Youth in his senior year of high school. He majored in Judaic Studies at Yale and even during a detour into the practice of law, he has always been fascinated by Jewish texts, prayers, culture, history, and most of all community.

Among the numerous energizing facets of the rabbinate, Rabbi Rosin remains inspired and engaged by the endless opportunities to continue learning. He is continually discovering insights, practices and stories that engage those around him in thoughtful and joyful Jewish lives. Rabbi Rosin, his wife and their son are all very excited to be joining HJC and look forward to many happy years in the community.

Neil Kurshan, Rabbi Emeritus  Rabbi Kurshan served as the spiritual leader of the Huntington Jewish Center for 31 years.  He received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University and his Doctorate in Education from Harvard.  Rabbi Kurshan was ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary and has served Conservative congregations in Port Washington and Huntington, N.Y.  He is the author of the acclaimed book, Raising Your Child to be a Mensch.

Gina Giuffre, Director of Religious School   Gina Giuffre is originally from Rockaway Beach, New York.  She is a yeshiva graduate and was teaching Hebrew as a High School senior.   After graduating from Hofstra University, Gina worked in the field of children’s entertainment.  For the past 23 years she has been a Cantorial Soloist/Educator working with children from preschool through high school in various synagogues focusing on religious education and religious music both on and off the bima. She has been the Director of Education at Oceanside Jewish Center and Temple Am Echad in Lynbrook.

She is the founder and director of the Kochvai Broadway children’s theater group, and the School of Ruach youth choir.   She is the recipient of the Princeton Fabian Award for excellence in teaching.  Gina has been a presenter for the Yom Iyun in New Jersey, The Jewish Education Project, and The Conservative Principal’s Council and has traveled extensively to many synagogues throughout Long Island training educators.  She is most proud of her unique ability to connect with people of all ages through her love of Judaism, music, creative energy, sensitivity and sense of humor.

Ilene Brown, Director, Early Childhood Center  Ilene Brown has been affiliated with the Huntington Jewish Center for sixteen years. Her children began attending the Early Childhood Center 16 years ago, and since then, it has been her “home away from home.”  After she had her first child, she left a career in retail management to pursue a career in education.  She received her Masters of Science Degree in Elementary Education from NYIT and is permanently certified to teach Early Childhood – Grade 6.  Soon after her daughter was born, Ilene began teaching at HJC as an assistant teacher in the 4 year old program. The following year, she became the lead teacher of a 3 year old class and the librarian for the ECC.  She also taught many enrichment classes during this time.  Ilene taught at HJC for 11 years before happily accepting the role of the Early Childhood Director.  Ilene has been married to her husband, Duncan, for 22 years. She has two children, Cameron and Lauren.  She is active board member for her civic association, volunteers at a local cat shelter and does work for a local head start program.  Ilene loves the outdoors, reading  and music.

Rachel Gritz, Executive Director, has a diverse background as a Synagogue Professional. Prior to accepting the current role of Executive Director, she worked at HJC as the Office Manager, managing all administrative tasks and needs of the synagogue and its members. Prior to working at HJC, she worked as the Office Manager at Temple Tikvah of New Hyde Park, managing the office and its facility. Rachel has held many positions in the greater New York Jewish community as well as that in Austin, Texas where she has lived for 10 years prior to moving back to New York. Rachel has experience with fundraising, membership, engagement committees, assisting with youth programing, as well as serving on the board of her local synagogue. Before she began her career working for Synagogues, she spent ten years working in the financial sector in trading firms, as well as in private investment firms. Rachel graduated from Molloy College with an MBA, and Binghamton University with a BS in Business Management with a concentration in Marketing and Management Information Systems. In her personal life, she enjoys spending time with her husband, her three children, friends and family. She is excited to be a part of the HJC community and invites everyone to come in and explore all of the multifaceted programming and events that Huntington Jewish Center has to offer. Rachel can be reached at rgritz@hjcny.org

Ellen Steinberg became Huntington Jewish Center’s President in June, 2023.