Rob Portman: “I wish to recognize Rabbi Aaron Panken, on the occasion of his inauguration as president of the widely- respected Hebrew…”

“I wish to recognize Rabbi Aaron Panken, on the occasion of his inauguration as president of the widely- respected Hebrew Union College, HUC,-Jewish Institute of Religion, the Reform movement's rabbinical school, on June 8, 2014. HUC was founded in Cincinnati in 1875 by Rabbi Isaac Wise. As president, Panken will serve as the chief executive officer of Hebrew Union College's four campuses--in Cincinnati, Jerusalem, Los Angeles and New York. The 12th president in HUC's 138-year history, Panken succeeds Rabbi David Ellenson, who served from 2001 to 2013, and has been named chancellor upon his retirement. Rabbi Panken, 49, of Mamaroneck, N.Y., brings an impressive record to HUC. He has taught rabbinic and Second Temple literature at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York since 1995. He has also served as vice president for strategic initiatives, dean of the New York campus and dean of students. Rabbi Panken grew up on Manhattan's Upper West Side, went straight from college to a job as regional director of the North American Federation of Temple Youth, was ordained by Hebrew Union College, worked as an associate rabbi at Manhattan's Congregation Rodeph Shalom and earned a doctorate in Hebrew and Judaic Studies at New York University. I congratulate Aaron Panken as he begins this new chapter in his distinguished career. ____________________”