Rabbi Mike Uram is the first ever Chief Jewish Learning Officer for Jewish Federations of North America. Previously, he served as the Chief Vision and Education Officer for Pardes North America building a new platform for Jewish education in North America. Before that, Mike led Penn Hillel as the Executive Director and Campus Rabbi for over 16 years. He is the author of the best-selling book entitled, Next Generation Judaism: How College Students and Hillel Can Help Reinvent Jewish Organizations, which won a National Jewish Book Award. He is a sought-after speaker and consultant on the changing nature of the American Jewish community, Jewish innovation, cutting-edge engagement, and how legacy organizations can reinvent themselves in the age of millennials.
Mike has worked with dozens of Jewish organizations including the Wexner Foundation, the Schusterman Foundation, Hillel International, United Synagogue, The Rabbinical Assembly, Central Conference of American Rabbis, and many local federations, synagogues and JCCs. Mike served as lead faculty and Jewish coach for the first three cohorts of Schusterman Fellowship and was the principal architect for the Jewish leadership growth elements of the fellowship. Recently, Mike also co-authored and designed a new educational framework for Birthright Israel..
Mike has spent time in all the different denominations and is most passionate about breaking down the personal, spiritual, and intellectual boundaries that prevent people from having full self-actualized Jewish identities.
Mike holds a BA in History and Religious Studies from Washington University and Rabbinic Ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary. He lives outside Philadelphia with his wife Leora and their three children.