MEET

Talia Kaplan

Hi! I’m Talia, an almost-rabbi, educator, and community organizer living in Washington Heights, Manhattan. (Yes, the one from the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical.) I believe that Jewish tradition can ground us, empower us, and sustain us in an ever-changing world. For me, good learning centers the identities, needs, and experiences of the learner and puts them into conversation with Jewish texts. I enjoy helping to facilitate these sacred conversations.

I am in my penultimate year of rabbinical school at the Jewish Theological Seminary, where I’ll also receive a MA in Jewish Gender and Women’s Studies. Outside the classroom, I have worked at the intersection of Judaism and justice with T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, National Council of Jewish Women, and the Milstein Center for Interreligious Dialogue. Prior to New York, I lived in Washington, D.C., where I advocated for immigration justice with colleagues of diverse faiths for the Religious Action Center. I have also provided care as a chaplain at New York Presbyterian Hospital and as a mikveh guide with ImmerseNYC. Currently, I serve as the Rabbinic Fellow at Park Slope Jewish Center. When not discussing big Jewish questions with people of all ages, I can be found exploring new cookbooks, green spaces, and musicals.