At Pivotal Moment for American Jews, Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, Groundbreaking Rabbinical School, Announces Appointment of Dynamic New President and CEO

The board of directors of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah (YCT) is proud to announce the appointment of Rabbi Benjamin Berger to the position of president and CEO of the institution.

Succeeding Rabbi Dov Linzer, the visionary leader who is widely credited with anchoring the institution’s inclusive and open approach to Orthodox Judaism in Torah and Halakha — and who will continue as Rosh HaYeshiva — Berger, ordained by YCT in 2009, returns to his rabbinic alma mater after eight years as the senior vice president for education at Hillel International. Founded in 1923, Hillel International is the largest Jewish campus organization, operating at nearly 1,000 colleges and universities globally.

Established in 2001, YCT has ordained 158 rabbis since its inception and serves as a vibrant hub for these rabbis and their communities, as well as for its 62 Israeli rabbis and rabbaniyot (female rabbis), graduates of its Rikmah rabbinic leadership program in Israel. Under Linzer’s leadership, YCT has become more than a rabbinical school. It now serves as the spiritual home for an open and inclusive Orthodoxy, through the training of its rabbis and religious leaders, the dissemination of a Torah and halakha that is its lifeblood, and the convening and connecting of like-minded rabbis and communities.

This past May, YCT marked its 25th anniversary.

“We are thrilled by Ben’s appointment to the position of president and CEO of YCT which is a seamless transition from Rabbi Linzer’s dedicated leadership,” said Steve Laufer, YCT’s board chair. “The combination of his experience and skills, coupled with his long-term commitment to the yeshiva’s mission makes him the ideal person to lead the yeshiva into its next chapter – from 25 years to the half-century mark. Together, Rabbis Linzer and Berger are a formidable leadership team, one that is uniquely suited to the specific challenges of the present moment,” he said.

At Hillel International, Berger has helped shape Jewish education, leadership development, and community-building across a network serving hundreds of thousands of students. He has led a team to develop national educational initiatives, cultivated educators and communal leaders, and worked across ideological and organizational boundaries. His involvement in research, convenings, and leadership initiatives focused on the future of the rabbinate has also given him a firsthand understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing rabbinic leadership and the institutions that prepare Jewish leaders.

“For eight years, Rabbi Ben Berger led Hillel’s Jewish educational programming, helping countless numbers of young people deepen their Jewish identities and connection to the Jewish people through meaningful Jewish and Israel educational experiences,” said Adam Lehman, president and CEO of Hillel International. “We are very proud that his years at Hillel have helped turn him into a leader that will, in turn, educate and ordain more Jewish leaders.”

YCT’s Linzer underscores the importance of Berger’s trajectory from executive of a Jewish campus organization to president and CEO of an institution tasked with training spiritual leaders during this moment.

“What Ben experienced during his time at Hillel International is reflected in so many of our Jewish communities — that same pain, internal wrestling and division,” he said. “In order to deal with the challenges of this unique moment, we need leaders who are anchored and engaged; whose commitment to Klal Yisrael and Torah values is deep and unwavering.  Rooted. The young people Ben has worked with over his years at Hillel are now members and leaders of Jewish communities. Ben believes in seeking unity, not uniformity, and deep engagement, not easy answers.”

As a result, Berger knows the urgency of the quest for meaning, connection, grounding and community, stated Linzer, adding that he is “keenly aware that this moment requires a leadership approach that is flexible, innovative and non-dogmatic; able to listen, heal, build community, inspire, and move the Jewish community forward in effective ways. As a musmakh (ordainee) of YCT, Ben understands the central role that YCT can play in service to the Jewish community as an epicenter of open and inclusive Orthodoxy,” he said.

Berger will conclude his tenure at Hillel International over the next month, assuming the presidency at YCT in early October.

Looking ahead to the work before him, Berger emphasized the urgent need for YCT’s vision within contemporary Orthodoxy. “For 25 years, YCT’s rabbis have helped build a Modern Orthodoxy that is vibrant, joyful, and inclusive—one that cultivates belonging and speaks to the real issues of our lives. At this moment of growth and possibility, the Jewish people need courageous, compassionate rabbinic leaders who bring people together and bring timeless Torah into honest conversation with a changing world.”

His return to YCT, Berger added, is deeply personal. “This is where my rabbinic identity was forged. Rabbi Avi Weiss, YCT’s visionary founder and first president, is my rebbe and continues to inspire my life and work daily. Rabbi Dov Linzer is my other most important teacher. During his seven years as president and Rosh HaYeshiva, he has strengthened YCT’s rabbis and its role in the wider Jewish community while expanding the reach of the rigorous, people-centered Torah and halakha he embodies. It will be an honor and privilege, in my role as president and CEO, to help ensure that his Torah develops and grows and reaches the widest possible audience.”

For further information about the appointment of Rabbi Benjamin Berger to the position of president and CEO of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, to request an interview with him or Rabbi Dov Linzer, Rosh HaYeshiva or for any other matter relating to covering this story, please contact Shira Dicker at shira.dicker@sd-media.com or 917.403.3989.