Our Mission
“To strengthen, support, and sustain the Jewish Community in Arkansas and to support Jews in need worldwide.”
We fulfill our mission by:
Acting as a statewide information and resource center for the Jewish community.
Fundraising and allocating funds to benefit and provide for the needs of Jewish individuals and communities.
Supporting and providing programs and services that broaden our knowledge and perspectives of Jewish life and history, encourage fellowship and foster Jewish identity.
Respecting the different expressions of Judaism and Jewish life.
Basing our decisions and actions on the values of K-lal Yisrael (shared community), Tikkun Olam (repairing the world), and Tzedakah (justice, righteousness, and philanthropy).
Leadership
& Staff
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Dr. Marcy L. Paul
The Board of Directors of the the Jewish Federation of Arkansas is excited to announce the hiring of Marcy L. Paul, PhD as the Federation's next Executive Director.
Marcy brings many years of experience as a connector of people and places to her new role with JFAR. Marcy’s career has mostly been in academia as a faculty and staff member at Indiana University in Bloomington and TCU and the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth, Texas.
It was during her time in Fort Worth that Marcy became involved with the Jewish Federation. This experience led to the realization that the next part of her career would focus on the Jewish community. Marcy served first as the Senior Director of the Jewish Community Relations Council in Dayton, Ohio where she provided essential outreach to the Greater Dayton community on topics including antisemitism, Jewish holiday awareness, and Upstander training. Next she served as the Director of Partnerships2Gether Central U.S. Consortium, a program of Jewish Federations of North America and the Jewish Agency for Israel. In this role Marcy facilitated the connections between 17 Jewish communities across the U.S. and communities in the Western Galilee and Budapest, Hungary.
Marcy is excited by the many wonderful possibilities offered by a statewide federation. "Arkansas is such a beautiful state with so much going on to connect people in many different ways. Already I have met wonderful people who have the same commitment to our Jewish Peoplehood and I want to be a part of this and it's BaSheret that I will be a part of all Jewish Arkansas."
Marcy has traveled the world in her quest to connect people and places. She loves good conversations with intentional focus and listening. But she also enjoys her quiet time for her research, reading, and listening to the hum of her sewing machine creating textile art.
Marcy will be starting January 15, 2024 and we look forward to welcoming her to the community. We are excited for everyone to meet her in the coming months.
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Executive Board
Co-President: Sue Weinstein
Co-President: Silvana Berlinski
Secretary: Barry Goldman
Treasurer: Bruce Thalheimer
Past President: Jana Cohen
Board Members
Ellen Biller, 1st year, 1st term
Barry Brown, 1st year, 1st term
Ron Dilbert, 1st year, 2nd term
Corinna Dranow, 1st year, 2nd term
George Ernst, 2nd year, 2nd term
Tim Kessler, 2nd year, 1st term
Lewis Krain, 2nd year, 3rd term
José Enrique Cartagena Ortiz, 1st year, 1st term
Jennifer Ronnel, 2nd year, 1st term
Lynn Rosen, 2nd year, 1st term
Marvin Schwartz, 1st year, 1st term
Sheri Simon, 1st year, 1st term
Jonathan Tabak, 1st year, 1st term
Perry Young, 1st year, 3rd termHonorary Board Members
Harry Ehrenberg (non-voting)
Arleen Marshall (non-voting) -
Rabbis
Rabbi Mark Biller, Congregation Agudath Achim
Rabbi Barry Block, Congregation B'nai Israel
Rabbi Pinchus Ciment, Chabad-Lubavitch Center of Arkansas
Rabbi Mendel Greisman, Chabad Northwest Arkansas
Rabbi Sheldon Kleinman, Congregation House of Israel
Rabbi Yosef Kramer, Chabad-Lubavitch Center of Arkansas
Rabbi Benzion Pape, Chabad-Lubavitch Center of Arkansas
Ex-Officio Community Representatives
Congregation Agudath Achim: Chuck Prousnitzer
Congregation B'nai Israel: Dr. Bruce Greenberg
Congregation House of Israel: Ira Kleinman
Jewish War Veterans: Jerry Sherman
Temple Shalom: Diego Angarita and Bernie Levitt
United Hebrew Congregation: Jack Goodman -
Barbara joined JFAR in November of 2024 and hit the ground running. Barbara brings an extensive background in business and sales management and is ready to share her knowledge and skills with us. She'll be in the office several hours a week and looking forward to hearing from you. You can reach Barbara at 501-663-3571 or email at federation@jewisharkansas.org.
Our History
“Whoever saves a single life it is as if he saved an entire world” (Mishna Sanhedrin 4:5)
Since the mid-1800’s, the Jews who settled in Arkansas created ways to meet the challenges of caring for themselves and each other as a community. They sought to educate their children, to preserve their traditions and heritage, to counsel troubled souls, to take care of the elderly, to celebrate and socialize together, and to actively involve themselves in support of Jews in need elsewhere in the world. Arkansas frontier life reinforced commitment to the ancient Talmudic proverb “All Jews are responsible for one another.”
Children dressed up for a Purim play, c. 1925. Carolyn LeMaster Collection, Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, Central Arkansas Library System.
Our Community
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Central Arkansas
Little Rock
Benton
Hot Springs -
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Northwest Arkanas
Bentonville
Fayetteville
For Smith -
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Camps & Youth Programs
Religious Schools
Summer Camps -
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Hillel & University Programs
Hillel at Hendrix College
Hillel at UAR - Fayetteville
Jewish Studies at UAR - Fayetteville
Jewish Federations of North America
The Jewish Federation of Arkansas is a member of the Jewish Federation of North America (JFNA), comprising 150 other Federations and 300 network communities, who together raise and distribute funds for social welfare, social services and educational needs. The Federation movement, collectively among the top 10 charities on the continent, protects and enhances the well-being of Jews in North America and worldwide.
Click on the following to read more about the Jewish Federations of North American and its partner agencies:
