They are leading and creating organizations and businesses of all kinds, responding to humanitarian crises, writing novels, educating at all levels, creating works of art, and so much more! In celebration of Pardes’s 50th, we are highlighting 50 standout alumni whose accomplishments exemplify the rich texture of the Pardes community worldwide.
Since studying at Pardes, Nina Bruder has served as the Executive Director at Drisha Institute for Jewish Education (1996-2002) and Bikkurim (now part of Upstart) (2003-2012), and is currently the Executive Director of the Jewish New Teacher Project of New Teacher Center (2012 – present).
Nina’s work supports the North American Jewish day school field by helping beginning teachers and beginning administrators launch and accelerate their careers through the support of coaching. Nina works as part of a national, secular, educational organization that brings their “best-in-class” research-based and field-tested content to the Jewish community. The Jewish New Teacher Project has worked with over 225 day schools across North America across a very broad denominational spectrum, from Haredi schools to the most progressive community schools.
Nina lives in Riverdale, NY with her husband Gary Pretsfelder and two college-age children.
CAN YOU SHARE A SPECIAL PARDES MEMORY?
I have so many memories from Pardes! One strong memory is the many Shabbat lunches I had with friends in San Simon Park. We would bring pot luck lunches and sing niggunim for hours. Another important memory is a multi-day camping trip near Mitzpe Ramon with friends. We slept “under the stars” and were blown away by the idea that our Biblical ancestors had walked on this same land.
WHAT DID YOU DO FOR THE FIRST TIME AT PARDES?
I started keeping Shabbat for the first time. I grew up in a Conservative home where we kept kosher and lived full and rich Jewish lives, but I had never been shomeret Shabbat until I went to Pardes. I have observed Shabbat strictly ever since and find it is my most favorite holiday of the entire Jewish calendar.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE CLASS AT PARDES?
My morning line up was star-studded: Tanakh with Judy Klitsner and Mishna with Aryeh Ben David. I got very close to both of them and we are still in touch. We were in level Bet which meant that the students were not complete beginners, but our Hebrew was not terribly strong and we didn’t have much text background. It was an amazing experience as a class to spend that much time together in the beit midrash and in shiur, and to watch each other’s skills develop over the course of the year. I had the same havruta for both classes (Hi Claudia Herman!) and we really grew together and individually.
WHAT DOES THE JEWISH WORLD NEED MOST RIGHT NOW?
I think the Jewish world needs most right now what the rest of the world needs most right now, which is to put ego and self-interest aside and to pool resources and work collaboratively to focus on the world’s greatest needs: climate change, democracy, respect for people’s humanity. We need to lower the temperature – physically and metaphorically – and work together to address the injustice and brokenness in the world.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PASUK, PASSAGE, OR TEXT?
I have many… One that I learned specifically at Pardes is Avot 1:6:
יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן פְּרַחְיָה אוֹמֵר, עֲשֵׂה לְךָ רַב, וּקְנֵה לְךָ חָבֵר, וֶהֱוֵי דָן אֶת כָּל הָאָדָם לְכַף זְכוּת
“Joshua ben Perahiah used to say: create for yourself a teacher; acquire for yourself a friend; and judge all people favorably.”
Each one of those statements stands alone and I find myself drawing on each of these teachings at different times.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST PROUD OF IN YOUR WORK?
I have devoted my entire career in service to the Jewish community. I am most proud – and also grateful – that I have found opportunities to work on initiatives that helped the community grow, expand, and move forward in a number of very important ways, whether through women’s Torah scholarship and leadership, or through launching start-ups (several leaders of some of the most important Jewish start-ups from the past 20 years were at Pardes at the same time as me), or now through improving day school education, a cornerstone of the Jewish community.
HOW DOES PARDES CONTINUE TO AFFECT YOU TODAY?
Pardes changed my life forever. I met people there who remain some of my closest friends in the world. I learned to appreciate the beauty and power of living an observant Jewish life. I gained an appreciation and awe for the texts of our tradition and developed some skills to be able to access the texts directly. I learned about living embedded in a community in ways which filled my soul then and continue to nurture me to this day. My time at Pardes was full of growth and discovery and relationships that set the course for the rest of my life.
WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHARE?
I have always said that Pardes attracts the best people and brings out the best in them. I also have always said that Pardes is one of the single most influential institutions for Jewish leadership in North America. I remain so grateful to my teachers and friends from my two years at Pardes.