Rabbi Roni Handler-Associate Rabbi/Director of Congregational Learning

Rabbi Roni Handler is a native Philadelphian, well-rooted in Conservative Judaism, having grown up in conservative synagogues. Her journey to the rabbinate began after studying abroad in Israel at the Ben Gurion University, where she was moved to explore Jewish life and tradition more deeply. Rabbi Roni is a 2011 graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC). She is a graduate of the George Washington University, where she earned a B.A. in International Affairs with a concentration in Middle Eastern studies, and she earned her M.A. in Jewish Communal Service from Brandeis University in 2005.

Rabbi Roni served as BTBJ’s sabbatical Rabbi, where she conducted services with Hazzan, taught at our Shabbaton, and planned and led our Purim Megillah reading. Rabbi Roni has also served as the rabbi of Temple Micah in Lawrenceville, NJ, as Sabbatical Rabbi for Congregation Or Hadash, led high holiday services at Temple Shir Hadash in Westford, MA and the Bethesda Chevy Chase Jewish Community Group. Rabbi Roni worked for 10 years as the Editor and then Executive Editor of Ritualwell.org, an online database containing thousands of Jewish prayers, poems, and readings to accompany us through life’s joys and sorrows. She has worked at Camp Havaya (formerly Camp JRF) and at RRC as the Director of Community Learning and the Director of Admissions and Recruitment for the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.

Rabbi Roni has extensive experience teaching religious school, as a family and experiential educator, officiating lifecycle events. and working with youth and college students. She is passionate about creating opportunities for individuals and communities to engage with vibrant and meaningful approaches to Jewish life, and gains much joy from helping others discover the beauty of our tradition. She enjoys spending time traveling, hiking, singing, doing yoga, and spending time with her wife and two daughters.