The Seminario Rabinico Latinoamericano "Marshall T. Meyer," academic center for Latin-American Conservative/Masorti Movement, appoints Rabbi Leonardo A. Bitran as its new Vice-Chancellor for Rabbinic and Academic affairs. Rabbi Bitran, native of Chile, attended the Seminario as a student in 1985, transferred to JTS, studied in Israel for two years and graduated from JTS in 1992 with a major in Talmud and Rabbinics. He has been the Rabbi of two prestigious Conservative synagogues in the United States for the last two decades and currently serves the 575 member Agudas Achim Congregation in San Antonio, Texas since 2003. Throughout his career, Rabbi Bitran sought to strengthen his relationship with Latin-American Rabbis and their synagogue projects. He continually offers his advise to the Seminario's leadership, to help them expand and perpetuate the Seminario's existence in the future. Rabbi Bitran assumes a new and challenging role to aid students to become better rabbis, cantors and Jewish educators. He wants to foster a stronger appreciation and love for Torah and Jewish traditions among Latin-American Jews. It is expected that the Seminario will benefit from Bitran leadership and thus become a stronger center for Torah study. Seminario's educational programs will be reviewed and improved. He will also offer his spiritual support to students and faculty. Dr. Pablo Benarroch, Seminario's President, commented: "The Seminario is going through a process of programmatic and structural renewal. Today, we welcome a new rabbinic and academic leadership and our hearts are filled with enthusiasm and hope." Rabbi Isidoro Aizenberg, Scholar in Residence of the Holocaust Research Center & Archives at the City University of New York, said: "Rabbi Bitran's appointment as the academic and administrative director for the Seminario Rabinico Latinoamericano, makes me feel reassured of its future. Having worked for the Seminario on behalf of The Jewish Theological Seminary of America and the Rabbinical Assembly for the last twelve months, I am confident that Rabbi Bitran possesses the necessary experience, enthusiasm and passion needed to fulfill Seminario's goals and objectives. We just want to wish him success, and pledge our support to him, as he embarks on such a sacred mission." Rabbi Leonardo A. Bitran has also a Masters in Economics from the University of Chile. He is married to Silvana Bacman, an accomplished Jewish educator, and together they have two children, Ethan and Lara.
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