Lauren Chornock Gluck of Gaithersburg, regional director of logistics and Baltimore Day School Coordinator of the Baltimore-based Atlantic Seaboard Region of NCSY, the Orthodox Union’s international youth program, was accepted into the 2015 Friedman Fellowship Program at the Darrell D. Friedman Institute for Professional Development at the Weinberg Center in Baltimore.
The Institute is named in honor of Darrell D. Friedman, who for 16 years until 2003 was president of The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore. According to its website, the Institute provides training and leadership development opportunities to professionals and lay leaders serving the Jewish community.
Rabbi Jonah Lerner, regional director of Atlantic Seaboard, said, “Please join me in wishing a mazal tov to Lauren Gluck on her acceptance into this program. The fellowship is awarded to the best and brightest young professionals who work in top-tier Jewish organizations in the Baltimore area. This fellowship is designed to provide professional development opportunities over the next two years.”
Lauren declared, “I am honored to be receiving this prestigious fellowship and to represent NCSY in the community. I look forward to utilize this opportunity to its fullest to gain new skills to help NCSY grow to new heights.”
“Lauren is staying on staff full time,” explained Rabbi Lerner. “This fellowship puts her in a cohort with nine other young professionals in the Baltimore Jewish community; they meet once a month for two years for leadership sessions. In addition we are being awarded a stipend to use over the next two years for Lauren to choose professional development training (seminars, classes, coaches etc.).”
Lauren Gluck was a volunteer advisor, part-time chapter advisor and last year joined the staff full time. She is an NCSY alumnus who attended TJJ – The Jerusalem Journey (now the Samson Jerusalem Journey) as a teen. She met and married another adviser, Dovi Gluck, last spring. She is a graduate of Quince Orchard High School and is currently completing her degree at Bellevue University.
Allen Fagin, executive vice president of the OU commented, “More than a year ago we created the position of director of leadership development under the direction of Rabbi Ari Rockoff. Clearly leadership training and development is an important part of the OU agenda. I am especially pleased, therefore, that Lauren Gluck has been awarded this prestigious honor. The knowledge Lauren will bring back will be shared with her colleagues and the result will be an even stronger region.
“I wish her a hearty yasher koach. Well done, Lauren.”