Sam Rose (he/him/his), the new Director of Youth Engagement, fell in love with the Beth Emet community during high school when he served on the BESSY (Beth Emet Senior Synagogue Youth) board and had his first job as a madrich in the 4th grade. Beth Emet provided him a safe place to be himself and inspired him to learn more about social justice. He often used to daydream about what it would be like to be a youth group advisor or a teacher, and now, at Beth Emet, that dream has come true.
Born and raised in Chicago, Sam earned a bachelor’s degree in Critical Identity Studies at Beloit College. Pursuing this degree exposed him to many disciplines through the lens of marginalized identities, as he focused on anthropology, religious studies and history. Instead of writing a thesis, he led a two-year effort to bring fidget/stim toys into college classrooms and to educate professors from multiple departments on universal design and what it’s like to be a neurodiverse student.
In addition to being an educator, Sam is a writer and artist. His work has been published in New Voices Magazine, and he also self publishes ‘zines through the SolarPowered Zine distro.
Sam is excited to bring his unique perspective, fresh approaches and love for Judaism and education back to Beth Emet as he serves as Director of Youth Engagement.
Email Sam
Call: 847-869-4230 x 314
