Shira Ruderman

Shira Ruderman
שירה רודרמן
Shira Ruderman
Born
Shira Menashe

(1978-11-10) November 10, 1978 (age 46)
Israel
Occupation(s)Activist and philanthropist
Spouse
​
(m. 2002)​
WebsiteOfficial website

Shira Menashe Ruderman (Hebrew: שירה מנשה רודרמן; born November 10, 1978) is an Israeli-American activist and philanthropist. Ruderman is the executive director of the Ruderman Family Foundation.[1]

Biography

Shira Ruderman was born in Rishon LeZion, Israel. One of her brothers is Shalev Menashe, a professional Israeli soccer player. During her service in the Israel Defense Forces Shira served as an Arabic-language instructor. She has an undergraduate degree in education and a graduate degree in public policy, both from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

In 2013 Ruderman announced her candidacy for the mayorship of Rehovot.[2] She pulled out of the race a few months later.[3]

Ruderman lives in Boston, Massachusetts with her husband, Jay Ruderman and their four children.

Activism and Philanthropy

In 2002 Ruderman founded the Ruderman Family Foundation in Boston, along with her husband Jay. In 2006 they opened their Israel office in order to advance social investments. Through the Foundation, Ruderman focuses her work in two main fields: disability inclusion and strengthening the relationship between Israel and the American Jewish community.[4]

Asked about whether gender affects her work, Ruderman stated: "There were moments over the years when being a woman created challenges for me. Walking into a room of executives or decision-makers and being the only woman can be exhausting at times. You constantly need to prove yourself. But I don’t regret those experiences at all. I think those moments made me stronger and more assertive."[5]

In 2014 she led the Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion, named after her late father in-law. Since its inauguration, it has been awarded to former Senator Tom Harkin (2016),[6] Academy Award winning actress Marlee Matlin (2017),[7] Olympic Medalist Michael Phelps (2018),[8] the Farrelly brothers (2019)[9] and Taraji P. Hanson.[10] Additionally, Ruderman has led efforts to increase the authentic representation of people with disabilities in the entire entertainment industry, working with the Sundance Film Festival,[11] creating the Ruderman 'Seal of Approval' for authentic representation,[12][13] and more.[14] In 2017 Ruderman established the LINK20 social network, training and promoting social activists with and without disabilities through partnerships with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and other leading institutions.[15]

In 2011 Ruderman began taking groups of Israeli Knesset Members to the United States for educational tours. The groups have included politicians from different political parties, including Tzipi Livni, Yoav Kisch[16] Amir Ochana and Rachel Azaria.[17] In 2012 Ruderman partnered with a number of Knesset Members, led by Ronit Tirosh,[18] to establish a Knesset Caucus to promote Israel's relationship with the American Jewish Community.[19] In 2013 Ruderman initiated a similar mission for journalists.[20]

In 2013 Ruderman partnered with the University of Haifa to open the first graduate program for American Jewish studies in Israeli academia.[21][22]

In 2020 Ruderman initiated the 'Civil Forum' along with President of Israel Reuven Rivlin, with the goal of connecting Israelis and American Jews from various disciplines and backgrounds. The inaugural event was held in February 2020, featuring Israel Prize recipient Miriam Peretz, Olympic medalist Arik Ze'evi, Justice Elyakim Rubinstein, award-winning author Nicole Kruass, Harvard President Professor Lawrence Bacow and others.[23]

In 2023, Ruderman was among the initiators of the 'Memorial Initiative' to commemorate Diaspora Jews who are not citizens of Israel and who lost their lives in antisemitic attacks. This was done through the creation of the 'Ruderman Roadmap’ which laid out the outlines for promoting the initiative, in collaboration with the Ministry of the Diaspora Affairs and Combatting Antisemitism and the World Zionist Organization, and which was implemented by the Israeli government on May 7, 2023.[24]

Awards and recognition

See also

References

  1. ^ Israeli and American leaders assemble in Jerusalem to mend fences, build bridges
  2. ^ "שירה רודרמן מנכ"ל הקרן הפילנתרופית "קרן רודרמן" התורמת מידי שנה מכספי משפחתה כ - 5 מיליון דולר לעמותות לילדים ומבוגרים בעלי צרכים ומוגבלויות מיוחדים מתמודדת לראשות העיר רחובות". BE106.NET רחובות (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  3. ^ "שירה רודרמן פורשת מהמרוץ לראשות העיר ולא תתמודד גם למועצת העיר... המשמעות : אם עד 16/9 לא יצוץ אף מועמד, רחמים מלול יהיה ראש העיר הבא ללא בחירות". BE106.NET רחובות (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  4. ^ Woman in a man's world: Ruderman says bold action will save Israel-Diaspora ties
  5. ^ Shira Ruderman: Show with actions not just words
  6. ^ "Ruderman Foundation pushes for bottom-up inclusion movement for people with disabilities". The Jerusalem Post. 4 November 2015. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  7. ^ Andrews, Travis M. "'Not much has changed': Actress Marlee Matlin on Hollywood's portrayal of people with disabilities". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  8. ^ Stan Grossfeld (May 22, 2019). "Michael Phelps believes USOC, IOC don't do enough for athletes' mental health". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  9. ^ "Farrelly Brothers Receive Ruderman Family Foundation Honor for Disability Inclusivity in Film". The Hollywood Reporter. 2019-12-05. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  10. ^ Kole, William J. "Taraji P. Henson honored for work to end mental illness stigma: 'It's OK to not be OK'". USA Today. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  11. ^ "Sundance Partnership Extends Accessibility for Attendees With Disabilities". The Hollywood Reporter. 2020-01-16. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  12. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (2021-02-22). "'Will & Grace', 'Fear The Walking Dead', 'Sex Education' Among Recipients Of Ruderman Family Foundation's Seal Of Authentic Representation". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  13. ^ Gray, Tim (2019-05-06). "Ruderman Foundation Salutes Four TV Shows for Disability Depiction, but No Films". Variety. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  14. ^ Nussbaum Cohen, Debra (2020-02-10). "How the Rudermans helped bring disability awareness to the Oscars". Jewish Insider. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  15. ^ Kim, Sarah. "MIT Sloan School Of Management Partners With Ruderman Family Foundation For Leadership Program". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  16. ^ Lebovic, Matt. "On US tour, Israeli politicians debate Diaspora Zionism". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  17. ^ Felicia Gans (March 29, 2017). "Hundreds turn out for Israeli parliament town hall". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  18. ^ "שדולה חדשה: יחסי ישראל-יהדות ארה"ב". ערוץ 7 (in Hebrew). 25 January 2012. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  19. ^ "The Knesset Caucus for U.S. – Israel Relations reception in honor of U.S. Ambassador to Is". U.S. Embassy in Israel. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  20. ^ "Journalist Missions by Year". Ruderman Family Foundation. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  21. ^ Gur, Haviv Rettig. "New program takes on Israeli ignorance of US Jewry". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  22. ^ Program for American Jewish Studies, University of Haifa
  23. ^ Rudee, Eliana (2020-02-20). "Family ties: Israeli and American leaders assemble in Jerusalem to mend fences, build bridges". JNS.org. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  24. ^ "Israel to commemorate non-citizen Jews murdered by antisemites abroad". JNG.org.
  25. ^ "The Jerusalem Post 50 Most Influential Jews: Number 46 - Jay and Shira Ruderman". The Jerusalem Post. 29 September 2016. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  26. ^ "Jay and Shira Ruderman: Jews combining philanthropy and advocacy". The Jerusalem Post. 25 September 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-27.
  27. ^ "Shira and Jay Ruderman Receive Honorary Doctorate From the University of Haifa". www.newswise.com. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  28. ^ "Shira Ruderman". webtest.brandeis.edu. Retrieved 2021-04-05.