Rashi School Honors West Roxbury Resident Clara Scheinmann

Amidst warm welcomes, delicious food and heartfelt speeches, The Rashi School’s annual fundraising and community event was held live on Sunday, May 1 at the Seaport Hotel. This year, the school proudly presented Rashi Alumna Clara Scheinmann ’04 with the 2022 Tikkun Alum Award.

Clara, who is the Director of Programs and Strategy for the Kraft Family Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, gave a passionate speech as she accepted her award. “Fighting antisemitism and hate today can take a toll on our spirit,” said Scheimnann. “Without strength in spirit, it’s easier to give up and if there is one singular lesson that I learned from my grandfather who survived the Holocaust, it’s to never give up.”

At the Kraft Family Foundation, Clara works closely with the family to execute on the foundation’s mission – to win the hearts and minds of non-Jews and Jews through powerful positive messaging and partnerships, motivating and enabling them to be defenders of and upstanders for Jews and Israel. Previously, Clara held several key roles at MassChallenge, the global network for innovators who are working to solve massive challenges. Prior to joining MassChallenge, she worked for Israel's Ambassador to the United States and was honored to play a role in the US/Israel relationship.

Clara is deeply involved in the local Boston and global Jewish communities where she has both completed several leadership development programs and co-chaired committees for the Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP). She is a first generation American, a dual French and American citizen, and speaks six languages including French, English, Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. As the daughter of an Ashkenazi father and a Sephardic mother, Clara inherited a rich tradition and strong Jewish identity that motivates her to connect with others, hear their stories and develop solutions to ensure a strong future for the Jewish people.

About The Rashi School

Located on a 162-acre, multigenerational campus in Dedham, Mass., The Rashi School is the Boston area’s Reform Jewish K-8 independent school. Rashi is distinguished by exceptional academics, a strong sense of community and a deep commitment to Jewish learning and social justice. In our classrooms, children, adolescents, and adults form a community of learners, learning with and from each other and cultivating critical minds and compassionate hearts.

Rashi’s diverse community welcomes all kinds of families including interfaith and Jewish+, two-mom/two-dad families, single parents by choice, Jews of Color, and multiethnic families. Our students represent 25 towns across eastern Massachusetts.