Hannah Bender is a 5th year rabbinical student at the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion here in Los Angeles. A Midwesterner at heart, Hannah grew up in the Chicagoland area and received a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. After college Hannah moved to Jerusalem and lived there for a few years, working at the Hand in Hand School, studying at the Conservative Yeshiva, and beginning their time at HUC in Jerusalem. 

 Since coming to LA, Hannah has taught adult Torah learning with the Torah Studio, worked as the Rabbinic Intern at the Claremont Colleges Hillel, facilitated the LA Moving Traditions Tzelem group for trans and nonbinary Jewish teens, and most recently was a Chaplain intern at Cedars-Sinai Hospital serving the diverse spiritual needs of the hospital’s patients and staff. Hannah loves yoga, crafting, and is thrilled to be joining the incredible team at Stephen Wise Temple.