Dr. Joel L. Kushner

Dr. Joel L. Kushner’s early experiences in an apprenticeship with a hospital chaplain while studying abroad in Edinburgh, Scotland grew into a lifelong thread of work that bridges the spiritual and psychological and a passion for seeking meaning and authenticity focused in the spiritual realm.

Dr. Kushner is trained in counseling, clinical and organizational psychology and holds graduate degrees in counseling and clinical psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University and from the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology at Rutgers University.?

In 2005, Dr. Kushner founded the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) Institute for Judaism, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity, the first of its kind in a seminary. Dr. Kushner was appointed the Director of the Kalsman Institute on Judaism and Health at HUC-JIR in 2013 wherehe manages the pastoral internship process for rabbinical students.In 2017, he completed training as a spiritual director in the Morei Derekh program of the Yedidya Center for Jewish Spiritual Direction.