Raphi Ozarowski is an orthodox rabbinical student at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, where he is expected to graduate in 2019. He grew up in Skokie, IL and walks an identity tightrope between midwesterner and New Yorker. He graduated Cum Laude with a B.A. in Jewish Studies from Yeshiva University, where he served as Associate Editor of the Kol HaMevaser Magazine of Jewish Thought. Previously, Raphi studied Torah at Yeshivat Hakotel in the Old City of Jerusalem and the Drisha Institute for Jewish Education. He interned at the Abraham Joshua Heschel High School, and hopes to continue bringing thoughtful and passionate Jewish education to the classroom. Raphi has been guest scholar and cantor at a variety of communities, including Illini Hillel, Northwestern Hillel, Congregation Skokie Valley Agudath Jacob, and Mercaz Seattle. He also served as Rabbinic Chaplain at SelfHelp Community Services, where he worked with Holocaust survivors and concurrently completed a unit of CPE. Raphi believes strongly in the power of music as a unifying force in community. For three years at Kinneret Day School in Riverdale, he facilitated spirited song and Torah discussion to create a unique energy leading up to Shabbat every week. He is an avid guitarist, vinyl listener, and Hazzan, and loves going to indie concerts with his wife, Liora.
