Student Rabbi Megan Eslamboly
Megan Eslamboly is a second-year rabbinical student at the Hebrew Union College — Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles, Calif. She started leading services at Congregation Beth Aaron, a reform congregation, in September of 2024. For more than 100 years, Beth Aaron has served Billings, Eastern Montana and Northern Wyoming.
Eslamboly, a California native, returned to the United States after two years of studying in Israel, where she immersed herself in the culture and history of Israel and the Jewish people.
Megan was raised in the Coachella Valley, a desert region east of Los Angeles. She was an active participant at Temple Sinai, Palm Desert. As a child, her heavy involvement in religious school and her love of Judaism inspired her mother to get involved in temple leadership and to advocate for more intergenerational opportunities. After Confirmation, Megan continued to work at the synagogue as a Hebrew school teacher and Bnei Mitzvah tutor.
She graduated from the University of Redlands with bachelor degrees in Religious Studies and Sociology & Anthropology. After college, she studied at the University of Haifa at the International School, where she learned with students from all over the world. The experience revived her interest in interfaith work. From Haifa, she moved to Jerusalem to begin her first year at HUC.
While in Jerusalem, she explored numerous Jewish communities and practices. Megan was fortunate to serve as a student rabbi for the Union for Progressive Judaism’s Pesach Project, where she led services for communities in Spain during Passover.
Outside of her work in the Jewish community, she spends her spare time and money on concert tickets, seasonal produce and travel. She collects postcards and stamps from all over the world.