Held worked at the Harvard University Hillel from 1999-2002 as the Conservative Rabbinic Advisor and the Director of Education. He has taught at Meah at
Hebrew College, the Rabbinic Training Institute at the Jewish Theological Seminary, the Skirball Center for Adult Jewish Learning, and synagogues and institutions across the country. He was an adjunct professor of Jewish Philosophy,
Talmud and Rabbinics, and Informal Jewish Education at the Jewish Theological Seminary from 2005-2008. From 2003-2008 Held was the scholar-in-residence at Kehilat Hadar, an
independent minyan (congregation) in New York City. In 2006 Held co-founded Mechon Hadar: An Institute for Prayer, Personal Growth, and Jewish Study. He has taught Modern Jewish Thought, Midrash, Talmud, Tanakh, and other topics. He heads the social action program at
Yeshivat Hadar, meeting with residents at
The New Jewish Home in Manhattan and training students in
bikkur holim (visiting the sick).
Covenant Award In 2011 Shai was awarded the Covenant Award for excellence in Jewish education.
David Ellenson, then-president of Hebrew Union College, wrote in a letter of support that “Rabbi Held could easily have a career as a professor at Harvard or Yale, but has chosen instead to live his life ‘in the trenches,’ helping a generation of Jews take hold of their birthright and find ways to make Judaism meaningful, compelling, and sustaining in the twenty-first century.” == Publications ==