Rabbi Rebecca T. Alpert is Professor of Religion at Temple University. Alpert was among the first women in America ordained as a rabbi, at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1976. She is the co-author of Exploring Judaism: A Reconstructionist Approach, co-editor of Lesbian Rabbis: The First Generation, author of Like Bread on the Seder Plate: Jewish Lesbians and the Transformation of Tradition, Whose Torah? A Concise Guide to Progressive Judaism and Out of Left Field: Jews and Black Baseball. At Temple University she teaches undergraduates about contemporary religion with a focus on Philadelphia, sexuality, sport, and race. She teaches graduate courses on religion and public life, sexuality, and higher education teaching.