Greater Seattle Area
- Current
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- Resident-organizer at Ravenna Kibbutz
- Freelance writer at Jew-ish.com
- Past
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- Temporary content assistant at The Seattle Times
- Administrative Assistant at Childhaven
- Associate online editor at The Seattle Times Online Network
- Bookseller at University Book Store
- Research assistant at Global Health Strategies
- Freelance writer at Downtown Express
- Staff writer at Seattle Weekly
- Intern at Seattle Public Theater
- Education
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- North Seattle Community College
- Oberlin College
- Berkley High School
- Recommended
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- Industry
- Writing and Editing
- Websites
Neal Schindler’s Experience
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Resident-organizer
Ravenna Kibbutz
(Non-Profit Organization Management industry)
August 2008 — Present (1 year 4 months)
As one of the Kibbutz's eight resident-organizers, I help coordinate and implement programming for Jewish Seattleites of various backgrounds, ages, and levels of religious observance. Programs we've put on range from bagel-baking workshops and Jewish movie nights to puppet shows, political roundtables, literary discussion groups, potlucks, performance evenings, and weekly Friday night Shabbat dinners.
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Freelance writer
Jew-ish.com
(Online Media industry)
February 2007 — Present (2 years 10 months)
I'm a freelance writer and blogger for Jew-ish.com, the online-only spin-off of JTNews, the Northwest's largest Jewish newspaper. As a blogger, I cover pop culture, including Jewish-themed movies. For the site itself, I've written about the controversial play "My Name is Rachel Corrie"; the nation's largest independent Jewish film collection; a Jewish motorcycle club; Jewish views of the afterlife; Jews and Buddhism; and the Birthright program. I'm currently researching an article about Jewish erotica that will be published in June.
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Temporary content assistant
The Seattle Times
(Privately Held; Newspapers industry)
September 2009 — October 2009 (2 months)
I tallied votes in the NWjobs.com People's Picks reader survey.
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Administrative Assistant
Childhaven
(Non-Profit Organization Management industry)
January 2009 — August 2009 (8 months)
I fielded phone calls, directed visitors, and just generally kept things going smoothly.
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Associate online editor
The Seattle Times Online Network
(Writing and Editing industry)
May 2007 — May 2008 (1 year 1 month)
• Copyedited all content for NWsource.com, a site intended to help Seattleites find the best in local shopping, dining, and arts events; also copyedited a large amount of content at NWhomes.com and NWjobs.com
• Conceptualized and created around two dozen informative city guides, including guides to vegetarian dining, bike shops, taco trucks, and yoga studios
• Met regularly with fellow editors and staff writer to shape site’s creative direction
• Worked with marketing director on promotions, including Best Pet Pictures contest – which received local TV coverage – and New Urban Eats dining events
• Researched and wrote 31 articles of varying lengths, including a piece on vegan shoes that became one of the site’s most-read stories of 2007
• Provided key assistance in tallying votes during the People’s Picks event, wherein readers choose their favorite local figures, activities, and places to go; also wrote blurbs about nearly a dozen of the winners -
Bookseller
University Book Store
(Retail industry)
October 2006 — April 2007 (7 months)
• Provided knowledgeable, courteous service (cashiering, shelving, information) to a wide variety of customers from academic and other backgrounds in a large, fast-paced retail environment
• Chose and wrote up several titles for “Staff Favorites” shelf each month; four selections experienced a significant sales spike within a month of posting
• Maintained “Heard on NPR” section of store, updating titles several times a week
• Hired at top of store’s entry-level pay scale -
Research assistant
Global Health Strategies
(Privately Held; International Affairs industry)
May 2006 — August 2006 (4 months)
• Provided wide-ranging assistance to David Gold, principal of a leading vaccine-research consulting firm, during his recuperation from injury
• Performed in-depth, detail-oriented research on global vaccine resources as part of a team working for the company’s biggest client, GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals
• Helped coordinate travel for the president of Glaxo
• Copyedited briefing books and other key documents for Glaxo
• Co-edited letters to the Gates Foundation and speeches for benefit dinners
• Cleaned up and greatly improved organization of Mr. Gold’s home filing system
• Thoroughly parsed, categorized, and filed company phone bills; carried out other administrative tasks -
Freelance writer
Downtown Express
(Writing and Editing industry)
April 2006 — August 2006 (5 months)
• Wrote arts and culture articles for the Lower Manhattan newspaper, part of a major chain of New York neighborhood papers
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Staff writer
Seattle Weekly
(Privately Held; Newspapers industry)
October 2002 — February 2006 (3 years 5 months)
• Wrote nearly 300 music, film, food, theater, television, art, and book reviews for the largest newsweekly in the Northwest
• Covered a colorful variety of topics, including Jewish Christmas customs, Sarah Silverman, competitive whistling, addiction memoirs, major albums by Fiona Apple and Coldplay, and the history of gazpacho
• Served as interim food editor for a month, working with freelancers to develop stories and planning four complete sections
• Regularly contributed many features and profiles of local personalities to SW’s largest annual issue (“Best of Seattle”)
• Edited food and visual art features and calendars by a wide assortment of writers
• Learned InDesign within weeks and fit copy for food and visual arts on a weekly basis for more than two years
• Co-developed Brain City, a calendar of political and civic events, and wrote it every week for more than two years
• Arranged payment of freelancers and reimbursement of editorial staffers -
Intern
Seattle Public Theater
(Performing Arts industry)
April 2002 — September 2002 (6 months)
As a part-time intern at SPT, I managed the box office and manned the light booth during shows every weekend (Thursday through Sunday). I also did some subscription sales via phone, worked on a number of projects with the technical director, and served as secretary at staff meetings.
Neal Schindler’s Education
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North Seattle Community College
N/A , Nutrition, Chemistry, Psychology , 2009 — 2010 (expected)
Taking prerequisites for the Master of Science in Nutrition and Clinical Health Psychology program at Bastyr University.
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Oberlin College
B.A. , Spanish and Creative Writing , 1997 — 2001
I minored in Film Studies and spent the second semester of my junior year in Spain. During my time at Oberlin, I worked as a grader for Astronomy 100, as a teaching assistant in Spanish, and as a research assistant to Prof. Ana Cara in the summer of 2001.
- Activities and Societies:
- Oberlin Student Co-op Association, WOBC (radio station), Hillel, ACLU, Oberlin Review, Experimental College, Phi Beta Kappa
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Berkley High School
Diploma , AP classes in Physics, Calculus, and English , 1993 — 1997
I was one of seven valedictorians in my class.
- Activities and Societies:
- Marching band, Patterns (literary journal), drama (starred in spring comedy in '97), Spanish Honor Society, National Honor Society, Future Problem Solving
Additional Information
Neal Schindler’s Websites:
Neal Schindler’s Interests:
Meditation, Scrabble, reading, movies, music, theater, visual art, cooking, eating, conversation, waterobics
