Howard Blas is the director of the National Ramah Tikvah Network which provides inclusion and vocational training programs support for young adults with disabilities in camps throughout the US and Canada. Howard previously served as the director of the Tikvah Program at Camp Ramah in New England and at Ramah Northern California. A social worker and special education teacher by training, he also teaches Jewish Studies and bar/bat mitzvah to students with a range of disabilities and special circumstances. Howard has 35 years of experience working with families and students in envisioning and preparing for a wide-range of b’nai mitzvahs, from traditional to creative. Howard received the S’fatai Tiftakh Award from Boston Hebrew College’s Center for Jewish Special Education in 2012 and the 2013 Covenant Award for Excellence in Jewish Education. Howard is involved with many disability inclusion organizations in the US and Israel. He lives in New Haven, Connecticut.