Actress Mayim Bialik, best known for her role as Blossom Russo in the early 1990s NBC television sitcom Blossom, has signed on to emcee Women to Watch - JWI’s annual gala event honoring Jewish women’s leadership.

An avid student of all things Jewish, Bialik is committed to bringing Judaism to contemporary living.  She studies weekly with a mentor through Partners in Torah, and is a board member, co-founder, and chair of Jewish Free Loan Association's Genesis branch. As a student at UCLA, from her undergraduate years through her doctorate in neuroscience, she was very active in Hillel, leading a Jewish women's group, serving as a cantor for High Holiday services, and conducting a Jewish a cappella group.

“There are so few resources for women and girls that emphasize leadership, education and support. As a woman who has worn many hats, I am delighted to find one organization committed to speaking to such a variety of women's issues with such wisdom and strength,” said Bialik. “I am thrilled and honored to be included in JWI any way that I can be!”

Bialik was born in San Diego, California to first-generation Yiddish-speaking Jewish American parents. In addition to Blossom, she appeared as the young Bette Midler in the movie Beaches, and had guest roles on several popular television shows of the 1980s. Starting this fall, she will have a recurring role as the high school counselor on ABC Family’s The Secret Life of the American Teenager. She will be profiled in the winter 2009 issue of Jewish Woman magazine.

 Read about this year’s Women to Watch in Jewish Woman magazine and learn more about the event.