Fellows

Rina Goldberg is a kindergarten teacher at The Heschel School in New York City.  She has taught in a wide variety of Jewish educational settings for the past 8 years.  Rina received her M.A. in Jewish Education from the Jewish Theological Seminary’s William Davidson Graduate School of Education and both her B.A. in psychology and B.Ed. from York University in Toronto.

Navah Kogen recently returned to New York from Gainesville, Florida, where she served as Program Director at the Hillel of the University of Florida.  At Hillel, Navah trained and oversaw the student leadership board, managed programming, and worked to increase student engagement.  Navah has also spent seven years working with students at Camp Ramah Darom, as a counselor, educator, and a division head.  Originally from Fair Lawn, New Jersey, Navah graduated from Barnard College with a BA in History concentrating in the Middle East, and from JTS with a BA in Talmud and Rabbinics.  Navah is currently the Alumni Project Associate at the Bronfman Youth Fellowships in Israel, where she works closely with teh BYFI Alumni Advisory Board, oversees the Alumni Venture Fund grant making process and coordinates alumni events and programs.

Ariela Lerman is the Israel Education Coordinator at The Louise D. & Morton J. Macks Center for Jewish Education in Baltimore.  She previously served as the Coordinator of Youth Acitivities at Beth El Congregation in Baltimore and as a Jewish Campus Service Corps Fellow at Santa Barbara Hillel.  Originally from Minnesota, Ariela has taught in a variety of congregational schools throughout the country and was awarded a graduate internship with the Jewish Federations of North America Israel Office in 2009.  Ariela holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a Master of Arts in Jewish Education and a Master of Arts in Jewish Communal Service from the Baltimore Hebrew Institute at Towson University.  She additionally holds a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Johns Hopkins University.  Ariela enjoys visiting Israel on a regular basis through work and is hoping to one day make Aliyah.

Rachel grew up in Syracuse, New York and attended Binghamton University as an undergraduate. She spent her junior year abroad at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2006 with a BA in Middle Eastern Studies. After graduating, Rachel spent a year working for Hillel and has spent many summers working at the URJ Kutz Camp. Rachel Petroff graduated from HUC-JIR’s New York School of Education in April 2010 with a Masters in Religious Education. While a student at HUC she taught at Congregation Rodeph Sholom and was a summer fellow at Yeshivat Hadar. She is currently working as Family Educator at Temple Isaiah in Fulton, Maryland.

David Schwartz currently serves in multiple capacities at Anshe Emet Synagogue in Chicago, IL.  He teaches in both the day school and religious school while serving as a youth services leader.  Additionally, David has spent the last eight years working at Camp Darom in Georgia.  David holds both a bachelor's degree and a master's degree from Washington University in St. Louis.

Jennifer Vegh is the Religious School and Youth Activities Director at Beth El Synagogue Center in New Rochelle, New York. She works with the staff, lay leadership, parents, and kids to find unique and innovative ways to ignite passion for Jewish life and learning. Jen is a graduate of the William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education at the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS), where she received a master’s degree in Jewish Education, focusing on Synagogue Education. She also went to JTS for her undergraduate studies, as a student in List College, the joint program between JTS and Columbia University. Jen holds two bachelor’s degrees, one in Jewish music and one in sociology. She is a proud alumnus of the Southwest Region of United Synagogue Youth (SWUSY), where she was on the Regional and International General Board. She served as a staff member and group leader for USY on Wheels and USY Eastern Europe Seminar and Israel Pilgrimage. She has taught in six religious schools in Dallas and New York. Jen has worked with such organizations as MyJewishLearning.com, the Jewish Education Project (formerly BJENY-SAJES), and the Jewish Education Service of North America (JESNA), and looks forward to connecting Beth El to these national initiatives for Jewish learning.

Mentors

Jon A. Levisohn, Assistant Professor of Jewish Education, also serves as Assistant Academic Director of the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education. He studies philosophy of education and philosophy of Jewish education. His particular focus has been on the myriad ways we have of making sense of texts - both religious texts and secular texts - especially in the contexts of teaching and learning.
Recent publications include The Interpretive Virtues: A Philosophical Inquiry into the Teaching and Learning of Historical Narratives (forthcoming from Wiley-Blackwell), "Negotiating Historical Narratives: An Epistemology of History for History Education," Journal of Philosophy of Education 44 (2010), and "A Menu of Orientations Towards the Teaching of Rabbinic Literature,"Journal of Jewish Education 75 (2010). With Sue Fendrick, he is co-editor of the forthcoming volume, Turn It and Turn It Again: Studies in the Teaching and Learning of Jewish Texts (Academic Studies Press).

Sara Shapiro-Plevan is the founder and lead consultant for Rimonim Consulting, where she supports congregations, schools and organizations as they work together creatively to meet challenges both big and small, to design meaningful and powerful learning for all ages, and to create structures that enable communities to thrive and engage in self-reflection. She is a doctoral student in the Davidson School of Education at the Jewish Theological Seminary, where her research focuses on the impact of social and professional networks on the career trajectory of congregational educators, and communities of practice in support of professional learning and growth. In addition, Sara prepares graduate students in the field of congregational education to take leadership roles in the field, as an adjunct faculty member in the Davidson School.

Sara most recently served as a consultant for the Board of Jewish Education NY-SAJES, (now The Jewish Education Project) working directly with congregational educators in the greater New York area to build strong collegial networks, improve practice and cultivate leadership. She has served as director of education and as assistant director of education in three Manhattan congregations, and has served as the director of professional development for the METNY region of USCJ, where she developed professional learning programs for teachers in congregational schools. In addition to her consultations for congregations in the New York area, Sara has partnered with congregations across the country to reimagine their model, build new governance structures and align curriculum with vision.

Sara holds a BA in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis University, an MA in Jewish Education from JTS, and was a fellow in the Senior Educators' Program at the Melton Centre at Hebrew University. She has served on the board of the Jewish Educators' Assembly, the International Committee for Women of the Wall, and on the Advisory Board of MATAN, and proudly serves in her own personal and professional communities as a layperson and volunteer.

Daniel R. Weiss is the Middle School Judaics Principal at Gross Schechter Day School, in Cleveland, Ohio, where he is an alumnus and proud parent. He did his undergraduate studies at The Ohio State University and Hebrew University of Jerusalem and received his Master's Degree in Jewish Education from Siegal College. Daniel served as Director of Judaic Studies at Greenfield Day School in Miami, Florida, adjunct Professor at Miami-Dade College and Touro College South, a Bus Captain on March of the Living, has been on the Mazkirut for CAJE conferences, and co-chair of the Program Committee for Moreh L'Morim at Siegal College. Daniel lives in Cleveland, Ohio with his wife Jessica and his sons, Nadav, Yaron and Dotan.