Rabbi Rachel Ain, a member of the board of professional advisors at JOI, is the Rabbi of Congregation Beth Sholom-Chevra Shas, a Conservative synagogue in Syracuse, NY , which is a member of the Big Tent Judaism Coalition. She is a graduate of JTS with Rabbinic Ordination and an MA in Jewish Education. Additionally, she was a Rabbinic fellow in the PEER program for continuing Rabbinic education through STAR (Synagogue Transformation and Renewal). She has participated in numerous public space Judaism programs such as Passover in the Aisles and has forged a connection with the local Barnes and Noble, where she reads stories for young families about the different Jewish holidays. (read more)



Lisa Apfelberg is the Director of Outreach and Engagement and the Jewish Community Book Fair for the Jewish Community Association of Austin. Lisa was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin but spent much of her childhood in Palo Alto, California. After graduating from college, Lisa spent a year living and volunteering in Israel. She then attended Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts and earned her Master's Degree in Clinical Social Work. Returning to California, Lisa was hired by the San Francisco Jewish Community Federation to create a new program designed to reach out to the many unaffiliated Jews living in the area and then she became the Director of Youth and Teen Programs at the Palo Alto JCC.  In 2000, Lisa moved to Austin, Texas with her husband Eric and began to build a family which now includes her son Aaron, daughter Sami, and two dogs Callie and Bailey. She joined the JCAA staff to direct the Austin Jewish Community Book Fair. After being there for a year, she was asked to start up the Outreach and Engagement Department to welcome Austin's many newcomers and un-connected Jews to the community. 



Angelica Berrie is the President of The Russell Berrie Foundation. The Russell Berrie Foundation counts among its accomplishments the creation of the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center at New York Presbyterian Hospital; the Russ Berrie Institute for Professional Sales at William Paterson University; the Berrie Fellows Program, a leadership development program through the UJA (NNJ); the Russ and Angelica Berrie Humanistic Care Center at Englewood Hospital; the Angelica and Russell Berrie Performing Arts Center at Ramapo College; and the Russ Berrie Nanotechnology Institute at the Technion. Angelica served as CEO (2003-2005) and Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors (2003-2006), of the Russ Berrie and Co. Inc., a 43-year-old global gift company listed on the New York Stock Exchange, which was founded by her late husband, sales entrepreneur and philanthropist, Russell Berrie. (read more)



Rabbi Daniel S. Brenner is the Executive Director director of Birthright NEXT. He also served as director of the Center for Multifaith Education at Auburn Theological Seminary.  After studying religion at King's College- London and earning a B.A. in philosophy at the University of  Wisconsin, Brenner received both his M.A. and rabbinic ordination from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1997. Brenner went on to study with noted theologian and holocaust scholar Rabbi Irving Greenberg at the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, where he served for five years as a senior teaching fellow and was named by The Jewish Week as one of the upcoming generation's "best and brightest" Jewish leaders in 2001. A published playwright and a frequent essayist, the book Brenner co-authored (with help from Joseph J. Fins, M.D., Chief of Medical Ethics at Cornell's New York-Presbyterian Medical Center and Rabbi Tsvi Blanchard) Embracing Life and Facing Death: A Jewish Guide to Palliative Care, was praised by Senator Joseph Lieberman as a "transcendent contribution." (read more)



Maya Escobar is a Guatemalan-Jewish interdisciplinary artist and educator. She received a BFA with an emphasis in Art Education from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is currently completing her MFA at Washington University in St. Louis.  She has taught, performed and exhibited work in Germany, Spain, Guatemala, Puerto Rico and the United States. She was raised in West Rogers Park, Chicago as a Reconstructionist Jew. Maya considers herself an educator before an artist. Her latest project, entitled "Berlin's Eruv," is about "the changing face of Jewish identity as delineated through social spaces" and contains interviews with members of the Berlin community. (read more)





Adam Gaynor is the Acting Executive Director of The Curriculum Initiative (TCI), an organization that supports Jewish culture and identity in independent high schools. Adam has worked as Assistant Director of the Edgar M. Bronfman Center for Jewish Student Life at NYU; as a social work consultant at The Educational Alliance for public school-based, post-9/11 programs; as a project co-coordinator at The Jewish Agency’s Department of Education in Israel; and as Director of Multicultural Affairs at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. Adam managed the pilot Professional Leaders Project (PLP) Northeast hub in 2006 and is currently pursuing doctoral work in Education and Jewish Studies at NYU through a PLP Academic Fellowship. Adam was recently named by the New York Jewish Week on its list of 36 top innovators under the age of 36. (read more)





Paul Golin is JOI's Associate Executive Director, responsible together with the Executive Director for budget, development, board stewardship, strategic planning, and the day-to-day operations of the organization. He is also charged with managing all marketing, communications and public relations; coordinating the company's Internet effort; editing the quarterly newsletter; and devising advocacy campaigns and program proposals. He previously served as JOI's Director of Communications and Strategic Planning. He is a frequent writer and speaker on Jewish outreach and authored the report, The Coming Majority: Suggested Action On Intermarried Households For The Organized Jewish Community and co-authored the book 20 Things for Grandparents of Interfaith Grandchildren To Do (And Not Do) To Nurture Jewish Identity In Their Grandchildren. (read more)

Rachel Gross, a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, joins JOI as a Program Officer. Her work involves direct service programming in addition to research and professional training. She earned an interdisciplinary BA from Hampshire College in Amherst, MA, in religion, cultural studies, and sociology, completing a thesis titled, "Disorganized Jews: An Ethnography." During her time at Hampshire, Rachel was involved in multiple aspects of the college as a chair of the student gift program, multi-faith student council, and Jewish student union. In addition to serving as a youth advisor and teen educator in Amherst, she has held grant-funded internships at the American Jewish Archives and The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education. When she isn't working at JOI or trying to understand New York, Rachel enjoys spontaneous dance, arts, cooking, and being outside in the rain.





Rebecca Gross, a native of Santa Monica, California, is a Program Officer at the Jewish Outreach Institute.  She graduated from the double degree program at Barnard College and the Jewish Theological Seminary in May of 2007 with degrees in political economics and Jewish philosophy.  While in college, Rebecca was a teaching assistant for a historical debate class at Barnard, an attorney for the college’s nationally ranked mock trial program, and one of four inaugural speaking fellows for the Barnard Leadership Initiative.  Rebecca was also involved at Hillel serving as Vice President of the Executive Board, a member of the Reform movement’s student group, and as co-chair for the university’s Jewish Life Orientation program.  Prior to joining JOI, Rebecca worked in finance at Lehman Brothers.  In her spare time, she enjoys reading, attending Broadway plays, and hiking.



Limor Hartman is the Special Needs Program Director for BBYO-DC Council, which serves over 700 Jewish teens in the Maryland and Washington, DC area. She received a B.A. from SUNY-Buffalo and an M.A. in Health Service Administration from George Washington University. For the past twenty years, she has been involved in formal and informal Jewish education with inclusion being central to her approach. She is responsible for the outreach and inclusion of unaffiliated teens with special needs and their families. She also designs and implements programs that promote the acceptance of teens by their ‘typical’ peers. Re-launched in 2001 under her leadership, this initiative is unique to DC Council. Limor is a native of Tel-Aviv, Israel, immigrating to the US in her teens. She now lives in Maryland with her family.




Pippi Kessler joins JOI as a Program Officer and will be coordinating Mother’s Circle.  She received her BA from Harvard where she studied religious pluralism in America and focused on theories of gender and youth education programs in Buddhist, Muslim, and Hindu communities.  A native of Shelburne, MA, she enjoys writing, cooking, and exploring the city.








Iris Koller is the Director of the Syracuse community's Jewish high school program, the Rabbi Jacob H. Epstein High School of Jewish Studies. She previously served as the Director of Membership and Programs, Family Educator, Confirmation Teacher, and an Adult Educator at Temple Concord, Syracuse, NY. She is involved in a variety of outreach programs, including Passover in the Aisles, monthly Jewish Storytimes and Playgroup, and community outreach to engage both unaffiliated and affiliated Jewish teens. In addition, Iris currently serves as co-chair of the community’s PJ Library Advisory Committee, the URJ Joint Commission for Worship, Music, and Ritual Life and the URJ Commission for Lifelong Learning as well as the Professional Advisory Board of the Jewish Outreach Institute. She served as the President of CAJE – the Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education, which was the largest member organization for Jewish educators in the country. (read more)




Rabbi Irwin Kula is an internationally sought-after speaker who has inspired millions worldwide by using Jewish wisdom to speak to all aspects of modern life and relationships. An engaged and thoughtful trader in the global marketplace of ideas, he has led a Passover Seder in Bhutan; consulted with government officials in Rwanda; and met with leaders as diverse as the Dalai Lama and Queen Noor to discuss compassionate leadership. Across the United States, he works constantly and tirelessly with religious as well business and community leaders, corporate and family foundations, and religious and philanthropic institutions to promote leadership development and institutional change. For all this and more, Rabbi Kula received the 2008 Walter Cronkite Faith and Freedom Award for his work "toward equality, liberty and a truly inter-religious community."(read more)



Liz Marcovitz is a Senior Program Officer at the Jewish Outreach Institute, where she researches and writes curriculum for JOI's educational and training programs, including Conference-in-a-box, the Grandparents Circle (for Jewish grandparents with interfaith grandchildren) and Empowering Ruth (for women Jews-by-choice). Liz moderates JOI's Empowering Ruth listserve and coordinates its Big Tent Judaism Advocacy Campaign. Prior to JOI, Liz has worked in advertising, television, journalism and Jewish education and possesses a BA in Journalism and Mass Communication and Jewish History and Civilization from New York University. In her spare time, she serves as a volunteer docent at a Lower East Side synagogue and likes to run, read and enjoy all New York has to offer.

Stuart M. Matlins is founder, editor in chief and publisher of Jewish Lights Publishing and its sister imprints, SkyLight Paths and GemStone Press. Two of his three imprints focus on religion. Jewish Lights Publishing (www.jewishlights.com), started in 1990, publishes books based on the Jewish wisdom tradition for people of all faiths, all backgrounds. Jewish Lights now has over 300 books and LifeLights pastoral care pamphlets on its list, and has been described as one of the most innovative religion publishers in America today. People have purchased over two million of its books. It has been said that Jewish Lights not only changed the content of Jewish-interest publishing, but also changed the readership for it. (read more)




Roberta Matz is the Director of Outreach at the Jewish Federation of Delaware, which serves Delaware and the Brandywine Valley. She received at B. A. from the University of Pennsylvania, a Teacher’s Diploma from Gratz College and a M.A. in Educational Administration from the University of Wisconsin. She has taught in congregational religious schools and several day schools throughout the country, and has been an Educational Director at a conservative synagogue in Binghamton New York. Roberta worked for the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia as a regional director and senior planner and, for the past several years, has concentrated on creating and implementing community building and outreach programs in several communities. Having lived in many different parts of the country, Roberta understands the role of the newcomer from firsthand experience.



Adam McKinney is the Co-Director of DNAWORKS, an arts and service organization dedicated to creating projects and dialogue around culture, class, ability and identity. A classically trained dancer who has performed with a number of acclaimed companies, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Switzerland’s Béjart Ballet Lausanne , and Alonzo King’s LINES Ballet, Adam's commissioned production, "Pathways," opened November, 2008 in Jakarta, Indonesia to rave reviews. Adam has served as a US Embassy Culture Connect Envoy to South Africa and artist-in-residence at the South African Ballet Theatre, and has taught master dance classes around the world, including the University of Ghana and University of Johannesburg. He has also organized programs on social justice and the Arts with a long list of organizational partners, including Ghana's National School for the Deaf, Ghana State Mental Hospital, City Ballet Theater, and Agulhas Theatre Works, a South African mixed abilities contemporary dance company. (read more)



Deborah Meyer is the Executive Director of Moving Traditions. She has 25 years of experience in the non-profit world, primarily for women’s and Jewish organizations. In addition, for four years Meyer helped manage a private Jewish Montessori pre-school. Prior to founding Moving Traditions with Sally Gottesman, Meyer was Co-Director of Kolot, where she helped create and launch Rosh Hodesh: It's a Girl Thing!  Meyer also helped build The Shefa Fund; the Pennsylvania Chapter of The Nature Conservancy; Women’s Way; and 9to5, The National Association of Working Women. Meyer received a B.A. from Connecticut College and an M.A. in Communication from Emerson College.







Rabbi Bennett F. Miller, a native of Rochester, N.Y., is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati. He earned a Master of Arts and Hebrew Letters from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati where he was ordained a Rabbi in 1974. He also earned his doctorate from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1988. In March, 1999 he was awarded a Doctor of Divinity Degree from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. In 2008 Rabbi Miller completed a Certificate in Fund Raising at the George Heyman Center for Non-Profit Management and Fund Raising at New York University. Rabbi Miller serves as Senior Rabbi of Anshe Emeth Memorial Temple in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He has been associated with Anshe Emeth since 1974. (read more)




Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky is the Executive Director of the Jewish Outreach Institute, the only national independent organization dedicated to bringing Judaism to interfaith families and the unaffiliated. He was recently named as one of the 50 Leading Rabbis in North America by Newsweek. Formerly, he served as vice president of the Wexner Heritage Foundation, the premier adult Jewish learning and Jewish leadership program in North America. Previously, he was national Dean of Adult Jewish Learning and Living of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion where he served on the faculty and administration for 15 years following his tenure at Congregation Beth Israel in West Hartford, CT. A leader in the development of innovative Jewish education, particularly for adults, he has shaped training programs for clergy of all faiths, especially in the area of pastoral care and counseling in the Jewish community. (read more)



Josh Perelman is the Deputy Director and Museum Historian at the National Museum of American Jewish History as well as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania. Perelman completed his doctoral work at New York University and has participated in the development of numerous exhibitions concerning the history of American Jews in the United States. In the past he has held leadership roles at the American Jewish Historical Society and with the State of Israel. Perelman has spoken and written about the intersection of politics, performative culture, and ethnic identity during the twentieth century and is currently writing a manuscript about Jewish modern dancers during the decades before and after World War Two.







Peter Pitzele, Ph.D. was recently and for many years an adjunct faculty member of the Jewish Theological Seminary and Union Theological Seminary. Currently he is the Dean of Faculty of Storahtelling, Workshop Director for the intergenerational theater company Roots&Branches, and Faculty Member at Large: Institute for Contemporary Midrash. He continues to write and study, and he travels widely as a scholar/artist in the United States, Europe, and Israel. Peter has his Ph.D. in literature from Harvard. He has taught literature at Harvard and Brooklyn College. He was trained in the methods of therapeutic theater and directed the Psychodrama Service at Four Winds Hospital for seventeen years. At that time and since he developed Bibliodrama, now recognized as a a principal methodology in the field of contemporary midrash. (read more)



Hilary Polak is a sophomore at Bryn Mawr College where she majors in Anthropology. She is the president of the Bryn Mawr Israel Coalition, and has the opportunity to organize various cultural and political events related to  Israel. Hilary is also involved in other Jewish activities on campus, such as Chabad. Hilary's mother is an Italian Catholic woman who grew up in  Brooklyn,  NY, and her father grew up in the small town of  Holyoke, MA as one of the only Jews in the community. Hilary and her younger sister Ilana were converted to Judaism a few months after birth and since then both of her parents, despite their divorce when their daughters were very young, have been completely devoted to making sure both girls have a strong Jewish identity. Hilary is also very proud of her vibrant Italian heritage. Hilary is very excited to share her experience and her special Italian-Jewish culture with the JOI community.



Rabbi Rayzel Raphael is the  Rabbinic Director of  InterFaithways: an Interfaith Family Support Network of the Delaware Valley and rabbi of Beth Israel Congregation in Woodbury, New Jersey.  She was ordained at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and has studied  Religion at Indiana University,and Brandeis. In addition she   spent two years in Israel studying at Pardes and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Rabbi Raphael has written many articles and readings for interfaith families. She is an award winning songwriter/liturgist and sings with MIRAJ, and Shabbat Unplugged. Friday Night Revived is Rayzel's recent recording. Her Bible Babe's a Beltin' cd has received international acclaim. She teaches about spirituality, dreams, kabbalah , angels and other Jewish mysteries in numerous locations in the Philadelphia area



Rabbi Mayer Selekman was the congregational leader of Temple Sholom for 28 years. He completed his M.H.L. studies at the Jewish Theological Seminary, then earned an M.A.H.L. and was ordained at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.  In 1992, he was granted a Doctor of Divinity degree. Since coming to the Philadelphia area, Rabbi Selekman has taught at Gratz College, Villanova University, and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. He served as president of Life Guidance Services, Inc., for five years and has also been president of both the Marple Newtown Caring Coalition and the Marple Newtown Clergy Association. He is a Vice President of Interfaithways:  Greater Philadelphia’s Interfaith Support Network.



Stephanie St. James is a multidimensional actress, singer and activist who strives to uplift and inspire all who are graced by her dynamic presence.  Born to immigrant parents, her Russian-Jewish mother and Guyanese father met in Israel.  St. James’ grandmother was a Holocaust survivor from Poland who had a profound impact upon her granddaughter.  Born in Miami and raised in Santa Rosa, California, St. James takes great pride in her multicultural and biracial heritage. She has been singing and performing ever since she could talk.  St. James has traveled the world extensively performing in major musicals and theatrical productions including Oprah Winfrey Presents The Color Purple for which she received an NAACP Theatre Awards nomination as “Best Supporting Actress.” 
(read more)



Eva Stern is the Director of Training at the Jewish Outreach Institute. Eva is responsible for training and consulting with professionals and lay leaders on outreach methodology and programming. She also helps to develop educational curricula and other materials for Jewish communal professionals engaged in outreach to unaffiliated Jews and intermarried families, and conducts environmental research scans on Jewish communities throughout North America. Eva holds Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis University. Eva is also passionate about pluralism and coexistence work, having facilitated workshops and groups for diverse populations of young adults and teens (both within and outside of the Jewish community) using dialogue, oral history, and the arts. (read more)



Rabbi Lance J. Sussman, PhD., began his service as the eighth Senior Rabbi of Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel in July 2001. A renowned author and dynamic lecturer, Rabbi Sussman has published numerous books and articles, including Isaac Lesser and the Making of American Judaism, and Sharing Sacred Moments (a collection of his sermons), and served as an editor of Reform Judaism in America: A Biographical Dictionary and Sourcebook. Rabbi Sussman is national Chair of the CCAR Press, the publishing arm of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, and is currently overseeing the production of the new Reform prayer book.  He is also a Trustee both of the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley College and is an active member of the Academic Advisory and Editorial Board of the American Jewish Archives (Cincinnati). He is a past president of the Cheltenham Area Multifaith Council and the Delaware Valley Association of Reform Rabbis. (read more)



Rabbi Philip Warmflash is the founding Executive Director of the Jewish Outreach Partnership of Greater Philadelphia, dedicated to fostering vibrant, dynamic centers of Jewish life by strengthening synagogues and other Jewish institutions and encouraging Jews to greater participation. With JOP he has developed such programs as Reshet: the Network for Synagogue Growth, Synaplex(TM)  Philadelphia, Designing the 21st Century Synagogue, and Making Connections Home Study Kits.  He is a lecturer for the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Literacy Network and a consultant for the Consortium for the Jewish Family, formerly the Whizin Institute.  Rabbi Warmflash is a recipient of the 2007 Covenant Award. Rabbi Warmflash offers workshops nationally on areas of Jewish life and text, often focusing on Synagogue Growth and Renewal, Jewish Family, Prayer and Spirituality.  He was ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary. He lives in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania with his wife Amy and his three daughters, Ariel, Jordana and Mira.



Rabbi Shawn Zevit serves as a consultant for numerous organizations in the areas of leadership, community building, money and values, creativity, and spirituality in the workplace. He currently is a Senior Consultant and the Director of Outreach and External Affairs for the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation. Rabbi Shawn Israel Zevit, has over 25 years experience in spiritual leadership, organizational consulting and training, educational arts, writing, recording, teaching and performing. He has consulted with over 500 institutions and faith communities across North America, and has taught Interpersonal and Organizational Communications at the University of Toronto and Temple University. He is a founding member of Shabbat Unplugged, Playback Philadelphia, the Institute for Contemporary Midrash and the Davenning Leader’s Training Institute. (read more)



Shoshana Zonderman is an award winning Jewish educator, licensed Jewish family educator, and a clinical social worker with over 25 years of experience in Jewish programming, adult education, educator training and mentoring, consultation, management, and grants administration. She has led four Mothers Circles and an alumnae Circle in Northampton, MA, funded by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation and Jewish Family Service of Western Mass.  She is a founding member of Havurat Ha-Emek in Northampton/Amherst, MA and was a member of B’not Esh Jewish Feminist Spirituality Collective. She is a published author of several articles on creative, feminist rituals. 










Additional Presenters:

Hannah Greenstein

Lisa Hostein, Executive Editor, Jewish Exponent of Philadelphia

Dana Lichtenberg, Morris County Outreach Coordinator, JCC MetroWest, New Jersey

 

More Information Coming Soon!