Keynote & Featured Presenters
MUSICAL GUESTS
LAPIDUS & MYLES Rabbi Micah Lapidus and Melvin Kindall Myles are two faith leaders in the Atlanta community. Lapidus is a rabbi and the composer-in-residence at The Temple. Myles is a soloist in the Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church choir, former pulpit of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. The two musicians joined forces as "Lapidus & Myles" to create music inspired by their faith traditions, personal stories, and belief that music can help open hearts and minds. |
RABBI STACY RIGLER
Rabbi Stacy Rigler, RJE is Executive Director of the Association of Reform Jewish Educators. A lifelong learner, Stacy is passionate about inspiring excellence, advancing the field of Jewish education, and supporting fellow educators and students. Stacy has worked in Jewish Education at the Foundation for Jewish Camp and URJ Camp Harlam. She served as Rabbi Educator for 17 years at Reform Congregation Keneseth Israel in Elkins Park, PA. Stacy received her MAJE and Rabbinic ordination from HUC-JIR and her undergraduate degree from Emory University. Stacy lives in suburban Philadelphia with her husband, Rabbi Peter Rigler and their three children. When not at work Stacy loves to exercise, travel, and enjoy amazing pescatarian food. |
MOLLY LEVY
Molly Levy is the Director of Education for the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life (ISJL). She's excited to be leading the ISJL team into its next evolution. Molly's institutional and communal roots are deep; she was an ISJL Education Fellow from 2009-2011, and grew up in a small Jewish community in North Georgia which has benefited from the ISJL's services. Molly is an alum of the University of Georgia and Baltimore Hebrew Institute at Towson University. Since her time at the ISJL she has served as an Educator at many synagogues from DC to Miami, as well as Program Director for URJ Camp Coleman. Molly lives in Tampa, Florida, with her husband, Justin, and their two kiddos, Max and Jonah. |
RABBI SALEM PEARCE
Ordained in 2018 by Hebrew College, Rabbi Pearce’s career has exemplified values of justice, compassion, and service to all. Most recently serving as the Executive Director of Carolina Jews for Justice, Rabbi Pearce has also worked for T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, and several synagogues and community organizations. Her internships while a rabbinical student included working for the Synagogue Council of Massachusetts, and spending a summer as the ISJL’s Rabbinical Intern in 2017. Rabbi Pearce originally hails from Houston. Personally and professionally, she has strong ties to the southern region. |
MIRIAM BROSSEAU
Miriam is Principal of Tiny Windows Consulting, a nonprofit consultancy devoted to fostering more creative, connected Jewish communities. In addition to her consulting work, Miriam is an adjunct marketing instructor at the University of Chicago's Graham School. Miriam is a member of the ROI Network of young Jewish innovators and was named to the New York Jewish Week's "36 Under 36" list and Chicago's "Double Chai in the Chi" list. She was the co-host of the podcast "Throwing Sheyd: Better Living Through Jewish Demonology" and spent several years as the lead singer/songwriter of Stereo Sinai, both in partnership with her husband Alan. In "real life," Miriam is mom to two gorgeous humans and spends her free time reading, drinking too much coffee, and roller skating. She would love if you would recommend a good novel. |
Presenters
ANA BERMAN
Ana Berman is a 2023-2024 Education and Culture Program Associate at the ISJL. In her role she has worked on a variety of projects across both departments including Arkansas encyclopedia updates, community visits, Southern & Jewish podcast rereleases, and Freedom Seder. Ana is excited to rejoin the ISJL team for the 2024-2025 year as the Special Projects Coordinator, where she will be working to craft a brand new tour curriculum for teen groups traveling to the South. |
HANNAH GROSSMAN
Hannah Grossman is an experiential educator at Repair the World. She believes in applying Jewish wisdom to enact social change and build community. Hannah has spent over 15 years in the world of Jewish education in informal and formal settings. She volunteered in the rebirth of Jewish communal life in the Czech Republic and served as a JDC Entwine Fellow in Mumbai. Hannah holds MAs in Experiential Jewish Education and Bible from the Jewish Theological Seminary. She also earned BAs in Comparative Literature and Judaic and Near Eastern Studies, and a certificate in Coastal and Marine Sciences from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and spent a transformative year at the Pardes Center for Jewish Educators. In her free time, you can find Hannah volunteering as a reading tutor, biking, hiking, aspiring to illustrate a children's book, and playing Frisbee. |
MICHAEL GUTENSTEIN
A native New Yorker, Michael has called Marietta, Georgia his home since 1988 when he and his wife Elaine put down roots there. Michael was involved in finance and fundraising through working with his father and the family's Robert G and Ellen S Gutenstein Family Foundation, serving as treasurer and investment manager until the Foundation split in 2023. Michael has served on the board of directors at Congregation Ner Tamid as President, Vice President, and currently as Director of Finance. Lessons learned during the challenging COVID period enabled him to hone new skills, keeping the lights on at his small congregation by finding creative and unique ways to cut costs and generate funds with very limited resources. Michael is currently the President of the EZBO Foundation. |
AVIVA GUTNICK
Aviva Lucas Gutnick is an editor at Behrman House/Apples & Honey Press, where she develops engaging stories and learning materials that bring meaning and values of our Jewish tradition to both children and adults. Aviva holds a BS in Journalism from Northwestern University and an MA in Education from New York University. |
MICHAEL JACOBS
Michael Jacobs was born and raised in Northern Virginia. He was passionate about history from an early age and spent his childhood exploring local museums and historic sites. Michael graduated from The University of Pittsburgh in 2018 with a degree in History and Museum Studies. After obtaining his Bachelor's degree, Michael returned to school to obtain his Master's In Public History from The American University in Washington DC in 2022. Michael has worked at numerous archives, historical sites, and museums, including the Marine Corps University Archive at Quantico Base in Quantico, VA, and George Mason’s Gunston Hall in Mason Neck, VA. As of July 2023, Michael has been the Curator of Collections and Exhibits at the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience in New Orleans, LA. |
KACHEL KOHNHORST
Kachel Kohnhorst is Keshet’s Southwest Education and Training Manager. Her role allows her to combine her interest in Jewish Education and her training as a Texas public school teacher. Kachel is originally from Houston but has lived all over the great state of Texas (Houston, The Woodlands, Denton, Fort Worth, Waco, and Dallas). She has also lived in Phoenix and Denver. Her favorite part about being a Texan is going to rodeos and eating barbeque. She most recently was the Assistant Director of Family Retreats and Staff Engagement at the URJ Greene Family Camp. She also was a Texas public high school English teacher. Kachel spent 10 summers working at the URJ Greene Family Camp. Kachel and her wife Rachael have two hairless cats named Lox and Samson. Kachel desires to help the Southwest grow into a shining place of LGBTQ+ inclusion. |
RABBI KEILAH LEBELL
Rabbi Keilah Lebell is the Director of Project Zug at the Hadar Institute, a traditional and egalitarian center for inspired Jewish learning and practice. Project Zug is Hadar's distinctive havruta learning platform, which empowers Jews to take ownership of their own learning and deepen relationships through one-on-one text study. Through Project Zug, Rabbi Lebell is is on a mission to bring Jews and Jewish communities closer to Torah and to each other. Before Hadar, she served as Assistant Rabbi at IKAR in Los Angeles. Rabbi Lebell is also a new member of the Southern Jewish community! She and her family moved to Chattanooga, TN in 2021 where her husband Rabbi Sam Rotenberg is the rabbi of B'nai Zion Congregation. |
TALI MOSCOWITZ
Tali Moscowitz, Mid-Atlantic Regional Director at Moving Traditions, is passionate about building connections and relationships within the Jewish community. Tali has spent most of her career working with Jewish teens and loves to help teens find their own Jewish path. Tali holds a BA in Elementary Education from American University, a post-baccalaureate certificate in pre-medicine from American University, and an MS in Nonprofit Management with a Certificate in Jewish Communal Service from Gratz College. Tali was part of the year long Senior Educator Learning Fellowship cohort at the Pardes Institute. She is a certified yoga teacher (RYT-200) and loves any yoga class that isn’t heated. In her spare time, you can find Tali watching the latest Broadway musical, completing a jigsaw puzzle, or enjoying her husband’s cooking. |
SHIRA MUROFF
Shira Muroff is the ISJL's Director of Programs. She is a California native and a graduate of the University of California, Davis, with a degree in Human Development. A Jacksonian since 2016, Shira first joined the ISJL as an Education Fellow from 2016-2018. After the fellowship, she created Mississippi history materials for students and teachers across the state with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History. Back at the ISJL since 2022, Shira has enjoyed connecting communities across the South to Jewish speakers, musicians, comedians, and more. |
LIORA NORWICH
With two decades of non-profit experience, Dr. Liora Norwich is the new Director of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program at Brandeis University. Previously she spent 5 years as the Executive Director of the Network for Social Justice. A Canadian by birth, Liora is also an Israeli citizen, having spent over a decade in Israel working with both local partners and international human rights organizations to advance integrated community development and social justice initiatives among Jewish, Palestinian, and Bedouin organizations. While receiving her PhD in Political Science at the Hebrew University, Liora launched the first academic Master’s program in community development studies, the Glocal Program. Liora is also a trained facilitator, and has developed a series of workshops focused on managing challenging conversations and talking across difference. |
REBECCA RICH
Rebecca Rich is currently a Program Associate for the Institute of Southern Jewish Life. She is originally from Bethesda, Maryland. She graduated from Brandeis University in 2022 with a BA in Near Eastern & Judaic Studies. After graduation, she spent nine months volunteering in Israel via the Yahel Social Change Fellowship. Rebecca has greatly enjoyed her time working for the ISJL, and is excited to start earning a master's degree in social work from the University of Michigan in the fall, simultaneously participating in the Jewish Communal Leadership Program. Outside of Judaism, Rebecca's passions include singing, musical theater, reading, and outdoor activities. |
MATTHEW SILVERMAN
Matthew Silverman became the Executive Director of the Haberman Institute for Jewish Studies in April 2020. He graduated from James Madison University with a bachelor’s degree in economics and religion. He also attended the Candler School of Theology at Emory University where he received a Master of Theological Studies degree and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College where he received a Master of Arts in Jewish Studies degree. Prior to moving to Maryland, he most recently he served as the Assistant Director of the religious school at Congregation Emanu El in Houston, TX where he developed and implemented programs for all ages. Matt has worked and taught in numerous Jewish organizations throughout the country including: the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, Camp Ramah Darom, Hillels of Georgia, and Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Philadelphia. Matt lives in Maryland with his wife, Jill, and two daughters, Nava and Miri. |
MCKENZIE WREN
McKenzie Wren is a facilitator who works in multiple arenas to support connection and growth. She is Special Projects Manager with SOJOURN and also works under two of her own organizations: As Ma’ayan Spiritual Arts, she uses Earth-based, embodied Jewish art, ritual and spiritual practices to support deeper connection to the Divine Mystery. As Wren Consulting, she works with businesses and nonprofits to support inclusion and belonging. At the heart of everything she does is the belief in the power of relationship, community and connection to nature. McKenzie works with individuals and groups of all sizes to create spaces that are nurturing, creative and brave and support personal and communal transformation. |