Congregational School Staff
Congregational School Staff
Holli Goldenberg
Congregational School Director, Zayin class, Tot and Teen Coordinator
Holli is an accomplished educator by profession. She is currently working as a district administrator within the school district of Philadelphia, where she oversees the English as a Second Language program at multiple schools. Holli has extensive experience in both formal and informal Jewish education and has a background in theater.
Holli is also our current teen leadership and social programming coordinator.
Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer
Congregational School Curriculum Development and High Holy Day Children's Services
Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer began her work with Mishkan Shalom as a teacher in our school in 1998 and considers Mishkan to be one of her spiritual homes ever since! Her husband, Fred, and their children, George and Jeremy, have also been part of the Mishkan community for many years. Gabby is now the curriculum creator for the Mishkan school and also leads children's services for the High Holy Days.
Gabreille is well-known as an author and Jewish educator whose work focuses on spirituality, creativity and disability. She is the proud recipient of the 2022 Covenant Award and currently edits the Jewish Disability Inclusion News.
Gabrielle also leads Feed Your Spirit Writing, facilitating expressive writing workshops focused on spiritual curiosity and also writes a Substack called "Journey With The Seasons," a weekly practice of meditative reading, expressive writing prompts and deepening practices.
Julia Weekes
Gan, Alef, Bet/Gimel Judaics
Julia has been at Mishkan for years as a teacher and a parent. She is the mom of Judah and Isaiah. Julia has primarily been Mishkan’s Kitah Gimel teacher, but has also taught Kitah Dalet, Bet Hebrew, served as a substitute teacher and occasional tutor. Julia structures the class as a Kehillah where each person is integral in creating the most joyful and productive learning environment. She utilizes cooperative and experiential learning for all aspects of the curriculum. Julia is a graduate of Syracuse University and holds a Master of Arts in teaching from the University of the Arts, where she earned the Oustanding Graduate Student Award.
Amy Goldman
Gimel Hebrew, Vav Judaics, Hay Hebrew
Amy joined our teaching staff in 2020 and has extensive experience in Jewish education. She loves the creative arts and cooking, two passions that she’s already brought to her students at Mishkan. Amy is a graduate of Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania.
Cantor David Acker
Hay Judaics, Vav Hebrew
David holds a master's degree in cantorial studies and Jewish music from Gratz College as well as music degrees from Temple University’s Esther Boyer College of Music and Swarthmore College. He is also a candidate for a master's in Jewish education at Gratz College.
David challenges his students to invest their own creativity, imaginations and intelligence into the development of their Jewish identity. Through experiential learning, he facilitates his students' discovery of the relevance of Jewish customs, literature, prayers and ideas. He also believes that students feel much more comfortable in the synagogue when they know they are competent in Hebrew, so he designs games and engaging exercises to help them learn.
Prior to teaching at Mishkan Shalom, David served as cantor and music specialist at Congregation Ohev Shalom (Wallingford) and Or Shalom (Berwyn). At Mishkan he has led clubs that created and performed plays and raps for Hannukah, Purim, and Passover, as well as storytelling and trope clubs. He enjoys singing all kinds of music, including opera, musical theater and lieder as well as liturgical music. David is drawn to teaching in the synagogue because within it he experiences the whole gamut of Jewish life: prayer, education, b’nai mitzvah preparation, life cycle, and community.
Fri, October 11 2024
9 Tishrei 5785
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