Shimshon Stü Siegel
Rachel Hillman
Meet Our 2011 Staff
Senior Staff
Shimshon Stü Siegel, Director: Shimshon Stü has worked with teens in Jewish and Social Action settings across the US and in Israel. He has a film degree from Boston University and an MA in Hebrew Literature from Hebrew Union College. Shimshon spent a year with Americorps in Oakland, California, working on literacy and creativity with children. Shimshon has been with Brandeis since 2007, as a residential educator, director of online learning and recruitment director for the Office of High School Programs.
Rachel Hillman, Associate Director: Rachel Hillman currently works for DC Council BBYO in Rockville, MD. She is a proud graduate of Brandeis University, where she majored in Near Eastern & Judaic Studies and History. Rachel is earning her MBA from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business and a Master’s in Jewish Education from Hebrew College. In her spare time, Rachel enjoys traveling, exploring Washington DC, and spending time with her friends eating frozen yogurt.
Hannah Blumberg, Logistics Maven: Hannah is a rising senior at Brandeis from Austin, Texas. She is majoring in Business and International & Global Studies and minoring in Near Eastern & Judaic Studies. She spent this past semester studying abroad in London and is excited to come back to Brandeis and be a part of Impact Boston!
Site Educators
Natalie Carmeli is excited to join Impact Boston this summer! She has spent the last ten months working with a housing-justice non-profit in Jackson Heights, Queens. A firm believer in the Jewish imperative to enact social justice, Natalie has organized her college Hillel to address global hunger, leads an English conversation class to new immigrants and volunteers extensively. Natalie graduated with a BA from Binghamton University and has studied at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies. She will be earning her master's degree at Hunter College School of Social Work this fall.
Miriam Farber is completing her first year as a rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem, and will be continuing her studies at HUC's Los Angeles campus. Prior to starting at HUC, Miriam studied classical Jewish texts at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, also in Jerusalem. Miriam trained as a community organizer through the Boston-based Jewish Organizing Initiative, and worked as a synagogue organizer at Temple Shir Tikva of Wayland, MA. She is a Brandeis alumna, and is looking forward to returning to Boston and Brandeis this summer!
Rebecca Fuhrman is a native Pittsburgher who moved to Israel last year after completing her degree in Urban Studies at the University of Pittsburgh. She is currently interning at the Jewish Federations of North America Israel and Overseas office and will be working as the Social Justice and Health Program Coordinator at Kedma this coming August. In her free time she paints, graffitis, volunteers with local youth, and hikes through Israel.
Yael Kletter is currently a graduate student in the Hornstein Program for Jewish Professional Leadership at Brandeis, completing a dual masters in Public Policy and Jewish Professional Leadership. A graduate of the University of Maryland, Yael was actively involved in the Jewish social justice community on campus through the local Hillel, serving as a student leader and board member. Before returning to Brandeis she worked at Hillel's Schusterman International Center where she staffed an alternative spring break to New Orleans, among other responsibilities. After graduation Yael hopes to continue to work with young adults on the connection between social justice and Jewish text. She loves Brandeis so much that she has decided to stay on campus all summer and can't wait to spend it with you!
Ben Kozberg is a Program Director for The Great Midwest Region. He graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor Degree in Political Science. Ben grew up in Columbus, OH in KIO as an active BBYO member. After college he directed the Jewish Teen Outreach Program as well as the day camp at the Columbus JCC. Ben has a strong Jewish background as both him and his wife are Rabbi’s kids and Ben has been an informal Jewish educator since his years at The Ohio State University.
Joanna Lubkin is finishing up her first year in Rabbinical School at Hebrew College, and was thrilled to find a kind of school where finals are *fun*. After growing up in New Hampshire, Joanna graduated from Clark University and had her world rocked by a fellowship with the Jewish Organizing Initiative. In her copious spare time, she loves to sing, play guitar, watch the Daily Show, and cook for her friends.
While attending the University of Michigan, Aaron Potek became involved in Jewish life on campus, from coordinating matzah ball soup deliveries for sick Jewish students to founding the Jewish Engineering Association to performing with the Hillel’s first improv group. After graduating with a degree in Industrial and Operations Engineering, he decided to pursue his passion for Judaism and the Jewish people by spending two years in Israel, where he studied Jewish texts, volunteered as a first-aid responder with Magen David Adom in Haifa, worked as a counselor-educator for the Nesiya Institute, and participated in various interfaith projects. He is currently training to become a rabbi at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah in New York.
Jamie Sorge currently teaches high school English and lives with his wife in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is thrilled to come back for a second summer of Impact Boston. Born and raised in Trumbull, Connecticut, Jamie was an active member of BBYO and volunteered regularly with his home chapter. He continues to devote his time to BBYO as an advisor for the New England Region and is getting married this summer.
Dara Wilensky is fresh off her first year of medical school in NYC, where she spends most of her free time running in Central Park, singing and dancing, and consuming exceedingly large amounts of frozen yogurt. She wants to be a pediatrician because she'll be able to work with underserved kids in low-income areas, and because it's the only field in medicine where she'll be taller than her patients. Dara had a great time staffing Impact Boston in 2010 and can't wait to meet all of the participants this summer!
Madrichim
Lauren McGlothlin just graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in English and Political Science. She will be attending law school in the fall at Boston College and is excited to get to know the city of Boston. She has worked closely with Impact summer programs in the past as a participant of the Baltimore program in 2006 and then as a student co-coordinator of the program in 2007. She is looking forward to making the program fun and interesting and getting to know the participants and staff members!
Emma Green hails from the center of the United States, also known as Oklahoma (where the wind comes sweeping down the plains!). She just finished up her Sophomore year at Brandeis, and she plans to double-major in Judaic Studies and Computer Science. She loves reading, knitting, and anything that makes the world a better place. She is soo excited to be working with Impact Boston, and can't wait to start!