The Hornstein Program’s faculty is unparalleled. These leading researchers and consultants in today’s national Jewish community bring a vast range of experience and knowledge to the Hornstein Program and its students.
Faculty Profiles
Jonathan D. Sarna, Director Ph.D., Yale University
Jonathan is one of America’s foremost commentators on American Jewish history, religion and life. Born in Philadelphia, and raised in New York and Boston, he attended Brandeis University, the Boston Hebrew College, Merkaz HaRav Kook in Jerusalem, and Yale University, where he obtained his doctorate in 1979. Jonathan has written, edited, or co-edited more than twenty books. His most recent work, American Judaism: A History, has been praised as being “the single best description of American Judaism during its 350 years on American soil.” It won numerous awards including the 2004 Everett Family Foundation Jewish Book of the Year Award from the Jewish Book Council. [Full bio]
David Mersky M.A.H.L., Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion
David teaches courses in development, including fundraising and philanthropy. A former congregational rabbi, he has served as the national director of resource development to major Jewish organizations and corporations. He also consults in marketing, communication and resource development for nonprofit organizations. During his career, he has trained thousands of professionals and volunteers who have raised hundreds of millions of dollars. [Full bio]
Joseph Reimer Ed.D., Harvard University
Joe is a developmental psychologist teaching in the areas of Jewish learning and development across the life cycle as well as informal Jewish education. His current research focuses on Jewish identity development, professional development and informal Jewish education. He directs the Institute for Informal Jewish Education which designs professional development programs for educators across North America and supports innovative program development.
Mark Rosen Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
Mark is a Research Scientist at the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies and teaches Organizational Behavior. His research on the Jewish community has explored such diverse topics as intermarriage, outreach, day schools, birthright israel, Jewish families with young children, Jewish life on college campuses, Jewish summer camping and Hillel. [Full bio]
Amy Sales Ph.D., Boston University
Amy L. Sales is a social psychologist whose research focuses on Jewish institutions and their role in creating Jewish life and community. Her recent studies have centered on synagogues, Jewish summer camps, Jewish life on college campuses, Jewish education for children and youth, and the status of the Jewish fundraising profession. In addition to her research activities, she has provided training, consultation, and technical assistance on long-term planning, evaluation research, and leadership development in the Jewish community. She also serves as the associate director of the CohenCenter for Modern Jewish Studies at BrandeisUniversity and the director of its Fisher-Bernstein Institute for Jewish Philanthropy and Leadership. [Full bio]
Leonard Saxe Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
Len is a social psychologist whose work broadly concerns how individuals are influenced by their social environments. He has authored and/or edited nearly 250 articles including a variety of evaluative and policy focused studies of education, mental health issues, psychological testing, and the development of Jewish identity. Len's work on Jewish identity has involved studies of Jewish camping, Israel experience, and socio-demography. Len directs the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies whose mission is to conduct scholarly work that can enhance understanding of the Jewish community. [Full bio]
Ellen Smith M.A.., Boston University
Ellen is Lecturer in Hornstein, where she directs its co-curricular programs, and in NEJS, where she teaches courses on the visual and material culture of religion, museum studies, and American Jewish women. Ellen is the author and curator of over 30 books, articles, and exhibitions, and is principal of Museumsmith, a firm specializing in historic site interpretation and exhibitions throughout the country. She was one of 12 scholars chosen nationally for the Luce and Lilly foundations’ “Visual Culture of American Religions” project; in 2005 she was one of 10 scholars touring the country for the UJC speaking about the 350th anniversary of the Jewish community in America. Ellen is a past president of Boston’s Leventhal-Sidman Jewish Community Center, and has won numerous honors for her leadership in the Jewish community as both a volunteer and a professional. [Full bio]
Lawrence Sternberg ’80 M.A., Jewish Communal Service– Brandeis University
Larry, a Hornstein Program alumnus, is executive director of Hillel at Brandeis and is an adjunct faculty member of the Hornstein Program. He teaches Jewish community relations and advocacy, community planning, and organizational development. Larry is a consultant to Jewish organizations, providing planning and evaluation tools to assist professional and lay leadership. [Full bio]
Faculty Emeriti
Bernard Reisman, Professor Emeritus, Hornstein Director 1969-1999
Hornstein: The Jewish Professional Leadership Program @ Brandeis University
MS 037 | P.O. Box 549110 | Waltham, MA 02454
781-736-2990 (TEL) | 800-666-1636 | 781-736-2070 (FAX) hornstein@brandeis.edu
Jonathan is one of America’s foremost commentators on American Jewish history, religion and life. Born in Philadelphia, and raised in New York and Boston, he attended Brandeis University, the Boston Hebrew College, Merkaz HaRav Kook in Jerusalem, and Yale University, where he obtained his doctorate in 1979. Jonathan has written, edited, or co-edited more than twenty books. His most recent work, American Judaism: A History, has been praised as being “the single best description of American Judaism during its 350 years on American soil.” It won numerous awards including the 2004 Everett Family Foundation Jewish Book of the Year Award from the Jewish Book Council. [
David teaches courses in development, including fundraising and philanthropy. A former congregational rabbi, he has served as the national director of resource development to major Jewish organizations and corporations. He also consults in marketing, communication and resource development for nonprofit organizations. During his career, he has trained thousands of professionals and volunteers who have raised hundreds of millions of dollars. [
Joe is a developmental psychologist teaching in the areas of Jewish learning and development across the life cycle as well as informal Jewish education. His current research focuses on Jewish identity development, professional development and informal Jewish education. He directs the Institute for Informal Jewish Education which designs professional development programs for educators across North America and supports innovative program development.
Mark is a Research Scientist at the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies and teaches Organizational Behavior. His research on the Jewish community has explored such diverse topics as intermarriage, outreach, day schools, birthright israel, Jewish families with young children, Jewish life on college campuses, Jewish summer camping and Hillel. [
Amy L. Sales is a social psychologist whose research focuses on Jewish institutions and their role in creating Jewish life and community. Her recent studies have centered on synagogues, Jewish summer camps, Jewish life on college campuses, Jewish education for children and youth, and the status of the Jewish fundraising profession. In addition to her research activities, she has provided training, consultation, and technical assistance on long-term planning, evaluation research, and leadership development in the Jewish community. She also serves as the associate director of the 
Len is a social psychologist whose work broadly concerns how individuals are influenced by their social environments. He has authored and/or edited nearly 250 articles including a variety of evaluative and policy focused studies of education, mental health issues, psychological testing, and the development of Jewish identity. Len's work on Jewish identity has involved studies of Jewish camping, Israel experience, and socio-demography. Len directs the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies whose mission is to conduct scholarly work that can enhance understanding of the Jewish community. [
Larry, a Hornstein Program alumnus, is executive director of Hillel at Brandeis and is an adjunct faculty member of the Hornstein Program. He teaches Jewish community relations and advocacy, community planning, and organizational development. Larry is a consultant to Jewish organizations, providing planning and evaluation tools to assist professional and lay leadership. [
