Faculty | Education Program | Brandeis University

Faculty and Staff

Faculty	Contact Information	Area of Expertise
	Marcie Abramson bramson@brandeis.edu	Marcie Abramson is a Lecturer in Education. She teaches the mathematics portion of ED 105a - Elementary School Curriculum and Teaching. She has extensive experience teaching elementary, middle and high school-aged students. She is also the author and co-author of several mathematics books for students in grades 5-8.
	Ellen Alt Institute for Music & Art ellenalt202@yahoo.com	Ellen Alt is an artist and a teacher specializing in creativity. She has exhibited her mixed media artwork in the U.S, Israel, Germany, Russia, China and England. One of her pieces was presented to Hillary Clinton in Jerusalem on the occasion of the peace treaty between Israel and Jordan.
	Joyce Antler Brown 314 (781) 736-3036 antler@brandeis.edu	Joyce Antler is the Samuel B. Lane Professor of American Jewish History and Culture and Professor of Women's and Gender Studies. She is an Education Program affiliated faculty member in education studies and co-faculty leader of the Spencer Program in Educational Research.
	Howie Baker Lamberg Children Center 114 (781) 736-2200 baker@brandeis.edu	Howie Baker is Executive Director of the Lemberg Children's Center and the early education and care component and supervisor for practicum students.
	Ann E. Blais ann@brandeis.edu	Ann E. Blais is a Lecturer in Education and an English teacher at Newton North High School. She teaches ED 263a - Reflective Teaching in the MAT Secondary Program.
	Travis Bristol tbristol@brandeis.edu	Travis is a Lecturer in Education and teaches Critical Perspectives in Urban Education: ED 170a. A former high school English teacher in New York City public schools, his most recent work includes training teachers in Guyana with the World Bank and in Boston as part of Boston Teacher Residency. Travis is a PhD candidate at Teachers College, Columbia University where his research interests focus on the intersection of race and gender in organizations. Travis is a 2013 National Academy of Education/Spencer Dissertation Fellow.
	Michael Coiner Lemberg Academic Center 159 coiner@brandeis.edu	Michael Coiner is an Associate Professor of Economics. He has a research interest in the economics of higher edcuation. He teaches Economics 59b - The Economics of Education, an elective for education studies.
	Kerry Dunne kdunne@brandeis.edu	Kerry Dunne is a Lecturer in Education. She received her doctorate from Boston College and teaches in the MAT secondary program: ED 269a - Pedagogy of History. She is currently the K-12 Social Studies Director for the Arlington Public Schools.
	Leandra Elion lelion@brandeis.edu	Leandra is a Lecturer in Education. She received an MS in special education from Long Island University in New York and an MEd in Reading from Salem State College. She has consulted on special education issues to day schools and the Bureau of Education of Greater Boston.
	Sharon Feiman-Nemser Mandel Center (781) 736-2946 snemser@brandeis.edu	Sharon Feiman-Nemser, Mandel Professor of Jewish Education at Brandeis University, is the Director of the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education. Before coming to Brandeis in 2001, she served on the faculties of The University of Chicago and Michigan State University where she directed innovative teacher education programs and conducted research on teacher education and teacher learning.
	Shoshana Jacobs sjacobs1@brandeis.edu	Shoshana is currently a Literacy Coach at the Conservatory Lab Charter School in Brighton, MA. Shoshana has been coaching and mentoring teachers for the past eleven years in the Boston Public Schools and in a Jewish day school setting.
	Aja Jackson ajackson@brandeis.edu	Aja Jackson currently teaches the Foundations in Education course for the public elementary MAT program. She received a Bachelor degree in Sociology from Simmons College and later studied at Harvard University in the Graduate School of Education. She obtained her teaching certification through the Urban Teachers Program at Wheelock College. After over a decade of educating Boston Public Schools students, she became more interested in school leadership and has a principal licensure from the Center for Collaborative Education/Northeastern University. Aja currently works with Social Science teachers as a District K-8 Instructional Coach. Her interests include new teacher development, authentic assessment, and multicultural curriculum rooted in Social Justice.
	Leila Joseffer joseffer@brandeis.edu	Leila Joseffer is a Lecturer in Education in the MAT program. Her areas of interest are language and literacy development. She is also a full-time reading specialist in the Belmont elementary schools.
	Brenda Keegan bkeegan@brandeis.edu	Brenda Keegan is a Lecturer in Education. She recently retired as Deputy Superintendent of the Newton Public Schools after serving as Principal of Newton South and English Department Head of Newton North. She currently serves as Director of General Studies at Torah Academy in Brookline. A graduate of Wellesley College, Dr. Keegan earned her Ph.D. in English Literature from University of Rochester along with completing substantial coursework for a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership at University of Pennsylvania.
	Orit Kent okent@brandeis.edu	Orit Kent is a Lecturer in Education and a Senior Research Associate at the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education. As a teacher educator and researcher, she works with teachers on developing their approaches to teaching texts and constructing productive group learning experiences.
	Noreen Leibson Mandel 121 (781) 736-2099 nleibson@brandeis.edu	Noreen is the DeLeT faculty leader and comes to the Mandel Center after twenty years as the Education Director at Temple Beth Abraham, a Conservative synagogue in Nashua, NH. She has also worked as an informal Jewish educator and yoetzet at Camp Ramah in New England for ten summers.
	Marya Levenson ASAC 217 (781) 736-2001 mlevenso@brandeis.edu	Marya R. Levenson is Professor of the Practice in Education and the Harry S. Levitan Director of the Brandeis Education Program. She was a teacher in the Boston Public Schools, principal of Newton North High School, and superintendent of the North Colonie Schools.
	Jon A. Levisohn ASAC 303 (781) 736-2941 levisohn@brandeis.edu	Jon A. Levisohn is Associate Professor of Jewish Education in the Department of Near Eastern & Judaic Studies. He has taught in middle school and has served as a consultant to K-8 Jewish day schools. He teaches Philosophy of Education and Philosophy of Jewish Education. His particular focus has been on the myriad ways we have of making sense of texts.
	Katherine Lobo klobo@brandeis.edu	Katherine Lobo, who is an ESL teacher at the in Belmont, is a Lecturer in Education. She currently teaches ED 175a - The Teaching of English Language Learners: Pre-K to 12. She is an experienced teacher and an accomplished artist.
	Marjorie Margolis chisholm@brandeis.edu	Marjorie is a Lecturer in Education who returned to the Brandeis directly from the high school classroom where she spent the last thirty years teaching English. Before that, she studied English at Brandeis and received her teaching certification then specialized in literacy at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
	Alexa Miller alexam@brandeis.edu	Alexa Miller is a Lecturer in the Education Department. Alexa has spent the last ten years working in the arts and education fields, with a focus on helping art museums reach new audiences through collaborations in education reform. She currently teaches Looking with the Learner: Practice and Inquiry.
	Deborah Moriarty dsull@brandeis.edu	Deborah Moriarty is a Lecturer in Education. She teaches ED 107a, Teaching and Learning Reading in Elementary Schools. She co-teaches Ed 101a, Elementary School Curriculum and Teaching: Literacy, Social Studies, and Other Topics in which she focuses content on literacy skills, strategies and techniques. Deborah has taught elementary school for 12 years, 10 of those in first grade.
	Frances Moyer fmoyer@brandeis.edu	Frances Moyer is a Field Instructor. She received her Master's in Urban Education from Boston College and her Master's in Public Administration through the University of Oklahoma’s Extension Program offered in the Panama Canal zone.
	Beth Naditch bnaditch@brandeis.edu	Rabbi Beth Naditch is a Lecturer in Education. She teaches Jewish text as a member of the faculty of the DeLeT/MAT program.
	Nili Pearlmutter nilip@brandeis.edu	Nili Pearlmutter is a Lecturer in Education and Senior Education Specialist at the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education. She teaches the Fundamentals of Teaching course for the MAT/JDS-DeLeT program. She received her B.A. in Psychology from Yale University and her Master of Science in Teaching from Wheelock College. She taught at the elementary level in both Jewish day schools and public schools before coming to Brandeis in 2003.
	Michael Quinlan mquinlan@brandeis.edu	Michael Quinlan is a Lecturer in Education. He teaches in the MAT secondary program: ED 270a - Pedagogy of Science. Michael is currently the Department Chair for Science & Technology at Wellesley High School and has been teaching physics for the past 16 years.
	Susan Rauchwerk srauchwe@brandeis.edu	Sussan Rauchwerk is a Lecturer in Education. She teaches Inquiry-Based Science Teaching and Learning.
	Joseph Reimer KUTZ 133a (781) 736-2996 reimer@brandeis.edu	Professor Joseph Reimer has been at Brandeis since 1986 where he has been director of the Hornstein Program and the Institute for Informal Jewish Education. Trained as a developmental psychologist at Harvard, he has written several books and many articles on moral education, kibbutz education and Jewish education. He is considered by many as a leading expert on experiential Jewish education.
	Ned Rossiter nrossi@brandeis.edu	Ned Rossiter is a Lecturer in Education. He is a field instructor in the MAT secondary program and helps lead the induction program.
	Faye Ruopp fruopp@brandeis.edu	Faye Ruopp is a Lecturer in Education. She teaches ED 262a - Teaching Mathematics in Elementary Classrooms. She is also co-leader of Math and Mentoring, a cooperative project of Brandeis and the Waltham Public Schools.
	Lisa Schneier lisabs@brandeis.edu	Lisa Schneier was a high school teacher in the Boston Public Schools for 12 years. Her subject matter focus was English and writing, but she also taught basic literacy and math skills. She earned her Doctorate in Education under the supervision of Eleanor Duckworth at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She studied Duckworth's methodology of "Critical Exploration," which was developed from the work of Jean Piaget.
	Kathryn Sillman ksillman@brandeis.edu	Kathy Sillman is a Teacher Education Specialist (Elementary). She works with interns during their field placements, teaches ED 263b, and supports MAT graduates during the induction phase of their careers. She has experience teaching in public schools and working on curriculum development in Massachusetts and New York.
	Francesca Stark fstark@brandeis.edu	Francesca Stark teaches in the MAT-Jewish Day School/DeLeT program: Creating Classroom Culture. She has been a 4th grade teacher and reading specialist for the Brookline Schools since 1993.
	Rachel Kramer Theodorou rbkramer@brandeis.edu	Rachel Kramer Theodorou teaches ED 100a, ED 111e, and selected mini-courses in ED 101b. She has been a classroom teacher for 14 years in both public and private elementary schools in New York City and Massachusetts.
	Diana Turk ASAC 219 dbturk@brandeis.edu	Diana B. Turk is a Visiting Professor and the Director of Teacher Education. She joined the Brandeis faculty after fourteen years at New York University's Steinhardt School, where she directed the Social Studies Education Program. Her research and teaching interests center on urban education, civic education, historical methods (particularly material culture and oral history), and women's history.
	Josh Wiczer wiczer@brandeis.edu	Josh Wiczer is a Lecturer in Education, teaching Ed 272a - Pedagogy of Secondary Mathematics. He completed the Brandeis undergraduate teaching program, obtained his M.S. in Applied Mathematics from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, and has been teaching math at Ashland High School (Ashland, MA) since 2003.
Staff	Contact Information	Area of Expertise
	Eileen Kell ASAC 215 (781) 736-2002 ekell@brandeis.edu	Eileen Kell is the Senior Department Coordinator for the Education Program. She has taught middle school English Language Arts and drama in both public and independent schools.
	Manuel Tuan ASAC 218 (781) 736-2022 mat@brandeis.edu tuan@brandeis.edu	Manuel Tuan is the MAT Program Coordinator. He is originally from the Philippines where he earned a B.A. in Philosophy and completed his coursework in an MBA program.
	Deb Laufer Mandel 114 (781) 736-2081 dlaufer@brandeis.edu	Deb Laufer is the DeLeT Program Coordinator at the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education . Graduating in 2008 from Brandeis, she earned a B.A. in Sociology, concentrating in social justice and policy. As an Undergraduate, she was a Hillel leader, community adviser, student union member, and rugby team captain. Deb is excited to be working at the Mandel Center and is interested in future careers with non-profit organizations.

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Faculty and Staff

Ann E. Blais

Travis Bristol

Aja Jackson

Leila Joseffer

Brenda Keegan

Katherine Lobo

Marjorie Margolis

Alexa Miller

Michael Quinlan

Kathryn Sillman

Diana Turk

Josh Wiczer

Eileen Kell

Manuel Tuan

Deb Laufer