Brandeis Magazine

Jacob Hen-Tov, GSAS MA’68, PhD’69, retired professor of international politics and Middle Eastern studies at Germany’s George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies, is working on a study of the Jewish community in Palestine and its relationship to the Soviet Union during 1941-45, a sequel to his book “Communism and Zionism in Palestine During the British Mandate.” On YouTube, he posts videos describing his encounters with political and intellectual leaders during the years of Israel’s founding.

Allon Gal, GSAS MA’70, PhD’76, wrote “On Jewish Nationhood and Nationalism: A Historical Survey From Antiquity to the Establishment of the State of Israel,” published in “The Cambridge History of Nationhood and Nationalism,” Vol. 2 (Cambridge University Press, 2023).

“Subtle Level Elemental Energies 1,” a painting by Sherri Silverman, GSAS MA’74, was displayed in a juried group show at the Marin Museum of Contemporary Art. Sherri is a recent recipient of an Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Emergency Grant.

Janet Rodgers, GSAS MFA’75, wrote and performs in the solo piece “Tea at 3:00 With Eleanor Roosevelt and Me.” She won a Best of Solofest 2024 award in Los Angeles for her portrayal of Irena Gut, a Polish girl who saved countless Jewish lives during World War II. Janet lives on Cape Cod with husband Christus Murphy, and stays in touch with Janet Neipris, GSAS MFA’75, and Will Weiss, GSAS MFA’76.

Moshe Waldoks, GSAS MA’77, PhD’84, retired after 25 years as spiritual leader and founder of Temple Beth Zion in Brookline, Massachusetts. He wrote, produced and performed the one-man show “You Can Live If They Let You” at the Boston Center for the Arts in September 2024, and is the co-editor of “The Big Book of Jewish Humor,” still in print after more than 40 years.

Ann Matranga, Heller MMHS’80, who lives in Eugene, Oregon, is a developmental editor and writing coach, and a part-time substitute teacher in the public school system. She has three grandchildren (the 19-year-old is teaching her about hip-hop).

Reuben Simoyi, GSAS MA’81, PhD’82, retired from Oregon’s Portland State University as a chemistry professor.

Claudia Thomas Kairoff, GSAS PhD’85, was awarded Wake Forest University’s Medallion of Merit, in recognition of her 36 years of service as an English professor, department chair and associate dean. A scholar of 18th-century British literature, particularly poetry by women, Claudia retired as professor emerita in 2022.

Rabbi Steven Rubenstein, GSAS MA’86, works at Jewish Home in Rochester, New York. He welcomed his first grandbaby, Meira B’rachah, in August 2024. The month before, he self-published “In the BIG-inning: A Rabbi’s Collection, Inning by Inning,” a book about the spiritual connection he has to his baseball memorabilia.

Beverly Stein, GSAS MFA’88, PhD’94, celebrated the publication of her book “Unlocking Meaning in Art Song” (Rowman & Littlefield) in September 2024.

Eduardo Saenz-Rovner, GSAS PhD’89, is the author of “Colombia Connection: A History of Drug Trafficking in Colombia From the 1930s to the 1990s” (Planeta/CRÍTICA, 2021).

John Benitz, GSAS MFA’91, is a professor in the theater department at Chapman University, in Southern California. He recently directed “Behind the Lines,” a feature-length documentary about a collection of letters written during wartime, narrated by Annette Bening, and featuring Laura Dern and Common.

Trine Lustig, GSAS MA’96, Heller MMHS’96, is chief advancement officer at Jewish Vocational Service Boston.

Shannon Stein, GSAS MA’97, runs her own family law and mediation firm in Sunnyvale, California. She earned a JD at Michigan State University in 2000.

Erin Yale, Heller MM’98, is chief operating officer at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Plymouth. Previously, she was vice president of surgical, diagnostic and therapeutics services at Children’s Wisconsin, where she earlier served as executive director of neuroscience services and imaging, director of emergency services and imaging, and administrator of diagnostic imaging and professional services.

Xinning Jia, Heller MA’99, is director general of the strategy, policy and partnerships department at Asian Development Bank. She has worked at ADB for 25 years.

In November 2024, Simon Rabinovitch, GSAS MA’03, PhD’07, celebrated the publication of “Sovereignty and Religious Freedom: A Jewish History” by Yale University Press. He is the Stotsky Associate Professor of Jewish Historical and Cultural Studies at Northeastern University.

Karina Baum, GSAS PhD’04, is co-editor of “Current Trends in Global Education: Bridging K-12 and Higher Education for an Interconnected World,” published by Star Scholars Press in October 2024.

Kevin Donnelly, GSAS MA’05, PhD’11, wrote “The Descent of Artificial Intelligence: A Deep History of an Idea 400 Years in the Making,” published by the University of Pittsburgh Press in May 2024.

Banu Eligur, GSAS PhD’06, is a political science professor and director of the European Union and International Relations Institute at Başkent University, in Ankara, Turkey.

Olajide Olagunju, Heller MA’06, GSAS MA’08, in 2024 became founder and president of a new university — Jesus College, in Maryland. He also became a grandfather.

Sarah (Zipkin) Zoen, Heller MA’06, is human rights commissioner and chair for the city of Watertown, Massachusetts.

Daniel Gardner, Rabb MS’09, is the founder of DMG Brokerage, a commercial real estate firm. The company has an office in Norwood, Massachusetts, and another in Newport, Rhode Island.

Niki Ndebele, Heller MA’09, is program director at Strategic Partnerships for Advancing Research and Knowledge (SPARK), a program at the Institute of International Education. She has a 13-year-old son.

David Peters, IBS MBA’09, is legal counsel at GQG Partners, an investment management company. He is also director of the board that oversees the $12 billion pension fund of the Presbyterian Church (USA).

Elema Dido, Heller MA’11, is founder and chief executive officer of Development Initiative for Rural Reconstruction and Assistance, an NGO that seeks to transform lives and livelihoods in the marginalized pastoralist communities of northern Kenya’s Marsabit County.

William Geibel, GSAS MA’12, is a tenure-track assistant teaching professor of experiential learning at UC San Diego.

Charles Musaba, Heller MA’13, is a principal assistant chief administrative officer at Bududa District Local Government, in Uganda. He has two sons and two daughters.

Malka Zeiger Simkovich, GSAS PhD’15, is editor-in-chief and director of the Jewish Publication Society, and the author of “Letters From Home: The Creation of Diaspora in Jewish Antiquity” (Eisenbrauns, 2024).

Jason Lynch, Heller MBA’16, launched a company that has developed the Gift Card Guard, an app that helps users keep track of all their gift cards.

Sarah Hohmeister, Rabb MS’17, is a consultant at SEI, a consulting firm that works in a variety of industries, including financial services, construction, real estate and the life sciences. 

Madelen Diaz, GSAS PhD’19, is an assistant teaching professor in the undergraduate behavioral neuroscience program at Florida International University, in Miami. At Brandeis, she studied in the lab of neuroscientist Michael Rosbash, who was awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Rinchen Jyid, Heller MA’20, does field research in China. She recently taught a group of students in Qinghai Province how to keep a nature journal and assisted in botany research in conservation areas in Yellow River source regions.

Jeyanthi Ghatraju, Rabb MS’23, is a senior manager in charge of Raytheon’s test equipment quality engineering group.