Center for Spiritual Life

Originally from San Diego, Kayla moved to the Boston area for university and received a physics degree with a music minor from MIT. She then interned with Cru in the Cambridge/Upper Boston area and is now on staff in the Western Suburbs, including Brandeis. Cru Brandeis is an interdenominational Christian fellowship that holds small group bible studies, fun events, large group gatherings, retreats, mission trips, etc.
As a university student, Kayla came to understand the good news of Jesus through Cru at MIT. There she got to be a part of a community of people who have a personal relationship with God, finding purpose, peace, and joy through knowing him. Now Kayla is passionate about connecting students to Jesus and equipping them to live meaningful missional lives loving God and others well. Kayla enjoys conversations about God with anyone from any background who has questions about Christianity, so don’t hesitate to reach out.

Donald rejoined the staff of Brandeis Asian Baptist Student Koinonia (ABSK) in 2024 after serving at MIT ABSK and overseas doing mission work in the Republic of Georgia. He holds a doctorate in Chemistry and has a great love of science and technology, but his real passion is serving and supporting college students with the love of Jesus Christ. He and his wife Jung Yoon Choi, with other staff members, can be found in the Shapiro Campus Center every Friday night, feeding students with good food, fellowship, and the Word of God.

Donald is a college pastor at Antioch Baptist Church in Cambridge, and his "day job" is being the principal of a small homeschool co-op. He loves teaching children to appreciate the joys and wonders of God's Creation and helping them reach their God-given potential.

Yaakov was born and raised in Manchester, United Kingdom. He spent a few years in a Yeshiva, a talmudic college, both in England and in Israel honing his learning/teaching skills and developing his character. After marrying his wife Chavi in June 2019, Yaakov and Chavi settled in Jerusalem and joined a program named Kollel Eitz Pri. The program focuses on self-growth, learning and teaching skills, coaching and guiding, with opportunities for hands-on experience. Other than his joy for learning and teaching Yaakov is an avid football (called soccer on this side of the pond!) fan and loves playing with friends.

Yaakov joined the MEOR team of Boston in September 2022 and is responsible for MEOR programming and education at Brandeis University. It will be an exciting journey for all of us, for MEOR, for Family Frankel, for the students and their families and for Brandeis University.

What is MEOR?

Launched in 2005, MEOR’s unique brand of Jewish leadership training, sophisticated text-based study and experiential education programming highlights the importance of Jewish values, identity and community. In over 15 years, MEOR has impacted more than 18,000 undergraduate students, encouraging them to connect with Judaism on their own terms and in their own time.

Yoni is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis where he majored in philosophy/neuroscience/psychology and played tennis on the team. After university, a year off to study Judaism in Israel before going to medical school became nine. He became a rabbi, receiving ordination from the Jerusalem Kollel. For the last seven years, he has been running MEOR programming at Harvard University, bringing Jewish text and philosophy to light. He looks forward to working with Brandeis students starting this year.

Launched in 2005, MEOR’s unique brand of Jewish leadership training, sophisticated text-based study and experiential education programming highlights the importance of Jewish values, identity and community. In over 15 years, MEOR has impacted more than 18,000 undergraduate students, encouraging them to connect with Judaism on their own terms and in their own time.

Dalia Mabrouk is originally from Egypt, where she practiced as a medical doctor. She now lives in Boston with her husband and three children. She is pursuing a Masters in Islamic Religious Leadership at the Boston Islamic Seminary. She loves being in nature and at the sea shore, and enjoys cooking and handcrafts, especially sewing, knitting and crochet.

Samantha Pickette is the Hillel Assistant Director. She has a Ph.D. in American Studies from Boston University. Her research focuses on Jewish-American culture, with a particular emphasis on representations and stereotypes of Jewish women in American literature, film, television and comedy. She has taught courses at BU, Smith College, UT Austin, where she served as Assistant Director of the Schusterman Center for Jewish Studies, and Boston College, where she served as the inaugural visiting fellow in Jewish Studies. She is now a faculty affiliate of the Near Eastern and Judaic Studies (NEJS) department at Brandeis. She coordinated the Gilda Slifka Summer Internship at the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute for three years, mentoring students and facilitating their learning about Jewish Boston in a collegial and pluralistic setting. Her work has been published in Shofar, Studies in American Jewish Literature, and The Journal of Modern Jewish Studies, among others. Her first monograph, Peak TV’s Unapologetic Jewish Woman: Exploring Jewish Female Representation in Contemporary Television Comedy, was released by Lexington Books in 2022.

Anjelo is the Team Director for Campus Boston with FOCUS, which stands for the Fellowship Of Catholic University Students. The organization leads Bible studies and helps students to grow in their faith, walk with others, and live a life of discipleship. He is entering his eighth year with FOCUS and has served in many capacities on a variety of college campuses, including directing mission trips, leading retreats for college students, and mentoring students and missionaries. Please reach out to him about Bible study or learning more about the Catholic faith. Anjelo is a graduate of Temple University in Philadelphia, PA with a degree in Neuroscience and Psychology. He loves the city life and is able to find the best places to eat, drink coffee, and hang out in any city.

Marianne is a graduate of Connecticut College with a liberal arts bachelor's degree in environmental biology and holds a master's degree in missional church movements from Wheaton Graduate School in Wheaton, Illinois. For the last 10 years, she has served Brandeis, specifically \graduate students and faculty. She particularly enjoys encouraging students to think through the integration of their faith and profession in ways that cause flourishing and common good.

She is in her 14th-year serving with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, a vibrant campus ministry that establishes and advances communities of students and faculty who witness to Jesus as Savior within the vocational context of the campus. It supports students to engage in discipleship around Scripture.

After graduating from Central Connecticut State University with her B.S. in Dance Education with PK-12 Education Certification, she has pursued the call to go out and make disciples of all nations serving with FOCUS, the Fellowship of Catholic University Students, where she serves on campuses throughout the Boston area. Following FOCUS’ mission to know Christ Jesus and to fulfill His great commission, Marilyn aspires to encounter other young people in authentic friendship, walk with them in the faith, and help equip others to do the same. For those interested in joining a bible study, grabbing coffee, or learning about the Catholic faith, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Marilyn.

Fr. Joseph E. Weiss, a member of the Society of Jesus, was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska. After graduating from Benedictine College in Atchison Kansas he was an elementary and middle school teacher before entering the Jesuits. Following ordination to the priesthood he served as the associate pastor for Sacred Heart Parish on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota before pursuing graduate studies in theology. Fr. Weiss received his Doctorate in Liturgical Studies from the University of Notre Dame where he also taught undergraduate and graduate students in theology. Having been the pastor of Saint Thomas More Church in Saint Paul, Minnesota for 12 years, he joined the faculty of the School of theology and Ministry at Boston college as Professor of Liturgy in 2016 and has served the Catholic Community at Brandeis University since 2022.

Originally from Pennsylvania, Fr. Bill is a Jesuit priest and a teaching fellow in philosophy at Boston College. He serves as a priest at St. Ignatius Church in Chestnut Hill and sacramental ministry for Boston College Campus Ministry. Fr. Bill previously taught at the College of the Holy Cross (Worcester, MA), ministered as a hospice chaplain in the Bronx, and served as associate pastor at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

Tony is a Cru Brandeis alum who fell in love with campus ministry during his time of study at the International Business School. A native of Beijing, Tony brings professional experiences from Higher Education and Consulting, and has called both Tennessee and Illinois home before moving to Massachusetts. He is excited about partnering with Cru to encourage students in practicing the Way of Jesus and living out God's mission on campus and onwards.

Yuegang Zhang is a pastor at the Chinese Bible Church of Greater Boston in Lexington, MA. Pastor Yuegang grew up in China. He became a Christian in 2001. He is passionate about both science and Christian faith. He has a Ph.D. in Chemistry from SUNY Buffalo and a Master of Divinity degree from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. Yuegang is affiliate chaplain of the Mandarin fellowship at Brandeis, which welcomes all the Mandarin speaking members of the Brandeis community to know about the Holy Bible and the Christian faith.