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Meet our Summer Speakers

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Ms. Michelle (Hadassah) Margolis  is the Norman E. Alexander Librarian for Jewish Studies at Columbia University. She co-directs Footprints: Jewish Books Through Time and Place, is the creator of "Codex Conquest: Jewish Edition," and has curated various library exhibitions, both physical and virtual. Her research interests fall in the history of the Jewish book and early Hebrew printing.

 

Mrs. Amian Frost Kelemer loves learning, which is why she also loves teaching. She has a degree in Education and English Literature from Barnard College and an MS in Education from Johns Hopkins University. Amian has worked in the field of Jewish education for 30 years, first at the Center for Jewish Education in Baltimore and currently as the Director of Operating Programs at the Mayberg Foundation. In her free time, Amian enjoys family time, reading and playing violin. 

 

Mrs. Rivka Maron has a BA in holocaust studies from Michlalah Jerusalem College as well as a MA in Medieval Jewish History from Bernard Revel Graduate School of Yeshiva University.  She is currently a PH.D Candidate in Early Modern Jewish History at University of Maryland College Park.  Her dissertation is on Rav Shemuel Aboab of seventeenth century Venice.  She currently teaches Jewish history at Bais Yaakov of Baltimore and WITS/Maalot.

 

Rabbi Yisrael Motzen is the Rabbi of Ner Tamid in Baltimore. He is a graduate of Ner Israel Rabbinic College as well as Johns Hopkins University where he earned a Master’s of Science in Counseling. Rabbi Motzen became the rabbi of the synagogue in 2012, only the third rabbi to serve the congregation since 1961, when the synagogue opened at its present location. Since joining the synagogue, he has introduced numerous Torah classes, youth programs, special events, and holiday programs. Join him on Shabbat for his increasingly popular sermons,  which emphasize a positive approach to Judaism, practical applications of the Torah’s wisdom, and an authentic look at life. 

 

Mrs. Shifra Rabenstein received her B.A. in Judaic Studies from Stern College.  She went on to earn a Masters degree in School Administration from Johns Hopkins University.  She is a faculty member of the Rebbetzin Frieda K. Hirmes Women’s Institute of Torah, WITS/Maalot Baltimore and Bais Yaakov of Baltimore. She resides with her husband and three children in Baltimore, Maryland. 

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After graduating Michlalah and Stern College for Women, Mrs. Jaclyn Sova got her master's in education from the Azrieli Graduate School of Education and Administration and is in the process of finishing the doctoral program there. While in New York, Jaclyn taught at SKA. When her family moved to Baltimore, MD she taught at Bnos Yisroel and Beth Tfiloh's high schools while also lecturing throughout the community. She launched a program for high school girls called BGCubed, giving Bais Yaakov girls the opportunity to have meaningful Jewish experiences outside of school where they can grow socially, emotionally, and religiously.  

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Mrs. Ruhama Welcher has been teaching Torah to high school girls and women in London, the USA and South Africa for the past 17 years. She is the founder and director of the Teacher Training Academy and the Hazel Sasson Women's Learning Centre in Johannesburg. Ruhama received her Masters Degree in Educational Leadership and Innovation from Warwick University in England. She is currently pursuing a PhD in education at the Institute of Education in University College London. She lives with her husband and children in Johannesburg.

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