ATJC Communication

Dear ATJC Family,

We hope this email finds you and your family safe, healthy and well. 

One of the core elements of our synagogue’s mission is Jewish learning. It starts with our youngest students at the Tauber Academy under the leadership of our talented Director Cindy Behar and continues with our grade school students, teens, and adults of all ages. Today, we are excited to share with you the growth and expansion of our Religious School and Teen Educational programs and introduce you to their respective directors.

Corinne Farkash Mizrahi, our gifted Jewish studies teacher who has been coordinating our Religious School, will now serve as the Assistant Director of Family Education. Corinne, our gifted Jewish studies teacher who has been coordinating our Religious School, will now serve as the Assistant Director of Family Education. In this capacity, she will direct our Religious School and serve as the Jewish Resource Specialist and Judaic Studies teacher for Tauber Academy. She will work closely with Cindy Behar and Amy Hauser to provide a programmatic bridge between our Preschool and Religious School and will expand our offerings of Jewish family educational programs. We are proud of Corinne’s growth as a leader in the educational life of our congregation and look forward to sharing many wonderful learning experiences together for years to come.

As of this month, Roger Rosenthal joins our ATJC educational family as our new Assistant Director of B’nai Mitzvah, Teen and Ritual Education. Roger will lead Jewish educational initiatives for children ages 12 through 18, including a revised, robust B’nai Mitzvah program, educational trips (God willing one day soon!), regular teen programs, online programs and more. Roger is an Israeli Jewish educator currently living in Bogota, Colombia where he is concluding his tenure as the Head of Judaic Studies at the local Jewish Day School.

Born in Argentina, Roger’s family made Aliyah to Israel when he was young. After serving in the IDF, he earned his B.A. from Ben Gurion University of the Negev and his M.A. from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. In addition, he served as the Jewish Agency’s shaliach (“emissary”) for ORT in Buenos Aires, Argentina, one of the largest Jewish High Schools in the world with more than 5000 students. He has staffed several teen trips to Israel, including the March of the Living, as well as many other youth education programs in Israel. His full-time tenure at ATJC formally begins July 1st when Roger, his wife Dr. Ariana Scharifker and their children Ghili (7) and Ilan (4) move to Aventura. But he has already begun joining our daily morning minyan via Zoom and will meet our teens for the first time tonight for a program to celebrate Yom Yerushalayim.

We are thrilled to lead this talented team of Jewish educators and look forward to expanding and deepening all of our educational initiatives. One thing this pandemic has taught us is the importance of focusing on our core mission and prioritizing our resources. This re-organization of our youth educational team will enable us to accomplish both.

Please join us in congratulating Corinne on her new position and welcoming Roger Rosenthal to our ATJC family. Feel free to reach out to Corinne at Corinne@atjc.org and Roger at Roger@atjc.org to learn more about them and their plans for our students.

Wishing you a peaceful and healthy week,
 
Rabbi Guido Cohen                                          Rabbi Jonathan Berkun