Faculty & Staff
Our faculty and staff are proud to contribute to and support Mahart’s mission, educating and uplifting our students and alumnae. They are scholars and leaders who implement our sacred vision for the Jewish community.
Meet Maharat's Faculty & Staff
Dr. Esther Altmann
Director of Pastoral Education
Dr. Esther Altmann
Dr. Esther Altmann, Director of Pastoral Education at Maharat, is a clinical psychologist in private practice, specializing in psychotherapy with adolescents, young adults, and couples. Formerly on the teaching faculty of New York University, Adelphi University and Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School, she has also been a supervising psychologist at several New York City hospitals. She has served as an eating disorders consultant at several Jewish institutions and helped develop the treatment program at the Renfrew Center for Orthodox patients. Dr. Altmann writes and lectures in schools and communities on mental health topics.
Rabba Wendy Amsellem
Director of Beit Midrash Program and Halakha Faculty
Rabba Wendy Amsellem
Rabba Wendy Amsellem teaches Halakha at Maharat and is the Director of the Beit Midrash Program. She has also served as faculty for Drisha Institute and Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies and was a founding editor at The Lehrhaus. Rabba Wendy is the former Director of the Dr. Beth Samuels Drisha High School Program and she was the Rosh Kollel of the Drisha July Kollel. She has been a Wexner Graduate Fellow and a Mandel Jerusalem Fellow. She is an alumna of the Drisha Scholars Circle and she has a AB in History and Literature from Harvard University.
Liba Berger
Director of Recruitment and Admissions
Liba Berger
Liba Berger (she/her) graduated from Columbia and Yale with distinction before going on to found a non-profit devoted to the development of female+ leadership through arts and culture whose productions and workshops include numerous theatrical and literary collaborations. She has taught and served, also, as an associate at a number of educational institutions, including Bespoke and Boost. Her work focuses on the active promotion and recruitment of underrepresented Jewish voices through text and community. The daughter of immigrants, she is bilingual in Russian and lives in Riverdale with her rescue pup, husband, and daughters.
Maya Bernstein
Director of Leadership Education
Maya Bernstein
Maya Bernstein designs and facilitates gatherings and teaches leadership globally for nonprofits and foundations. She co-founded and led the Executive Certificate in Facilitation at Georgetown University’s School of Continuing Studies from 2015-2025, and is the founding lead consultant for Camp Stone’s Klineman Leadership Initiative Fellowship. Her first collection of poetry, There Is No Place Without You, was published in 2022 by Ben Yehuda Press, and she served for three years as a founding board member at Yetzirah: A Hearth for Jewish Poetry. She received a B.A from Columbia College, and M.Ed from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, and an MFA in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College, and is a 2012 Covenant Foundation Pomegranate Prize recipient.
Aaron Billig
Director of Finance and Administration
Aaron Billig
Aaron Billig is Maharat’s Director of Finance and Administration. He served as the Chief Operating Officer of a large synagogue in Northern New Jersey for over a decade, overseeing all of the financial and operational needs of the synagogue. Aaron has previous experience as a financial analyst with a leading investment management and research company, as well as a number of years in public accounting. In his spare time, Aaron enjoys running, traveling, and spending time with his family. Aaron lives in Northern New Jersey with his wife, their children, and their two dogs.
Rabbanit Avital Engelberg
Director of Maharat BaAretz and Tehila
Rabbanit Avital Engelberg
Rabbanit Avital Engelberg is the Director of Maharat BaAretz and Tehila: Ein Hanatziv-Maharat Advanced Semikha in Israel. She facilitates Orthodox weddings outside the Rabbinate with the CHUPPOT organization. Rabbanit Avital was a fellow of the Halakha program at Midreshet Lindenbaum and holds a BA in Theatre from Tel Aviv University, and a master’s degree in Talmud from Bar-Ilan University. Rabbanit Avital has served as the Rabbanit at Congregation Beth Sholom in Providence, RI and taught Talmud at Maharat, and various Jewish educational institutions in Israel, including Elul, Beit Midrash Alma, Midreshet Ein Prat, and Israel’s Bronfman Youth Fellowship Program.
Jennifer Feldman
Assistant to the President
Jennifer Feldman
After many spending many years in the corporate world, Jennifer Feldman is using her sales and marketing experience to help create and nurture female leadership.
Rabbi Jeffrey Fox
Rosh HaYeshiva and Dean of Faculty
Rabbi Jeffrey Fox
Rabbi Jeffrey S. Fox, Rosh HaYeshiva and Dean of Faculty of Maharat, was the first graduate of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah. Upon graduation he served as the Rabbi of Kehilat Kesher: The Community Synagogue of Tenafly and Englewood for seven years. In Rabbi Fox’s tenure at Kesher, the community grew three-fold from thirty families to nearly one hundred. During that time Rabbi Fox also taught at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah as well as the Florence Melton Adult Education School in Bergen County. He also served on the board of the Synagogue Leadership Initiative of the UJA of NNJ. Rabbi Fox was a Senior Rabbinic Fellow of the Shalom Hartman Institute and has also been a member of the faculty of the Drisha Institute, the Florence Melton Adult Education School in Westchester County, and Hadar.
Writings
Yael Gevertzman
Communications Manager
Yael Gevertzman
Yael Gevertzman graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts from Barnard College. She has worked in the Jewish nonprofit community for the past 15 years, most recently as an outreach program and technology coordinator at Sharsheret. She brings her expertise in technology and communications to Maharat, as well as a passion for all things digital media. She lives in Teaneck with her husband, two children and her (precious baby) cat. In her downtime she loves to cook, is a voracious reader and is happy to share broadway, or television show recommendations.
Jennifer Stern Granowitz
Internship Coordinator
Jennifer Stern Granowitz
Jennifer Stern Granowitz is Maharat’s Internship Coordinator. Jennifer is currently working as an education consultant with a focus on Jewish education. Prior to consulting, Jennifer was the Religious School Director at Park Avenue Synagogue. Jennifer spent many summers as a camper and staff member at Camp Ramah in New England and also served on their Board of Directors. Jennifer is an alum of UJA’s Ruskay Fellowship, holds an MA in Jewish Education from The Jewish Theological Seminary, and a BA in sociology from The Johns Hopkins University. She lives in Westchester with her husband and three children.
Rabba Sara Hurwitz
President and Co-Founder
Rabba Sara Hurwitz
Rabba Sara Hurwitz is the President and Co-founder of Maharat. She is the first woman to be publicly ordained as an Orthodox rabbi, after which she founded Maharat, growing it from three students in 2009 to 100 graduates in 2025. She also serves on the rabbinic staff at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale – The Bayit. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, Rabba Sara immigrated to Florida at the age of 12. She attended Midreshet Lindenbaum, Barnard College, Drisha Institute’s Scholar Circle, after which she worked with Rabbi Weiss at The Bayit and studied under his auspices for ordination. Rabba Sara is a sought out speaker throughout the country and her writing has been featured in many Jewish publications. She was awarded the Hadassah Foundation Bernice S. Tannenbaum prize, the Trailblazer Award Recipient at UJA Federation of New York, and the Rabbi Israel and Libby Mowshowitz award by the New York Board of Rabbis, and she was named as one of the Forward50 most influential Jewish leaders and to Newsweek’s 50 most influential rabbis. Rabba Sara lives in Riverdale, New York with husband and four sons.
Writings
Kathryn Kitt
Administrative and Development Associate
Kathryn Kitt
Kathryn Kitt is a classically trained lyric soprano who holds degrees from Bennington College and SUNY Purchase, where she earned her master’s in Opera Studies. She has performed in opera houses, synagogues, and sacred institutions for many years, sharing her passion for music in both artistic and spiritual settings. In recent years, Kathryn has brought her musical and organizational talents to Jewish communal life, where she has deepened her skills in both performance and administration. She is thrilled to work at Maharat, where she is honored to support its mission. Kathryn lives in Bedford, NY with her three musically inclined children. Their car rides often turn into four-part harmony sing-alongs—making even the longest drives a joyful experience.
Rabbanit Atara Lindenbaum
Chaplaincy Coordinator
Rabbanit Atara Lindenbaum
Rabbanit Atara Lindenbaum is the Associate Rabbanit at the Hebrew Institute of White Plains. Previously, Rabbanit Atara directed and led Maharat’s Emerging Scholars in Israel Program, taught conversion classes through the Israeli Rabbinate and served as the Director of Community Education at the Tel Aviv International Synagogue. She also served as Judaic faculty at schools in Boston, Houston, and New York. Rabbanit Atara completed the Tanakh Educator’s Program through Matan and Hebrew University, as well as a Masters in Urban Planning from Hunter University. Rabbanit Atara worked in community planning, focusing on methods of inclusion and equity. Rabbanit Atara works to support and lead communities of spirituality and meaning that are inviting to all who want to join.
Rabbi Adam Mintz
Faculty
Rabbi Adam Mintz
Rabbi Adam Mintz teaches Talmud at Maharat. Rabbi Mintz is the Founder and Rabbi of Kehilat Rayim Ahuvim, a Modern Orthodox community on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. He is the Director of 929 English, a project that promotes the daily study of a chapter of the Tanakh through an updated webpage and social media. Rabbi Mintz is also an Adjunct Associate Professor of Jewish History at City College, New York.
Liz Offenbach
Executive Vice President
Liz Offenbach
Liz Offenbach is Executive Vice President of Maharat, where she oversees and implements it strategic plan, vision for the future, and sustainable institutional structures and systems. Liz has worked in the nonprofit community for two decades, most recently serving as the Associate Executive Director of a large Manhattan Synagogue, where she led administration and developed many departments and programs. Earlier in her career, Liz worked at an advertising agency, in the television industry, and at several publications. Liz earned a Master in Public Administration from Baruch College, part of the City University of New York, and a Bachelor of Arts from New York University. Liz enjoys spending time with her family, running, reading and baking.
Rabbi Daniel Reifman
Gemara Faculty
Rabbi Daniel Reifman
Rabbi Daniel Reifman is grateful to have been teaching Torah in a variety of institutions of higher learning for the past 20 years. In addition to teaching at Yeshivat Maharat, he currently teaches also at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem and at the Institute for Advanced Torah Studies at Bar-Ilan University. Rabbi Reifman’s education attests to his wide-ranging intellectual interests: he holds a BA in biology from Columbia University, rabbinic ordination and an MA in Tanakh from Yeshiva University, and a PhD in hermeneutics from Bar-Ilan. He has published and lectured widely on topics in philosophy of halakhah, Jewish medical ethics, and Tanakh. He is the author most recently of the curriculum, “Timeless Tales, Modern Sensibilities: A Deep Look at the Books of Esther and Ruth”, for the Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning.
Dr. Rachel Rosenthal
Director of Learning Initiatives
Dr. Rachel Rosenthal
Dr. Rachel Rosenthal is Gemara faculty and Director of Learning Initiatives at Maharat. Previously, she was an adjunct assistant professor of Rabbinic Literature at the Jewish Theological Seminary and served as a Research Fellow and faculty member at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America. She received her PhD in Rabbinic Literature from JTS, was a Graduate Fellow in the Center for Law and Jewish Civilization at Cardozo Law School, a David Hartman Center Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute, and a Wabash Teaching Fellow. She was the first graduate student ever to be voted List College Professor of the Year. Rachel is a graduate of the Drisha Scholars Circle and holds a BA in religious studies from the University of Pennsylvania. She lives in Manhattan with her husband and children.
Rabbanit Dr. Liz Shayne
Dean of Academics
Rabbanit Dr. Liz Shayne
Rabbanit Dr. Liz Shayne is the Dean of Academics at Yeshivat Maharat as well as an alumna. She came to Maharat after completing her PhD from University of California, Santa Barbara, where she studied the past, present, and future of digital reading. She loves old books in new forms, analyzes how halakha and technology can work together, and is a teacher committed to the idea that studying Torah can and must be for everyone. During her time at Maharat, she worked with Sefaria on the Sefaria & Maharat Women Scholar’s Writing Fellowship and interned at Skokie Valley Agudath Jacob and the Hebrew Institute of White Plains. She writes and teaches about everything from how the Talmud is like the internet to the future of robots in halakha.
Amanda Shechter
Director of Foundation and Donor Relations
Amanda Shechter
Amanda Shechter, Director of Foundation and Donor Relations, joined Maharat in 2016 as its first Executive Director. Amanda is a graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University School of Law. She was a member of the inaugural class of Nishmat in Jerusalem and served on the board of American Friends of Nishmat for sixteen years. Amanda practiced law for over 20 years, primarily in commercial litigation and real estate. She served as President of the Campus for Jewish Life (formerly the YM-YWHA of Raritan Valley) for many years. She and her husband live in East Brunswick, NJ have three children, and two grandsons.
Rabbi Dr. Erin Leib Smokler
Director of Spiritual Development
Rabbi Dr. Erin Leib Smokler
Rabbi Dr. Erin Leib Smokler is the Director of Spiritual Development at Yeshivat Maharat, where she teaches chasidism and Pastoral Torah. Rabbi Dr. Leib Smokler earned both her PhD and MA from the University of Chicago’s Committee on Social Thought and her BA from Harvard University. She was ordained by Yeshivat Maharat. Erin previously served as Assistant Literary Editor of The New Republic magazine, and her writing has appeared there, as well as in The New York Times Book Review, The Jewish Week, and other publications. She won the 2021 National Jewish Book Award in Modern Jewish Thought and Experience for her collection, Torah in a Time of Plague: Historical and Contemporary Jewish Reflections (Ben Yehudah Press).
Writings
Rabbi Dr. Daniel Sperber
Posek Emeritus
Rabbi Dr. Daniel Sperber
Rabbi Dr. Daniel Sperber, posek emeritus, served as the Posek HaYeshiva Maharat for 16 years, and he facilitated semikha exams for its musmakhot. He is the Milan Roven Professor of Talmudic Studies (emeritus) and former Dean of Faculty of Jewish Studies, Bar-Ilan University. Rabbi Sperber held the office of President of the Ludwig and Erica Jesselson Institute of Advanced Torah Studies at Bar Ilan University. He is widely known as an expert in classical philology, history of Jewish customs, Jewish art history, Jewish education, and Talmudic studies. In 1992, Professor Sperber was awarded the distinguished Israel Prize in Jewish Studies.
Rabbanit Aliza Sperling
Beit Midrash Program Faculty
Rabbanit Aliza Sperling
Rabbanit Aliza Sperling serves as Talmud faculty at Yeshivat Maharat. She is the director of SVIVAH’s HerTorah, a pluralistic women’s learning community dedicated to expanding women’s Torah, and a Wexner faculty member. She received her ordination from Yeshivat Maharat and a JD from NYU Law School. She lives with her family in Israel.
Rabbi Avi Weiss
Co-Founder
Rabbi Avi Weiss
Rabbi Avi Weiss is co-founder of Maharat, founding rabbi of the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale – the Bayit, and founder of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School. He also co-founded of the International Rabbinic Fellowship, an organization of Modern Orthodox rabbis, and PORAT: People for Orthodox Renaissance And Torah. Rabbi Weiss served as National Chairman of the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry from 1982 to 1991 and subsequently as National President of AMCHA – the Coalition for Jewish Concerns, raising a voice of moral conscience on behalf of the Jewish people and humankind throughout the world. Rabbi Weiss has authored numerous books, articles, and editorials published in journals and newspapers around the world.
