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The Hebrew High staff consists of a group of men and women who gather together each week, not only to teach our teenagers;
but also to listen to their problems and successes, to help them deal with difficult situations, and to serve as Jewish role
models. Working with teenagers is a tremendous challenge, but it is one that our teachers meet with determination, courage
and love.
CHS FACULTY
ANDREW BERNSTEIN
Born and raised in Charlotte, NC, Andrew went to school and played football
at Furman University
where he majored in Political Science and Education. He taught in the Charlotte Mecklenburg School System for 5 years
before becoming a Service Manager for Simplex Grinnell. Andrew and his wife, Elka, have three children: Nathan, Jordan and Jacob.
SARA BRYAN
Sara, a former Temple
Beth El and Hebrew High student, is excited about the opportunity to teach at Hebrew High. Sara has a great deal of
leadership experience. After graduating from NC State, Sarah served as a Jewish Campus Service Corps Fellow through
Hillel at the University of Oregon.
As a Charlottean, Sara brings the knowledge of what it feels like to grow up Jewish in the South. She went to Myers Park High
School and can relate to today’s teens. She is creative and full of energy and excited
to join our Hebrew High family.
RABBI FAITH CANTOR
Rabbi Cantor received her Rabbinic ordination and a Masters degree
in Jewish Education from the Jewish Theological Seminary in May, 2004. Rabbi Cantor worked as the Rabbi-in-Residence
for Jewish Studies for the Solomon Schechter Day School in Commack, NY and as Associate Rabbi for the Dix Hills Jewish Center
in Dix Hills, New York. Rabbi Cantor also has several years of experience as the Director of Education for Camp Ramah in the Berkshires and grew up in Anaheim, California. Rabbi Cantor and
her husband, David have a son, Amidan and a daughter, Devorah.
ROZ COOPER
Roz Cooper is the former Director of Education
at both Temple Israel
and Temple Beth El V’Shalom. In pursuing her passion for Jewish Education and concern for Jewish Continuity, Roz has
taught Jewish students of all ages (from preschool to adult). She earned a B.A. in Sociology from Colby
College in Waterville, Maine
and an M.Ed in Special Education from National Louis
University in Evanston, Illinois. Roz has presented workshops on Jewish Education throughout the Southeast. Roz
enjoys traveling with her husband Ivan, serving on the Regional and local boards of Hadassah, volunteering for various organizations
throughout the community and spending time with her children and grandchildren.
DONNA DEGROOT
Donna de Groot has a Masters Degree in Community Health Nursing from USC Columbia. She
has lived for 11 years in Israel, and for the past 10 years has taught
Hebrew to adults and to students in Temple Israel's
after-school program and at the Charlotte Jewish Day school. Donna is the Religious
School director for Temple Emanuel in Gastonia. She lives
in Charlotte with her husband David and two daughters, Hadas
and Tali.
RABBI MURRAY
EZRING
Originally from Rock Island, IL, Rabbi Murray Ezring received his Bachelor's
Degree in History/the teaching of Social Studies with a minor concentration in Psychology and Hebrew language. Following
his graduation from the University of Illinois,
Rabbi Ezring attended the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York City,
where he earned his Master's of Arts Degree and his ordination as Rabbi. For the last nine years he has been the Senior Rabbi
at Temple Israel, Charlotte, NC, and serves as a backup Chaplain to the Charlotte/Mecklenburg
Police Department. He is also a member of the Interfaith Council of the NCCJ and a Board member of Mecklenburg Ministries.
Rabbi Ezring and his wife, Barbara, are the proud parents of four children, Aviva, , Ron, Gil and Tami and her new husband.
REUVEN GREEN
Reuven Douglas
Green has lived in Charlotte for 7 years, and has been on
the faculty of Hebrew High for 5 years. He is employed at the JCC in the membership department. When not teaching, Reuven
likes to paint, read and cook.
AMY MONTONI
Amy Krakovitz Montoni will be entering her
third year teaching at Hebrew High. She has also been a third-grade Hebrew teacher at Temple Beth El Religious School for
seven years. She is passionate about her Judaism, Israel,
and Jewish education. In her capacity as the community’s editor of the Charlotte Jewish News (her “real”
job), Amy has been exposed to the many faces of Judaism: religious, cultural, linguistic, patriotic, and even gustatorial.
She really hopes she can engage 8th and 9th graders
in some new ways to think about and look at their Jewish selves.
KAREN
MAJERCSIK
Karen Majercsik
is happily returning to the Hebrew High program. Before moving to Charlotte, she had been teaching
at synagogues in Virginia and South Carolina
for 10 years. During that time she has taught many different grades, from third grade through Confirmation. Most
recently, she taught 7th grade and high school in Falls Church, VA, right outside of Washington DC. In addition, Karen
is the newly appointed Director of Tikvah Charlotte. Karen will also be assisting Cantor Bernard with the B’nai
Mitzvah program. Karen received a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the college of William and Mary and a Master
of Social Work degree from the University of South Carolina. She is a licensed social worker, and has a certification
on Applied Behavior Analysis. She has spent the last 14 years working in programs that serve adults with developmental
disabilities. Karen is very excited about her move to Charlotte, and is greatly looking forward to meeting everyone
and being a part of our program. Karen is also a proud new mother to baby Benjamin.
LISA NAGEL
Having grown up in Queens
NY, Lisa spent 16 years in South Florida which made her an official half-back when she moved here to the Queen City (really
Waxhaw) five years ago. Lisa's involvement in the community includes being an active member of Temple Israel. Lisa was the Drama
Specialist (Queen) at Camp Mindy, and is
a 4's Teacher here on Shalom Park
at the Charlotte Jewish Preschool . Lisa loves to cook, not only for her son Zachary, a student here at the
Consolidated Hebrew High, and with her CJP kids but also here with our ninth graders. You never know what she's going
to cook up with our kids!
BETSY OLINGER
Betsy Olinger brings
a unique perspective to Hebrew High. She’s taught Religious
School for 18 years and facilitates lively and interactive classes for
our teens. Betsy is a Leadership Coach and founder of Marketing-U College Admissions Services where she works with teens
to find their best fit for college. She also speaks throughout the region and consults with companies on leadership excellence.
She is the Chairman of the Robin Farber Leadership Program at Temple Beth-El. Betsy and her husband Scott live in the
Stonecrest area with their 2 elementary age sons, Alex and Sam.
RABBI
MICAH STREIFFER
Rabbi Micah Streiffer grew up in South Louisiana and received his Bachelors in Judaic studies
from the George Washington
University. After some time at Torah Aura Productions, a Jewish publishing
firm in Los Angeles, he attended the Hebrew
Union College – Jewish
Institute of Religion and was ordained a rabbi at the Cincinnati Campus. Rabbi Streiffer served six student pulpits during
his time in Cincinnati. He has traveled extensively in Europe
and Asia, in addition to spending three years in Israel.
He is married to Shoshana Streiffer and they have three sons – Rami and Noam and Yair.
TAIR
GIUDICE
Born in Beer-Sheva Israel,
Tair Just completed a BA in Middle Eastern studies from Ben
Gurion University. She
was in the Classified Intelligence Unit of the Israeli Army for 21 months. She was a camp counselor in Margate,
NJ, and has escorted a youth delegation to the Maccabi Games in Washington, DC. She has created social programs for
American counselors in Arad’s English summer camp, and has been a counselor in Ben Gurion University’s
“Perach” program which assists kids from low-income families and those who suffer from developmental disabilities.
Tair has extensive experience in the issues surrounding the Arab-Israeli conflict. She has traveled to Poland and feels a deep understanding of current and past
life in a Jewish community.
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