School Staff
Andrew Bleckner was an undergraduate at Brown University where he studied applied math and music. He then studied music composition at the University of Pennsylvania and received a Ph.D. in 1995. He has been teaching at Mishkan Shalom since 1999. In addition to teaching Hebrew and music electives, he also tutors students for their bar and bat mitzvahs. He loves working with kids and sharing his passion and appreciation for Jewish music and prayer. He feels especially at home with the Mishkan community. He lives with his friendly cat Angus.
Rivka Jarosh is the head of the school. She has been teaching at Mishkan since 1990. She has always loved teaching and the Jewish part of herself. Rivka started teaching religious school in 1969 while in college. Except for a few years, she has been teaching ever since. During the day, she teaches public school in Philadelphia. For the last several years she has been teaching Science. Rivka will be retiring from public school at the end of this school year in June 2008. She has become very involved with the synagogue here also, reading from the Torah regularly and coordinating the readers. Rivka also coordinates our participation in once a month providing a full meal to hungry people at a Center on 63rd and Market Sts. She has served on many committees here and is the faculty representative to the Education Committee. She and her partner, Craig Cohen, have two grown up sons and one granddaughter. Besides what Rivka does here and for her day work, she does puzzles and gets involved in most political campaigns both locally and nationally. Rivka really enjoys her students and works hard in her teaching.
Jennifer Nates began teaching Gan-Alef-Bet in 2006. She also taught in our school for five years in the late 1990s. During the day, Jen teaches at Friends Street Haverford and have been teaching in elementary schools for six or so years. She graduated from Brandeis University many moons ago with a degree in Psychology and became certified as a teacher through Rosemont College in 1996. Jen remains committed to Mishkan as she is aligned with Mishkan's philosophy and delighted with her two daughters enjoyment of learning at Mishkan. She is also indebted to Mishkan because she met her husband through teaching here in 1995. They are an animal family and try very hard to live a thoughtful and authentic life.
Rabbi Yitzhak Nates first joined the Mishkan staff in 1996 as a rabbinical student, so some of them do hang around! He teaches children at a Waldorf School in Bucks County and is a Melton Instructor in Chester Co. and on the Main Line. He is a bar mitzvah tutor of Mishkan youth who is quite familiar with the Mishkan way and liturgy. He is dad to Eva and Alex. His partner Jen is a professional educator and is on our Mishkan staff working with Gan-Alef-Bet.
Nathan Weiner is a rabbinical student at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.He previously served as the director of teen education at Temple Rodef Shalom, in Falls Church, VA. He has been published in the reform movement's education journal "Torah at the Center," served on the editorial committee for Behrman House's recent publication for teens, "The Social Action Manual," and was recently a featured author in their bi-monthly newsletter, the Open Lion. A veteran teen educator and b'nai mitzvah tutor, Nathan is really excited to work with the 7th graders at Mishkan Shalom!
Ariel Zaslav moved to Philadelphia last year from Washington State. In Washington she worked as an organic farmer, a pre-school teacher and an education director at a reconstructionist congegation. She also founded a Reconstructionist Jewish day camp which just completed its sixth year. Ariel has worked with youth ages 2-18 and is passionate about both Judaism and experiential education. In addition to working the the 7th grade class Ariel will be serving as camp JRF liason to Mishkan Shalom. She is looking forward to being part of the Mishkan community.