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Staff
Education Director
"Religious School provides an opportunity for students to gain a Jewish literacy that will travel with them throughout their life. Though it won’t provide a Jewish answer to everything, it will give the skills to ask the important questions from a Jewish perspective. The inclusion of Hebrew skills gives our students a passport to the Jewish community world-wide as the common language of our people. "
Hebrew Coordinator
Dina David-Smith is our Hebrew Coordinator and teaches Hebrew Lab.
Gan (Kindergarten) teacher
Amy Friedman teaches Hebrew in our Early Childhood Center and will also teach Judaics in our Religious School.
Kitah Alef (First Grade) Judaics Teacher
Dianne is involved in synagogue life in many areas: teacher, musician, storyteller.
Kitah Bet (Second Grade) Judaics Teacher
Bob is a singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He has been playing music professionally since he was 16. He has taught music and first grade in our Religious School and is excited to be teaching second grade this year.
Hebrew Teacher for Mechinah (K-2)
Ellie has taught Kindergarten at Beth-El Zedeck's Religious School for several years and currently teaches Hebrew for kindergarten, first, and second grades.
Kitah Gimmel (Third Grade) Judaics Teacher
Deja Morton is our Kitah Gimmel (Third Grade) Judaics Teacher this year in Religious School.
Kitah Gimmel (Third Grade) Hebrew Teacher
Clara teaches Hebrew both in Religious School and also the Early Childhood Center.
Kitah Dalet (Fourth Grade) Hebrew, and Judaics Teacher and Hebrew Lab Teacher
Rebekah Maccaby has taught in Religious School, the Early Childhood Center, and as an ASL (American Sign Language) interpreter.
Kitah Hey (Fifth Grade) Judaics Teacher
Zev has taught in our Religious School for several years, teaching kindergarten, first, fourth, fifth, and ninth grades.
Kitah Hey (Grade 5) Hebrew and Hebrew Lab Teacher
Rabbi Bruce is a board-certified chaplain and works at IU Health and ARN Hospice. He has taught in our Religious School for 14 years.
Kitah Vav (Sixth Grade) Judaics Teacher
Born and raised in Indianapolis, Ruth became a bat mitzvah at Beth-El Zedeck, before becoming confirmed and a madricha for Religious School. After graduating high school, she attended college at The University of Florida where she studied History and Economics. Post-college, Ruth completed a year of service with AmeriCorps in San Antonio, Texas, working as student support in underserved schools. Back in Indianapolis, Ruth is a high school math teacher.
Kitah Vav (Sixth Grade) Hebrew Teacher and Bar/Bat Mitzvah Instructor
Jeff will teach sixth grade Hebrew this year. He also tutors students as they prepare for their Bar/Bat Mitzvah.
Kitah Zayin (Seventh Grade) Judaics and Hebrew Teacher
Genna has been teaching since 2000, and teaching in our Religious School since 2008.
Tefillah Lab
Cantor Melissa Cohen grew up in Lakewood, New Jersey and earned a Bachelor of Music from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Master of Music from DePaul University.
Ulpan 8 Teacher and Youth Director
Martin has lots of experience with Jewish youth and is excited to work with the 8th grade class!
Ulpan 8 Hebrew Teacher
Tamar was born and raised in Israel and moved to the U.S. in 1991. She has a passion for helping people learn Hebrew in a positive, fun environment.
Confirmation Teacher
Rabbi Hal Schevitz was ordained at the Rabbinical School of Hebrew College in Newton, Massachusetts in 2013. He served as the Assistant Rabbi at Beth-El Zedeck from 2013-2016 and Rabbi at Congregation or Atid in Virginia from 2016-2022. Rabbi Hal is married to Jena, and they are the proud parents of Naomi and Arielle.
Confirmation Teacher
Dr. Dennis C. Sasso is the Senior Rabbi of Congregation Beth-El Zedeck, Indianapolis, Indiana, and has been our Rabbi since 1977. He is a native of the Republic of Panama, and a descendant of Sephardic (Spanish-Portuguese Jewish) families who settled in the Caribbean during the 17th century.
Confirmation Teacher
Alvin teaches the Confirmation class with Rabbi Hal Schevitz and Rabbi Dennis Sasso.
Ivrit (Hebrew) Instructor
Tracy has taught adult education classes, Religious School, and tutored students in preparation for their B'nei Mitzvah.
Substitute
Cindie has worked in various roles in Religious School over the years. She is a member of our Executive Board and also Sisterhood's Mitzvah Corps Chair. This year, she's serving as a substitute along with her duties as an officer of the congregation.
Substitute
Michaela grew up at Beth-El Zedeck and has taught in Religious School in the past. This year, she is serving as a substitute.
