Senior Educators Cohort – Israel

Rabbi Yehudit Werchow is an educational consultant working with a variety of Jewish institutions on professional learning and growth, change management, Jewish and Israel Education. Yehudit was born in Argentina and grew up in Israel. She holds a BA in Political Science and Literature from The Hebrew University and an MA in Jewish Education from HUC-JIR NY. She was ordained at HUC-JIR in Jerusalem. Yehudit is the former Director of Education for Masa and has served in the position of the Jewish Agency’s Senior Shlicha for the Reform Movement in North America and the UK. Prior to her Shlichut to the URJ Yehudit worked in Merkaz Maase, a leading Israeli social change organization.

Ayal Beer is the Israel Program Director at M². An experienced Jewish educator, Ayal has been managing a pre-Army leadership educational program focused on Jewish Israeli identity and social change since 2017. Prior to that, he participated in training educational staff for a variety of Jewish organizations in the U.S and Canada for over 5 years. Ayal earned a B.A in Social Work at Bar Ilan University and a Masters degree in Talmud and Religious Law from Shechter Institute. A licensed tour guide, Ayal lives with his wife and four kids in Kibbutz Hannaton in the Lower Galilee and is a graduate of SEC 1.

Clare Goldwater is a Jewish educator and leadership coach with expertise in professional and organizational development and experiential education. Working in close partnership with a wide range of organizations,  Clare oversees the development, dissemination of M²’s approach and ideas about experiential Jewish education, through consulting projects to Jewish organizations, publications, curricula materials, and more. Clare has a BA in English Literature from Oxford University, an MA in Jewish Education from Hebrew University, and a Certificate in Leadership Coaching from Georgetown University. She also holds passports from those three countries and lives in Jerusalem with her family.

Assaf served as the founding director of Bishvil, an organization designed to empower teens and communities through meaningful volunteering experiences. He was involved in developing and managing M²’s Israel-based programs. Assaf is a certified high school teacher and taught Jewish philosophy and Israeli Culture in high schools across Jerusalem. He holds a BA in Bible and Judaic Studies and is now completing his MA in Jewish education through the “Revivim” program at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and is a graduate of M²’s Senior Educators Cohort.

As the CEO of M², Shuki helps provide educators and organizations in Israel, North America, and Europe with knowledge, tools, and skills to advance the theory and practice of experiential Jewish education. Previously, Shuki served as director of Service Learning and Experiential Education at Yeshiva University, where he founded the Certificate Program in Experiential Jewish Education and a range of programs mobilizing college students to serve underprivileged communities worldwide. A Schusterman Fellow, Shuki studied Jewish philosophy, education, and scriptwriting.

Dr. Channa Pinchasi is Deputy Director of Be’eri and Director of the Be’eri School for Teacher Education at the Shalom Hartman Institute. She is a member of the inaugural graduating class of the Institute’s Maskilot program and received her PhD in gender studies from Bar-Ilan University. Channa has lectured and taught in various frameworks that have developed within the world of Jewish renewal, focusing on leadership training in Israel and abroad. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Shaharit think-and-do tank and writes for Hartman’s Al Da’at Hakahal blog.