Our Awesome Staff
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Rabbi Adam Naftalin-Kelman
Executive Director
adamnk@berkeleyhillel.org; ext. 11
Rabbi Adam Naftalin-Kelman is the Executive Director of Berkeley Hillel. Before coming to Berkeley Hillel he served as the Director of Hillel at the University of Colorado at Boulder, upon completing his Rabbinic Studies at the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies. Adam grew up in Los Angeles, went to Jewish Day School for 10 years and then went to public high school. He attended the University of Rhode Island where he studied Accounting and Management Information Systems. While at URI he started a student run coffee house called 193 degrees. Upon completion of college he began work for Arthur Andersen as a business consultant. After working for Arthur Andersen he spent five years in Rabbinical School which then led him to the Hillel world. Adam loves living in the Bay Area and the active lifestyle. At anytime you will find him training for a triathlon, Marathon or some other race. He has completed a half-Ironman and hopes one day to compete in a full Ironman. Adam lives in Berkeley with his wife Elana and three sons Yair, Nevo and Etai.
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Einat Dvir
Israel Fellow
einat@berkeleyhillel.org; ext. 22
Einat is super excited to be a part of Berkeley Hillel staff this year. Arriving from Israel, Einat just graduated from Ben Gurion University in Be’er Sheva, majoring in Political science and Media Studies. An accomplished baker and waitress with 10 years of experience, Einat will make you dessert, cut it for you into bite-size pieces, ask you what you would like to drink and bus your dishes without batting an eyelash. Einat would love to talk to you about all the things you can do in Israel and Israel-related activities on campus! It is her professional duty to remind you that Birthright registration fills up quickly- so register quickly to get a spot!
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Anna Fogelman
Development Associate
annaf@berkeleyhillel.org; ext. 18
Anna Fogelman is the Development Associate at Berkeley Hillel. Anna grew up in San Diego and moved to Northern California in the 80s to attend U.C. Santa Cruz. While an undergraduate studying Sociology, Anna lived in Jerusalem and studied at Hebrew University as a participant in the Education Abroad Program (EAP). Upon finishing college, Anna moved to Berkeley and worked for Camp Tawonga year-round for three years. She credits the incredible summers in the foothills of the Sierras while working at Camp Tawonga as her inspiration to work in the Jewish community. Before coming to Hillel, Anna worked for Chochmat HaLev, Jewish Youth for Community Action and the Jewish Federation of the Great East Bay. In addition to raising funds to support Cal’s Jewish students, Anna is active in the Berkeley Jewish community, serving on several committees at Beth El, Berkeley’s Reform synagogue. Anna is also a licensed nurse (RN), a runner, wife to Michael and a mom to Eli (6) and Naomi(4).
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Rabbi Gabe Greenberg
Rabbi Martin Ballonoff Memorial Jewish Educator
gabe@berkeleyhillel.org; ext. 20
Gabe geographically hails from suburban Boston, but emotionally has always transcended coastal distinctions. He attended Wesleyan University, where among other activities he co-authored a book about American views on Muslims and Islam. Following graduation, he lived and studied for several years in Israel, as well as working for the gap-year program Kivunim in its inaugural year. Gabe is an alum of the Adamah program, a fellowship of sustainable farming, community building, and Jewish education. Following this, he directed the Kayam Farm Summer Kollel outside of Baltimore. Gabe recently graduated from YCT Rabbinical School, and he and his wife Abby are excited to be part of the Berkeley community. Gabe is excited to meet you! And you! But ESPECIALLY you… shoot an email or just walk right up and say hey!
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Emily Linden
Finance + Operations Manager
elinden@berkeleyhillel.org; ext. 12
Emily is excited to start her third year at Berkeley Hillel, and is looking forward to another successful school year! Emily hails from the great state of Michigan and is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Miami University. Outside of work, Emily enjoys exploring the East Bay, playing tennis, eating cereal and spending time with friends and family. Though Emily’s work does not always allow her to spend time with students, she’d love to get to know you, and always welcomes the opportunity to hang out with students over coffee…or yogurt…or lunch…come find her on the second floor of Hillel!
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Lisa Motenko
Program Director
lisa@berkeleyhillel.org; ext. 24
Lisa, Hillel’s Program Director, hails from southern California and was born with a rare obsession with cheese. She has traveled all over the world, but found her home in Spain, the country that she believes has the best cheese. She loves Judaism, playing guitar, hiking, singing, yoga, Spanish, running, and Latin men. Lisa’s goal is to make Hillel the go-to place for social justice and volunteering!
Contact her if you’d like to get involved.
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Oren Persing
Assistant Director of Jewish Student Life
opersing@berkeleyhillel.org; ext. 21
Oren Persing is Berkeley Hillel’s Assistant Director of Jewish Student Life. His favorite part of working for Hillel is being able to wear so many different hats throughout a given day. From planning and leading immersive experiences, to leading Shabbat services, to dorking-out trying to perfect Hillel’s organizational systems, he loves it all. Before coming to Berkeley Hillel, Oren graduated UMass Amherst with a degree in Building Materials and Wood Technology – a degree that he tries to put to use daily as Hillel’s AD. After college, Oren spent several years working as REI’s Outreach Specialist coordinating service projects and teaching Leave No Trace to underserved youth. Oren can’t sit still for very long. If he’s not in his office and you’re trying to track him down, you are likely to find him either working at Strada, playing guitar or piano, outback at the BBQ grill, or exploring the Berkeley hills by mountain bike.
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Daniel Sanchez
Custodian
Daniel has been a member of the Hillel staff for longer than anyone can remember, and in the far reaches of memory, no one can remember Daniel doing anything but an exceptional job.
