Chaverim Religious School Faculty
Our faculty share the Chaverim Religious School mission of educating children in a warm, dynamic, and joyful environment. As with our synagogue community, we value the diversity of our staff, who represent a range of life stages and Jewish beliefs and practice, modeling various ways to live an authentic Jewish life.
Hillary Pinsker Engler
Chaverim School Education Director
Hillary is entering her 11th year as Education Director of the Chaverim School. Hillary enjoys her multifaceted work at the Chaverim School; developing curricula, working with teachers, students and parents, and being part of the community. She is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Jewish Education (with a focus on supporting children of color) at Gratz College. She lives in West Roxbury with her family and enjoys reading, writing, running, and climbing trees.
Sarah Maron
Chaverim School Inclusion Coordinator
Sarah is returning for her second year as Inclusion Coordinator at Chaverim. Her goal is to ensure that students with varying learning needs have a supportive environment where they can learn about and connect to their Judaism at the Chaverim School. In addition to teaching students she acts as a resource to other educators, developing strategies so that each child can succeed.
Sarah has a B.A. in Speech, Language and Literacy from The College of New Jersey and an M.S. in Speech-Language Pathology with a specialization in Literacy from MGH Institute of Health Professions. Outside of Chaverim, Sarah is a Speech-Language Pathologist for middle and high school students with language-based learning disabilities. In her spare time Sarah likes to hike, read, and spend time with friends. Sarah looks forward to sharing her love of Judaism with her students.
Josh Mascoop
Gan Teacher
A native Bostonian, Josh has only recently returned to the area after finishing his doctorate in astrophysics. He is obsessed with badminton, curious about almost everything, and an inveterate nerd. He has always felt a strong love for Judaism and the Jewish community and he looks forward to helping his students develop their own personal connections as well.
Kayla Neumeyer
Alef (1st grade) Teacher
I’m a returning teacher and live locally to HBT in Roslindale. My service dog, Miles, is a very loving golden retriever who will join me in teaching at Chaverim.
I’m a speech-language pathologist and community organizer, particularly around immigrant justice, but most love to spend my time painting and gardening. I love Judaism and being Jewish and am excited to nurture that in your children as well.
Lily Ritter
Bet (2nd grade) Teacher
Lily is excited to be coming back for her ninth year teaching at HBT! Outside of Chaverim, she is a lawyer representing folks with certain health conditions in housing and benefits matters. Lily enjoys gardening, hiking and camping, and swimming outside when the weather is nice (and sometimes when it is not). She feels her best when she is singing, spending time with friends, thinking about big questions, and building community. Her creative pursuits include growing trees from the seeds of fruit she eats and making her own yogurt and pickles.
Emily Touchet
Gimel (3rd grade) Teacher
Hi, my name is Emily (she/her) and I'm very excited to be with the Gimel class for my third year teaching at HBT. I enjoy building community in the classroom, hanging out with my friends and family, exploring nature, playing cello, and reading books. I live in a cooperative house in Roslindale with a few housemates.
Rena Coben
Dalet (4th grade) Teacher
After several years away, Rena is returning to Chaverim School for her fifth year. Rena grew up at HBT, went to Chaverim School (where Hillary was one of her teachers!), volunteered as a madricha, was a teaching assistant in Alef/Bet, and taught Parparim.
She graduated from McGill University with a BA in Latin American and Caribbean Studies and World Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies. She is pursuing her MFA in Creative Writing (with a concentration in Writing for Young People) at Lesley University.
Outside of work and school, she enjoys baking, crafting, and spending as much time with her two dogs as possible. Rena looks forward to sharing her love of HBT and Chaverim School with her students.
Shoshi Jalfin
Dalet (4th grade) Teacher
My name is Shoshi Jalfin, and this year I will be teaching Fourth grade. I grew up in Uruguay, lived in Israel for many years and have been here in the States since 1988. I live in Needham with my husband and my dog. I have three adult children and three young grandkids. In my spare time I love to read historical fiction novels, spend time with my grandkids and walk and hike in the woods with my dog.
I am a passionate Jewish educator, and I come with a broad experience teaching Hebrew and Jewish studies for more than thirty years. I have a B.A. on Jewish Education from Hebrew College, a M.S. from Wheelock College and a more recent Teacher Leadership Certificate from Brandeis University. I am excited to be here at THBT this year and I look forward to a year of fun and learning. It is my goal to create an environment where every child will be known, feel that they belong to our community, be inspired and engaged in their own learning process.
Jon Wishnie
Hey/Vav (5th/6th grade) Teacher
Jon cannot believe it is now their 7th (!?!) year at Chaverim School - and they are so excited to be back!
Outside of Chaverim School, they spend my days doing a patchwork quilt of work: In the summer and fall, you’re likely to find them deep in the woods at Hale Education, Inc leading outdoor experiential education activities. In the winter, they work as a freelance facilitator, leading retreats for various social justice organizations. When not working, Jon enjoys being outdoors, rock climbing, and relaxing with their housemates and cat in their co-op style home in Jamaica Plain.
CHAVERIM TEEN GROUP Leaders
Jon Winshie & Mel Starr
Chaverim’s Teen Group is made by and for teens, bringing together students from grades seven through twelve to explore their own identities, connect with each other, practice making the world better, and learn about navigating the world as a Jewish adult. We do this through a wide range of activities – games, shared meals, communal projects, field trips, text study, guest speakers, making art, revisiting familiar Jewish stories with more complexity, and more. Teen Group meets one-to-two times per month. We hope that teens will gain deeper connections to each other, our Jewish community, and our wider world and be more prepared to engage in the world as Jews.
If you have any questions, please reach out to our facilitator, Jon Wishnie at jwishnie1@gmail.com who would be happy to talk to you.
Mel Starr Teen Group Co-leader
Mel (they/them) is excited to co-facilitate the Chaverim Teen Group. They are getting their MSW at Boston College and lead horticultural therapy groups for patients with eating disorders. They are passionate about writing music, being active outside and connecting to Judaism through earth based ritual and community organizing. They live in Jamaica Plain with beloved friends and 3 cats in a co-op style home. This is their first year at HBT.