Rabbi Yisrael Apfel
Maggid Shiur
Rabbi Apfel lives in Queens, NY with his wife, Shayna, and their 3 children, Aryeh, Atara, and Temima.
Rabbi Chaim Axelrod
Maggid Shiur
Rabbi Axelrod began at MTA in 2010. He teaches in the 10th grade Gemara and Tanach Departments, and serves as a cohort advisor in the Yeshiva Fellowship.
Rabbi Axelrod is also an Assistant Rabbi at the Young Israel of New Rochelle. Rabbi Axelrod and his wife, Yael, live in New Rochelle, with their children (Dovi, Akiva, Aharon, Nava, Esti, and Liba).
Dr. Edward Berliner
Physics / Math / Director of Honors College
Dr. Berliner earned his BA, MA, MPhil, and PhD from Columbia University, where he completed his thesis research under the guidance of Nobel Laureate, Dr. Leon Lederman. He spent 23 years at Bell Labs, playing central roles as a staff member and as a Director in the fields of fiber optics, mobile/cellular communications, IP telephony, and other areas. He feels privileged, he says, to convey to students his special understanding of these fields and the people who were and are key players.
Ed and Debbie Berliner live in West Orange, N.J. and are the proud parents of three YUHSB alumni sons (Avi, Josh, and Jon), three daughters-in-law (Rachel, Ariella and Leora), three grandsons (Matanel, Lior and Asaf), and three granddaughters (Yakira, Jill and Violet) who never tire of hearing the YUSHB stories around the Shabbat table. When not biking, performing menial tasks around the house, or delving into an eclectic collection of reading material, Ed and Debbie love going to shiurim and traveling. Of note is that the Berliner “men” have bonded while visiting World Series, Super Bowls, the floor of the Grand Canyon, Machu Pichu, Grand Coulee, and a large assortment of train stations and museums on the East Coast (and even farther afield).
Rabbi Mordecai Brownstein
English / College Guidance
Rabbi Brownstein also serves as a College Guidance counselor. Additionally, Rabbi Brownstein is a practicing Rav in Brooklyn and has published Judaic works.
Rabbi Tanchum Cohen
Maggid Shiur
Rabbi Cohen has co-edited three RIETS journals and contributed nine articles to those and other RIETS annuals. During his years at RIETS, Rabbi Cohen served as scholar-in-residence in communities across the country (including Boca Raton, Detroit, and Los Angeles) and pioneered numerous learning programs for both adults and teens.
More recently, he is the founding rebbi of the Beis Midrash Katan, which affords aspiring bnei torah at YUHSB the opportunity to learn intensely and extensively as members of the YU Beis Midrash. An avid guitarist, Rabbi Cohen and his wife greatly enjoy opening their home (and their cookie jar) to an array of teens. They live with their seven children on the Bergenfield-Teaneck border, where Rabbi Cohen is privileged to assist Rav Yaacov Neuburger at Congregation Beth Abraham.
Rabbi Eli Cohn
9th Grade Dean/Mashgiach / Maggid Shiur
Rabbi Cohn is also the 9th grade Dean/Mashgiach. In this position he oversees the growth of the freshmen as they transition into high school. Working closely with the faculty, guidance counselors, administration and parents, Rabbi Cohn ensures that each boy is adjusting to the rigors of our academic curriculum, developing as a Ben Torah, and finding a home socially at MTA. He also works together with the Student Activities Office to plan trips and other special events for the 9th grade.
Rabbi Cohn is also a member of the New Teacher Induction Team at YUHSB. In this role, Rabbi Cohn mentors new members of the MTA faculty and helps to run a weekly study group that allows new teachers to tackle the unique challenges they may be facing as they embark on their YUHSB career.
Rabbi Cohn grew up in Hillcrest, New York and is a proud member of the MTA class of 2000. He graduated Yeshiva College summa cum laude and received the department award for excellence in history. He was a member of the Katz Kollel of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, where he was ordained in 2008. During his final year at RIETS, Rabbi Cohn served as a Teaching Fellow at YUHSB. He also earned his Masters of Arts in Education from Michigan State University.
Previously, Rabbi Cohn was a Night Seder Ram and Coordinator at Yeshivat Har Etzion in Alon Shvut, Israel. While at Har Etzion he was also a fellow in the Yeshiva’s post-collegiate Saks Leadership Program and Assistant Editor of Alei Etzion, the Yeshiva’s English Torah periodical. Rabbi Cohn has also been a member of both the Educational and Programming staffs at Camp Morasha. Rabbi Cohn lives in Bergenfield, NJ with his wife Ilana and their twin sons Zev and Ariel.
Rabbi Netanel Danto
11th Grade Dean/Mashgiach / Maggid Shiur / Director of Yeshiva Fellowship
11th Grade Dean/Mashgiach / Maggid Shiur / Director of Yeshiva Fellowship
ndanto@yuhsb.org
(646) 592-6116
After completing his semicha, Rabbi Danto taught for several years at HAFTR Yeshiva High School and was a rebbe and Director of Student Activities at the Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School. Rabbi Danto lives with his family in Passaic, New Jersey.
Rabbi Dov Emerson
Principal for General Studies
Rabbi Emerson, an award-winning educator, is a graduate of Yeshiva College and holds rabbinic ordination from HaRav Ephraim Greenblatt z’tl. Additionally, he holds MA’s in both Education and Social Work, and is currently a doctoral student at the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration. He has been honored for his work in Jewish education, receiving the 2011 Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award for excellence in Jewish education and was a winner of the Jewish Week’s 36 Under 36 List for his work on educational technology.
Rabbi Emerson lives with his wife Rina and five children (two of whom attend MTA) in Bergenfield, NJ.
Rabbi Baruch Feder
Coordinator of P’tach Program
Rabbi Feder has given many workshops in the Tri-State area on topics within special education for various organizations including the BJE, Torah U’Mesorah and P’TACH. He has given summer teacher’s seminars focusing on meeting each student’s needs in the mainstream classroom. In the P’TACH Program, he expertly identifies the special needs of his students and provides individualized programs for each of them.
Ms. Chaviva Fisher
Executive Director
Mrs. Jennifer Friedman
Mathematics
She is a proud MTA parent and lives with her family in Bergenfield, NJ.
Outside of the classroom and the laboratory, Mr. Goldberg has combined his interest in Torah and science by becoming a certified shochet and is interested in the study of traditions surrounding the kashrut of bird species. He is also an avid outdoorsman and has spent many summers working as a mountain guide and a wilderness survival instructor. He co-founded and ran a farming program at the Yaalozu Wilderness Program at Camp Dora Golding. He regularly goes hiking and became a member of the Catskill 3500 Club after hiking 39 mountains in Catskill State Park. Mr. Goldberg is excited to serve as a teacher at his alma mater, working with the faculty and students of MTA.
Rabbi Baruch Gopin
Maggid Shiur / Manager of Educational Systems
At YUHSB, Rabbi Gopin serves as an 11th grade Maggid Shiur, and as the Manager of Educational Systems, a role in which he is responsible for maintaining records of daily student attendance. He very much enjoys his time and the life-long relationships he is able to forge with his talmidim.
Rabbi Gopin resides in Clifton , NJ with his wife and family.
Ms. Haibi holds a B.ED from Seminar Hakibbutzim College of Education in Tel Aviv, Israel where she majored in Science and minored in Jewish Studies/Hebrew Language teaching and Mathematics. She holds certification to teach “Hebrew as a Second/Foreign Language,” from Seminar Hakibbutzim. In addition, she also holds certification for teaching Judaic Studies in the Jewish Educational Systems in the Diaspora. Ms. Haibi holds a M.A. degree from Bar Ilan University in Ramat Gan, Israel, with a major in Education. Her thesis was entitled: “The influence of metacognitive support during different levels of studying on scientific developmental thinking skills of fourth year students.” Ms. Haibi mentored science teachers for The Ministry of Education in Israel. In addition, she was a summer camp counselor and a Shalicha from the Jewish Agency to summer camps in the United States. She also held several command positions in the Israel Defense Forces.
Ms. Haibi was the recipient of 2014 Regional Grinspoon Award for Excellence in Jewish Education.
Mrs. Hernandez´s classroom is well known for enthusiasm, energy, admiration, enjoyment and fun. She strongly believes in the importance of speaking Spanish in class only after the vocabulary of the lesson is introduced and learned. Some students that want to be further challenged have the opportunity to also read some more advanced Literature short stories.
In her free time, Mrs. Hernandez enjoys spending time with her family. Her husband is a retired firefighter and together they have three children and one granddaughter. Her hobbies include cooking, listening to music, walking on the boardwalk, swimming, reading mastery books and seeing movies. She is very excited and happy to be part of the faculty at YUHSB.
Prior to working at YUHSB, she taught Biology at Ramaz, and Math and Biology at The Rashi School in Boston.
Ms. Harris-Linton achieved her Bachelors of Science degree with Distinction in Biology and Jewish Studies from the University of Michigan and her Masters of Arts in Education from Brandeis University, where her thesis was entitled “Creating a Culture of Persistence in Mathematics Learning.” She is currently working towards her Doctoral degree at YU’s Azrieli School of Jewish Education and Administration. She was also chosen to participate in the DeLeT Fellowship (Day School Leadership through Teaching) through which she earned her teaching certification. During the summers, Ms. Harris-Linton continues to challenge herself to learn new things by taking science courses at NYU and City College. Recently, she participated in the ELAI (Education Leadership Advancement Institute) program, sponsored and funded by the Lookstein Center and UJA-Federation of NY allowing her to take on greater roles of leadership.
Ms. HLZacks is on the forefront of innovation in STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) education, frequently attending conferences and presenting on inquiry based learning. She is involved in science education development and serves as a Master Teacher in the Math Science Partnership Program. She is on the board of the STEMTeachersNYC organization where she actively participates in monthly professional development workshops.
Mrs. Merle Huerta
Learning Center
Mrs. Huerta, a former army wife and mother of a blended family of 13, holds a Masters in Instructional Media and Technology from Columbia University Teachers College, certification in nonfiction from The CUNY Graduate Center, and is currently completing a second Masters in Adolescent Biology and Special Ed.
Rabbi Joshua Kahn
Head of School
Prior to MTA, Rabbi Kahn served as the Associate Principal for Judaic Studies and Dean of Student Life at Torah Academy of Bergen County. He pioneered initiatives like the Senior Mentoring and Beit Midrash Programs and organized community programming and disaster relief missions. In addition, he has brought his classroom expertise to his Gemara and Chumash shiurim. He is known for building strong relationships with students and parents and succeeded in streamlining many administrative processes to make them more intuitive, transparent and effective.
Rabbi Kahn lives in Bergenfield, NJ with him wife, Tamar, and six children.
Ms. Sari Kahn
Director of Institutional Advancement
Rabbi Shimon Kerner
Maggid Shiur
Rabbi Kerner joined the MTA faculty in Sept. 1984, and has taught all grades. When asked what he loves most about teaching, he replies, “”the talmidim here are inquisitive, motivated, and have great all-around personalities.””
Rabbi Kerner lives in New Hempstead, NY with his wife Dena. They have 5 children (including one MTA alumnus who is married). Rabbi Kerner keeps in shape by playing tennis in the summer and racquetball in the winter.
Rabbi Danny Konigsberg
Dean of Student Life
Rabbi Konigsberg is a passionate and experienced mechanech, who is excited to return to his roots at MTA. He previously served as the Founding Director and Senior Maggid Shiur at Yeshiva Toras Halacha in Queens, where he developed curricula and taught Gemara and Halacha to undergraduates. Prior to that, he served as a Rebbe and Director of Student Life at Yeshiva Madreigas HaAdam. He received semicha from Lander College Bais Medrash L’Talmud, where he attended college and was a member of the Kollel. He also earned his JD from Fordham University School of Law and has practiced as an attorney. Rabbi Konigsberg lives in North Woodmere, NY with his wife Esti, and their four children.
Mrs. Matiteyahu received her BA in Political Science and Jewish Studies & Philosophy from Bar Ilan University, her MA in Jewish Education/Teaching from Gratz College and attended the
Advanced Professional Development Institute of Project NETA. She also participated in workshops relating to a new curriculum initiative in Hebrew language and culture for Jewish Day Schools, High Schools, and Middle Schools in August 2001 and August 2006.
Mrs. Matiteyahu has been inspiring high school students to learn Hebrew for 20 years and has taught at Akiba Hebrew Academy in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania, and Solomon Schechter High School in New York, New York. She has been teaching in YUHSB since 2007.
Rabbi Baruch Mendelson
Maggid Shiur
Rabbi Mendelson joined the YUHSB faculty in 1996 and has enjoyed teaching the 10th and 11th grade Masmidim (honors) shiur. Rabbi Mendelson was awarded the Caroline and Joseph S. Gruss Life Monument Funds, Inc. and the Grinspoon-Steinhardt Awards for Excellence in Jewish Education from the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York. Throughout these years, Rabbi Mendelson also served various roles in Camp Mogen Avraham, where he spent 20 summers.
Recently, Rabbi Mendelson has begun publishing his original Torah thoughts in an effort to spread his inspiring ideas to the wider public. This began with the publication of a hard cover book on the Talmud in 2003, entitled “He’aros Kohen Ba’avodaso.” He continued to publish his lectures on Chumash in CD and mp3 format in 2005 and his lectures on Mesilas Yesharim in 2006. He has also spent years serving as the faculty advisor for YUHSB’s weekly Torah publication, “Shema Koleinu,” and for annual Talmud journal “Yagdil Torah.”
In 2005, Rabbi Mendelson, his wife, Jessica, and their children, moved to Brooklyn where he assumed the position of Morah D’asra of Khilah Marine Park. In 2008 he became MTA’s Chess Coach, and joined the Rabbeim staff of Camp Dora Golding. In March 2009 he was honored by YUHSB with the Distinguished Faculty Leadership Award, in 2013 began teaching AP Psychology in YUHSB, and joined the Rebbeim staff of Morsha Kollel for the summers.
Rabbi Mendelson’s enthusiasm for Torah is contagious and many men and women take time out of their busy schedules to attend his many shiurim. Similarly, he has inspired many students over the course of his YUHSB career, maintaining warm and loving relationships with them for decades.
Ms. Newborn is also currently working towards earning her second MA at the Azrieli Graduate School of Education and Administration.
Rabbi Raphael Pearl
Maggid Shiur
Rabbi Pearl began teaching at MTA in 2006. He teaches Talmud and Tanach to the 9th graders, Bekiut to the 10th graders, runs the Torah Bowl team and the Chidon HaTanach program and serves as the Mashgiach to the 10th grade Yeshiva Fellowship. Rabbi Pearl also mentors students of the Azrielli School of Education. Additionally, he’s in charge of the soccer and football intramurals.
During the summer, Rabbi Pearl heads the special needs program in Camp Romimu. He also runs the Queens Flag Football League and is an active member of the Queens Chevra Kadisha.
Rabbi Pearl resides in Kew Gardens, New York with his wife and eight children.
Mrs. Tova Rosenberg
Dir of Hebrew Lang and Special Programs
Mrs. Rosenberg holds a B.A. (Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa) from Washington University in St. Louis in History, Hebrew and Jewish Studies. Her M.A. (with Honors) in European and American History is from St. Louis University. She is accredited by the State of Missouri to teach Hebrew as a foreign language in grades k-12. Mrs. Rosenberg’s coursework towards a PhD is from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Before joining YUHSB, Mrs. Rosenberg served as Hebrew Language Consultant at the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway and at the Emery/Weiner School in Houston, Texas. She was the Principal of the Yeshiva Academy, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and USDS, Richmond Hill, Ontario. In Israel, in addition, to teaching at the Hakibbutzim College of Education in Tel Aviv, she served as the On-Site Director for Washington University’s Study Abroad Program at Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel. She also coordinated Study Abroad Programs for the Department of Education and Culture of the Jewish Agency.
Mrs. Rosenberg is the recipient of Yeshiva University’s Baumel Faculty Incentive Award in recognition of the “Names, Not Numbers©” Project. At the time, she was the only non-YU faculty member to be so honored.
Ms. Elana Rosengard
Mathematics
Ms. Rosengard has a passion for math education and has previously taught at schools across the country. In the summer months, she enjoys traveling and has explored locations as far away as Australia.
Rabbi Shimon Schenker
Associate Principal
Rabbi Schenker has a B.S. in Management Information Systems from the Sy Syms School of Business of YU, an M.S. in Jewish Education from the Azrieli Graduate School of Education of YU, a Masters in Special Education from Herbert Lehman College CUNY and Rabbinic Ordination from RIETS of YU. He is also trained in the Orton-Gillingam Reading Remediation by the Institute for Multi-Sensory Education.
Rabbi Schenker was the recipient of the Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award for Excellence in Jewish Education in 2013. He delivers Halacha shiurim and teaches chassan classes in Passaic, New Jersey where he lives with wife and family.
Rabbi Baruch Schonbrun
Guidance Counselor/Halacha
Mrs. Tamar Sheffey
Director of Guidance
Mrs. Sheffey has an open door policy for all of the students for whatever their needs may be. She has worked on numerous presentations for both students and faculty on a variety of topics including Anger Management, Bullying Prevention, Alcohol and Other Substances, Gambling, Drinking and Driving, and other aspects of social development. She runs a group with our incoming freshman on time management skills and goal setting. Mrs. Sheffey has worked with YU’s Pastoral Counseling program to help semicha students better understand the adolescent mind.
She lives in Bergenfield NJ with her husband and four daughters.
Rabbi Avraham Shulman
12th Dean/Mashgiach / Maggid Shiur / Israel Guidance
12th Dean/Mashgiach / Maggid Shiur / Israel Guidance
ashulman@yuhsb.org
(646) 592-6125
Rabbi Shulman describes the favorite part of his job as the connection he is able to make with his students. “I love that I am able to learn and spend time with the guys,” he says. Rabbi Shulman is also active in delivering shiurim in the community and dedicates his summers to advancing the breadth of his Torah knowledge.
Rabbi Shulman resides in Passaic, NJ with his wife Temima and five children.
Ms. Hadassah Siegfried
English
Ms. Siegfried received her BA from Oberlin College and her MA from NYU, where she also completed her doctoral coursework.
Ms. Leah Silvera
Director of Curriculum and Innovation and Learning Center Director
Director of Curriculum and Innovation and Learning Center Director
lsilvera@yuhsb.org
(646) 592-6110
Prior to joining MTA, Ms. Silvera spent 12 years serving as the Founding Coordinator of the SAR High School Student Learning Center – Support Program. In that role, she guided students through 4 years of high school and helped prepare them for college and beyond and also actively mentored faculty, conducted professional development, assisted with college guidance for students with learning challenges, and managed all facets of the IEP and ACT/SAT process. Simultaneous to her duties at SAR, Ms. Silvera served as an adjunct professor at Mercy College, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in education with a focus on differentiation and assessment. Prior to her work at SAR, Ms. Silvera taught at SINAI schools. Ms. Silvera holds a BS in Business Management and an MA Ed in Special Education from the University of Phoenix. She currently resides in Riverdale, NY.
Mr. Murray Sragow
Director of College Guidance / History
Mr. Sragow is a proud graduate of Yeshiva University, where he studied computer science and political science. He also received semicha from YU’s Rabbi Yitzchak Elchanan Theological Seminary.
Prior to coming to YUHSB, Mr. Sragow taught in Bruriah and Ramaz high schools, and also served as Associate Director of Admissions at Yeshiva University.
When not in school, Mr. Sragow enjoys the great outdoors. He hikes, bikes and kayaks extensively with his family (he bikes to school twice a week), and is the founding faculty advisor to the MTA Mountain Lions Outdoors Club. With his help the Mountain Lions frequently spend Fridays exploring the trails and waterways of our region. He is also a passionate fan or the Baltimore Orioles.
Mr. Sragow is the proud father of four and grandfather to another four, all of whom live in northern New Jersey. He resides in Teaneck, NJ.
Rabbi Yoni Stone
Director of Admissions/Bekius and Halacha
Rabbi Michael Taubes
Rosh Yeshiva
Rabbi Taubes has also taught at Yeshiva University’s Mechinah & IBC Programs and worked as a writer and editor for Art Scroll/Mesorah Publications. A graduate of Yeshiva College, Rabbi Taubes received his rabbinic ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, having studied for several years under HaRav Soloveitchik, and holds a master’s degree in Jewish Education from Yeshiva University’s Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology. He is presently the Rav of Kehillas Zichron Mordechai in Teaneck, New Jersey, where he resides with his wife and family.
