Ilana has been serving the Jewish educational community in New York City in multiple capacities for over 25 years. Most recently, she served as the Director of The Saul and Carole Zabar Nursery School at the JCC in Manhattan. Prior to being named to this position in 2006, she worked at the JCC as Director of Young Families and then as Senior Director of Family Life, supervising programs serving families and children from birth to eighteen years old. Ilana began her teaching career at the Central Park East school in Harlem and went on to become a founding teacher at the Ella Baker School, an alternative public school in Manhattan. She then worked as an Early Childhood Curriculum Consultant for the Children's Aid Society where she developed curricula with directors and teachers in day care, Head Start and private nursery school programs throughout the city.

Ilana received her B.A. from Harvard College and a Master's Degree in Education from Bank Street College. She was born and raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and now lives there with her husband and three children. Ilana was a recipient of the Covenant Award in 2016.

Yoni Schwab, PhD, is the Assistant Head of The Shefa School, the first and largest Jewish day school in the world for kids with dyslexia and learning disabilities. As a member of the 3-person founding team, he has been involved in every aspect of the school since its launch in 2014. A clinical psychologist, Yoni previously served as the Psychologist at The Windward School and on the faculty of the Windward Teacher Training Institute. He is on the adjunct clinical faculty at Ferkauf Graduate School of Yeshiva University and maintains a private clinical practice.

Yoni’s research focused on social-emotional learning and behavior management and is a sought-after presenter on a range of topics, including ADHD, anxiety, limit setting, learning disabilities, and creating healthier relationships with technology for our kids and communities. Yoni holds BA's from Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary and earned his doctorate in clinical psychology at Rutgers University. He was a Wexner Foundation Field Fellow. He lives in Riverdale, NY, with his wife (teacher) and has 3 children.

Rebecca has been working to support underserved students for the past 20 years - both as a classroom teacher and instructional leader in NYC low-income public and independent schools. Prior to joining Shefa's founding leadership team, she ran NYC Collaborates, a Gates Foundation-funded initiative to promote collaboration and sharing of best practices across NYC public schools. Rebecca's areas of experience and interest include language-based learning disabilities, designing and facilitating professional development, mentoring and coaching, and school culture. Rebecca has conducted and presented research on teachers’ experiences of professional growth and has served as a co-instructor for a graduate course in the school leadership program at Bank Street College.

Rebecca holds a B.A. from Harvard College and a Masters Degree in School Leadership from Bank Street College, as well as NYS certification as a School Building Leader (SBL). She is a proud graduate of the NYC Jewish day school system and is thrilled to be serving this community. She and her husband and four children live in New York City.

Linda Maleh, the Head of the Lower School, has spent her career dedicated to the education of young learners, with 16 years in the field and 13 at Shefa. She began at Shefa as a founding lead teacher and went on to serve as Math Coordinator, Assistant Head of Lower School, and Co-Head of Lower School before becoming Head of the Lower School. Linda holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and English from Hunter College, a Master of Science in Childhood General and Special Education from Bank Street College of Education, and a Master of Education in Teacher Leadership from Brandeis University. Linda believes in meeting each child where they are and building on their individual strengths and interests. She brings evidence-based practices to teaching students with language-based learning disabilities, always with an eye toward making learning engaging and enjoyable. As Head of the Lower School, Linda is committed to a program where every student feels both challenged and supported. Linda was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and is herself a graduate of Jewish day school education.

DJ began his career in one of Shefa's first cohorts of Teacher Residents, then grew to become a Lead Teacher, and then transitioned into a Mentor Teacher. He spent five years teaching at Shefa before moving to Washington, DC where he spent four years working at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School (JDS). At JDS, DJ was the Founding Director of Sulam@JDS, an inclusion program that supports students with a variety of learning differences in grades K–5. In that role, he built and grew a program centered on inclusion, belonging, and high expectations, partnering with students, families, and a team of educators to ensure every child has the academic, social-emotional, and executive functioning support they need to thrive. He believes that with the right tools, strong partnerships, and creative thinking, students can succeed both academically and socially.

Dr. Maggie Lauer brings extensive experience in education, with a deep commitment to supporting students with diverse learning profiles through creativity, compassion, and care. She joins Shefa from St. Luke's School, where she worked for eight years as a music educator and helped pilot the school's leadership program for 6th and 7th grade students. She holds a doctorate in educational leadership from Vanderbilt University, with a thesis focused on classroom equity and teacher-student communication. Maggie has consulted for nonprofits and educational institutions around the world on teacher training, classroom management, and curriculum development, and she has written curriculum for McGraw Hill.

Ian joined Shefa in the Summer of 2021 as part of Shefa’s senior leadership team. He is responsible for overseeing and enhancing all aspects of school culture, curriculum, instruction, and assessment in the Middle School. Prior to joining Shefa, Ian worked at the Luria Academy of Brooklyn, where he served on their senior leadership team as Director of Support Services and School Psychologist.

Prior to his time at Luria, Ian spent 12 years as a psychologist in the Hewlett-Woodmere public schools, where he chaired Committees on Special Education and gained extensive experience with middle school pedagogy and curriculum, school culture and climate, and designing and monitoring special education programs and supports. Ian holds a doctorate in School Psychology from Temple University, where he was also a postdoctoral fellow at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

Danielle began her career in middle school education in 2013 and has never looked back. Her passion for teaching adolescents runs deep, and she brings middle-school-level enthusiasm, paired with adult-level organization, to everything she does. She joined Shefa in 2016 as a founding Middle School Lead Teacher, teaching language arts and math for several years before becoming Assistant Head of Middle School in 2021. In addition, Danielle is the middle school math coordinator, coaching teachers, overseeing the curriculum, and supporting the use of effective, multisensory math instruction. As a Jewish educator, she also helps shape community and values-based programming, such as overseeing chesed days and Hachana LeShabbat, among many other contributions to middle school life. Danielle holds both a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Arts in Special Education from the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut, as well as a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from Bank Street College. Once the last bell rings, Danielle can be found reading, traveling, baking, and spending time with her family.

Rabbi Dov has been a professional educator for the past 50 years. Prior to joining Shefa, he was the Dean and Mashgiach Ruchani at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School. Rabbi Dov served for many years as the Dean of Judaic Studies of the Abraham Joshua Heschel School in New York and as the Director of Education at Camp Yavneh in Northwood, New Hampshire. He has also served as the Director of Secondary Education at Boston Hebrew College, a faculty member at the Drisha Institute for Jewish Education, and a faculty member for the Wexner Heritage Foundation. He also served as the Director of KIVUNIM, an innovative gap-year program based in Jerusalem.

Rabbi Dov has an A.B. from Brown University in Religious Studies, an M.A. and Rabbinic degree from the Jewish Theological Seminary, a Rabbinic degree from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary at Yeshiva University, an M.A. in Learning and Teaching from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and an Ed.D. from the Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education at JTS. He lives in Riverdale with his wife Nancy. Rabbi Dov has four sons, four daughters-in-law and 8 beautiful grandchildren.

Vicki joined Shefa in July of 2020 to coordinate the school’s curriculum to bring greater clarity and continuity across all grades and subjects. Previously, Vicki worked at The Gateway School where she was Director of Curriculum, after having served there as Classroom Teacher, Admissions Coordinator, Assistant Director and then Director of the Middle School. During her 14-year tenure at the Gateway School, she built a scope and sequence of content and skills-based curriculum for subjects ranging from Math and Science to Physical Education.

Prior to her time at The Gateway School, Vicki worked as both a Special Education Teacher and Learning Specialist at The Smith School. Vicki holds a Master’s Degree in Childhood Special Education from Hunter College where she was also an Adjunct Lecturer for the Special Education Department.

Jim joined Shefa in 2016 as Director of Finance and Operations, and was promoted to Chief Financial Officer in 2020. He oversees the maintenance of the school’s facilities as well as the school's financial operations, including budget planning, financial reporting, treasury and audit functions.

Previously, he served as the Assistant Business Director for the Eagle Hill School in Greenwich, Connecticut, and has over 20 years of experience working in finance and investments. Jim holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Fordham University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame.

Ilyssa brings her love for children and passion for education to her work as the Shefa School's Director of Admissions. She began her career at Shefa in 2016, serving as a Lower School and Middle School teacher and then as Assistant Director of Admissions for 3 years. Before coming to Shefa, she worked as a learning specialist at The Heschel School and a classroom teacher at The Churchill School.

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Ilyssa received her B.S. from The University of Delaware in Elementary and Special Education and her Master’s Degree in Special Education from Manhattanville College. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, son, and daughter.

Caroline Weinstein joined the Shefa team in 2017 and currently serves as the school's Director of Advancement. She works closely with the Head of School and Board of Trustees to meet fundraising goals and build community connections. Caroline oversees all aspects of development, including Shefa's Annual Benefit, an event that brings the community together and highlights the school's work. She deeply believes in Shefa's mission and is grateful to help raise the funds that support Shefa's students.

Prior to joining Shefa, Caroline was the Director of School-Age Programs at The Marlene Meyerson JCC in Manhattan. At the JCC, she expanded program offerings, launched signature initiatives, and was honored with the Award for Staff Excellence in 2016.

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