Elana Rivel joined JLV in 2021. She is an experienced leader of nonprofit Jewish educational organizations. Elana previously worked at JLV for over 12 years, last serving as its Associate Director.

Elana has served as a leader in Jewish nonprofit organizations ranging from Camp Ramah in the Poconos, Penn State Hillel, Congregation Shearith Israel in Dallas, TX, and most recently as Director of Ramah Day Camp, Philadelphia. In her tenure at JLV, she helped to develop and manage numerous innovative initiatives that became national models, such as One Book, One Jewish Community, jkidphilly and LeV: Getting to the Heart of Jewish Education.

Rhona Gerber joined JLV in 2021. She brings more than two decades of nonprofit and political fundraising expertise to her role as Development Officer, recently spending six years as Development Director of CeaseFirePA, a statewide gun-violence prevention organization. Long committed to the Philadelphia Jewish community and particularly to Jewish education, Rhona was the founding chair of the BZBI preschool and was active on many committees at Kohelet Yeshiva, PJDS, JBHA, and Mekor Habracha. She is Chair of the Center City Kehillah.

Robyn Cohen joined JLV in 2014. She is Director, PJ Library in Philadelphia. In addition to Robyn’s PJ Library work for our Greater Philadelphia community, she loves serving on the jkidphilly team and working with families and organizational partners. Along with the jkidphilly Director, Robyn supervises our jkidphilly Parent Ambassador program. She also supervises our Grandparent Ambassador initiative, and works with the coordinator of our Get Together program. She and her husband are the proud parents of four wonderful jkids. Robyn has a B.S. in Psychology from Binghamton University, an M.A. in School Psychology, and a Ph.D. in School and Counseling Psychology from Northeastern University.

char hersh joined JLV in 2020. char is a former museum educator who worked at institutions including the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia and the Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in New York City. They hold an M.A. in Public History and a B.A. in Religion from Temple University. Outside of JLV, char is active at their synagogue, where they are a frequent leyner and shaliach tzibur, and serve as co-organizer of TransHallel, a virtual, trans-led Rosh Chodesh minyan. They live in West Philly with their two cats.

Bari is the Coordinator, Get Together Grants, and previously served as the Parent Ambassador for the Lower Bucks County area and Social Media Manager. Bari enjoys planning events, creating Jewish community, teaching, and sharing all of the wonderful opportunities Jewish Learning Venture has to offer! She and her husband have two wonderful children. Bari has a Masters Degree in Elementary Education and a bachelor’s degree in Sports and Recreation Management.

Irina joined JLV in 2006. She holds B.S. in Management from Baltic State Technical University (Saint-Petersburg, Russia) and an M.B.A. in Finance from University of Akron. Irina and her husband are the proud parents of three children.

Robin Matthews joined JLV in 2017. After spending over 15 years as an English Professor, Robin joined Jewish Learning Venture so that she could contribute to enriching the lives of families in the Philadelphia Jewish community. Originally from Boston and having earned a B.A. from Boston University’s Wheelock College of Education and an M.F.A. from Emerson College, Robin is a former jkidphilly parent who also teaches the K-1 Bonim class at Temple Sholom in Broomall. She lives in Media with her wife and their son.

Alyse Unterberger joined JLV in 2016. She comes to Jewish Learning Venture with more than 10 years of experience working to build a stronger and more engaged Jewish community. As Director of the Jewish Federation-funded Kehillah of Lower Merion, she worked with the rabbis, education directors, lay leaders, and volunteers from the synagogues and other Jewish religious organizations to create community–wide educational and holiday programming and children and young family-oriented events. Alyse also brings 6 years of grant-writing and management experience from her work as Director of Grant Development and Compliance with the School District of Philadelphia. She holds a B.A.in Russian Language and Literature and an M.A. in Russian Literature from the University of Pennsylvania.

Julia Weekes joined JLV in 2021. She loves learning and loves to share how learning can be joyful, playful, innovative, and inclusive of all people. Julia has over thirty years of experience in education leadership and management with a focus on professional development in creating responsive and inclusive learning environments, experiential education, play-based learning, arts education, curriculum development, early childhood education, and other progressive education practices. She also has decades of experience in family and community engagement through her various roles in school, institutional, and community-based education.

Julia is a Philadelphia-area native and resides in the Mt. Airy section. She is the mother of beautiful young adults, Judah and Isaiah. Julia has been a congregational school teacher at Mishkan Shalom for over ten years. She has integrated her secular education knowledge and training into her congregational education role, creating classroom communities that focus on kindness, creativity, and collaboration.