The Reform Temple of Framingham Massachusetts
300 Pleasant Street
Framingham, MA 01701
508-872-8300
 
 
 
 
   

Youth Education

Consistent with the spirit and practice of the Jewish tradition, Temple Beth Am is dedicated to educating our youth in the principles and practices of our heritage.

Here are the members of our fine staff of Educators for 2007-2008.
   
  Amy Brickman
(Bachelor of Jewish Education, Certificate in Early Childhood Jewish Education from Hebrew College; Candidate for Master of Special Education at Lesley University).
Amy has taught Religious/Hebrew School for Fifteen years, eight of them at Temple Beth Am. Amy is the Student Support and Resource Teacher, working with students who need extra help, and children who may have learning disabilities or special needs. She is also an Assistant Teacher at the MetroWest Jewish Day School in Framingham. Amy and her family, Josh, Nate and Edie, are members of Temple Beth Am.
   
  Sandy Cohen
has returned to Temple Beth Am to teach 6th grade making this her 12th year as a Jewish Educator. With Mrs. Zide as her first teacher and Phyllis Trincia as her confirmation teacher, her ties to Temple Beth Am span well over 20 years. Because of her love for Israel and the hebrew language, Rabbi Splansky suggested she travel to Israel, live on a kibbutz, and complete an Ulpan. So, in 1995, that's exactly what she did and the rest, as they say, is history. She taught 4th and 6th grade at Temple Beth Torah in Holliston for 5 years before returning to her beloved Temple Beth Am. Her enthusiastic love of Torah, Israel, Hebrew, and teaching are sure to make the 6th grade the best they can be. When she is not teaching, Sandy is night shift labor and delivery nurse at The Brigham and Women's Hospital.
   
  Rhonda Magier-Cohen
 is starting her 14th year as a teacher in the Temple Beth Am Religious School. Before teaching 3rd grade, Mrs. Magier-Cohen taught grades 4, 5, and 7. Her strengths are in providing a warm and nurturing environment while teaching children to decode the Hebrew consonants and vowels. She uses games and incentives to motivate the children and to make learning fun! A Framingham native, Mrs. Magier-Cohen graduated from the University of Rochester with highest distinction. In addition to teaching 3rd grade at Temple Beth Am, she tutors children in Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparation and is an approved tutor for Temple Shir Tikva in Wayland. This year, she is looking forward to working with Cantor Schechtman on Thursday afternoons to help prepare our current B'nai mitzvah candidates. Mrs. Magier-Cohen is married and her two children have been enrolled in our program since pre-school. She volunteers in the classrooms at Barbieri School, helps the Fuller School PTO with fundraising efforts, and serves on Temple Beth Am's worship committee.
   
  Faye Concetti is delighted to be beginning her 6th year teaching at Temple Beth Am Religious School! During the week, Faye teaches Kindergarten at The Charlotte A. Dunning School in Framingham. Previously to this, she taught Preschool at Temple Emeth in Chestnut Hill. Holding a degree in Early Childhood Education from Wheelock College, and several years experience of working with children and families, Faye has a solid foundation of working in the classroom and helping each child to reach his/her fullest potential! Jewish Education is very exciting to Faye as she combines her knowledge of child development with her strong backround in Jewish Education. Faye looks forward to a wonderful year filled with fun, learning and growth!
   
  Liz Hofstetter is delighted to be starting her 2nd year of teaching in the Temple Beth Am Religious School this year. After being a member of the Temple for the last eight years, participating in her daughter's Jewish education, converting to Judaism shortly before her daughter's Bat Mitzvah and taking several courses through the Temple, including a year of Hebrew, she thought it was time to explore a new role. Having taught Preschool for the last twenty-two years teaching is in her blood. She looks forward to the challenge of combining her passion for teaching with her interest in Judaism.
   
  Don Levey is thrilled to be starting his 3rd to the Temple Beth Am community, though his family has lived in Framingham for the past 10 1/2 years. His wife is Sandra, and they have two young boys: Philip, 7 1/2, and Malcolm, 5. Philip had completed the Temple Beth Am pre-K preschool program in 2005, which is how they became more familiar with Temple Beth Am. Don also taught 5th grade (weekdays) at Temple Beth Am for the 2005-6 school year. Don grew up in the metropolitan New York area, where he started as a religious school music teacher and cantorial soloist approximately 27 years ago. He have taught in a number of schools, and sung from a number of pulpits, since then; last year he completed his 14th year of service a Cantorial Soloist and Music Director at Temple Shalom Emeth in Burlington, MA. Don has also been a youth group songleader and music consultant, and has spent several summers teaching music at YMHA camps in New York. Don attended a number of universities, graduating in 1994 with a BS in Psychology from CSU Sacramento.
   
  Jason Oppenheimer
has been involved with the Reform Jewish Youth movement for the past 13 years as he has been involved with NFTY and Jewish Camping (URJ Camp Coleman) throughout his middle school and high school years, and beyond into the professional realm where he has worked the past two years as an informal Jewish educator. He currently serves Temple Beth Am as its youth educator, but also teaches 5th, 7th, and 9th grade classes in the religious school. Jason studied film and philosophy at Washington University in St. Louis and he brings that educational background into the classroom, utilizing multi-media as a tool for enhancing his students’ contemporary appreciation and knowledge of Jewish History and Culture. He brings a passion to his teaching that has been absorbed from years of programmatic work for NFTY and summer camp, and his enthusiasm for experiential education is truly his greatest asset.
   
  Nancy Rotatori has a long history with Temple Beth Am. She attended religious school, was consecrated, became a Bat Mitzvah and was confirmed here. She received her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst with a degree in elementary education and a minor in Sociology. She returned to Temple Beth Am as a preschool and a kindergarten teacher almost ten years ago. She also works at the Beginning Years Family Network in Sutton, Ma. as a Program Facilitator. She is currently working as a substitute teacher in Grafton where she lives with her husband and three children.
   
  Jodi Rubin is entering her second year as the fourth grade Hebrew school teacher. Jodi holds a degree in Elementary Education from the University of Vermont and a Master of Professional Studies from Manhattanville College, where she specialized in Reading and Writing. Jodi previously taught kindergarten for six years at Bi-Cultural Day school, a Jewish Day School in Stamford, Connecticut. Jodi recently moved to Massachusetts with her husband and daughter. She looks forward to getting to know the community as well as becoming more involved with the temple.
   
  Phyllis Trincia received her BA degree from Ohio University with a major in speech/language therapy and minors in modern dance and psychology. She went on to get her Masters Degree with a major in speech/language therapy and minors in guidance and psychology. She has been teaching at Temple Beth Am for over twenty years in many grades--currently teaching Bible to K-3. She is also currently employed as a part-time speech/language pathologist at Murdock Charter Middle School in Chelmsford, MA. She has been employed by Astra Pharmaceutical doing voice-overs for the company. She has also taught adult and children's education classes in dance, exercise, public speaking and drama. Her philosophy of teaching is to instill respect in her students and to make learning an exciting experience.
   
 
 
 
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