Dr. Joseph Ahram – Vice-Chairman & Secretary of the Board
Dr. Joseph Ahram, a certified obstetrician and gynecologist, is a native of Israel and a member of the first graduating class of SAE's Mae Boyar High School.
He attended medical school at the Hebrew University Hadassah Medical School and practiced medicine in Israel for ten years before coming to the United States.
Joseph is affiliated with four hospitals in the New York City area and has a private practice in Brooklyn.
He was recognized as a "Compassionate Doctor" in 2014, and awarded a Patients’ Choice Award.
Tamara Lippman Bernstein
Tamara Bernstein is the third generation of a family that has actively supported education in Israel.
In addition to her prominent role in the Jewish community of Southern California, she is Executive Vice President of Metalmart International.
Tamara and her family have made several trips to Israel to visit the Steinberg Interdisciplinary Educational Residence in Kfar Saba, founded by her grandparents Sol and Betty Steinberg.
A legacy of tzedakah and tikkun olam will continue to inspire succeeding generations of this generous family.
Dr. Yedida Bessemer
Yedida Bessemer, a graduate of Steinberg Educational Residence, has worked as an educator and administrator for more than two decades, in Israel, Oregon, and California.
During that time, she has taught a broad range of age groups, from elementary school to adults, in both formal and informal settings. Yedida recently earned an EdD in educational leadership and management.
Her doctoral research focused on developing and improving data literacy among online faculty through professional learning communities.
Previously, Yedida served in the Israel Defense Forces as an instructor of new recruits in the intelligence unit of the Communication and Information Corps. She subsequently earned her BA from Tel Aviv University, her teaching certificate from Achva College in Israel, and an MA in education from the American Jewish University (AJU) in Los Angeles.
Zvi Chalamish
Zvi Chalamish is a principal with the 40 Broad Real Estate Fund. Previously, he was CEO of Giza Singer Even, Israel’s largest investment banking and economic consulting firm.
During the last six years, Zvi has also been a partner in various real estate funds focused on investing in the United States. Earlier he served as CEO of ASHRA, Israel Foreign Trade Risks Insurance Corporation Ltd.
Zvi also spent 15 years representing the Israeli Ministry of Finance in a wide range of executive positions, which included responsibility for raising foreign currency for the State of Israel in international markets and serving as Deputy Accountant General.
Zvi holds a bachelor’s degree and an MBA from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and is a licensed CPA.
Dr. Mildred David
Dr. Mildred (Millie) David has spent nearly 40 years as a teacher and academic leader on Long Island, New York. Millie joined the teaching staff at the public Hewlett Elementary School in Hewlett, New York in 1972 and retired 30 years later as principal.
After retiring from Hewlett, she became head of the prestigious Brandeis School, a Jewish day school in Lawrence, New York, a position she held until 2010.
Frequently recognized by her peers for outstanding performance, Millie was the recipient of the Hamalainen Prize for Excellence in School Administration, presented by the Nassau County Principals Association.
Today that prize is officially called the Mildred David Annual Award for Excellence in School Administration. A graduate of Brooklyn College, Millie earned her master's degree and PhD. from Hofstra University, and participated in an Executive Master Program at Columbia University.
Judge Leon Kaplan
The Honorable Leon Kaplan retired in 2008 as a judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court where he presided over juvenile, criminal and civil courts.
Born in Santiago, Chile to Polish immigrants, Kaplan came to the United States at age 15 in 1959. He graduated from UCLA and the UCLA School of Law before serving as volunteer attorney for Volunteers in Service to America (now VISTA AmeriCorps).
Following private practice, he joined the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office in 1975, served on the California Youth Authority board, and was appointed to the Los Angeles Municipal Court in 1981 by then-Gov. Jerry Brown. In 1986, he was elected to the Los Angeles Municipal Court, serving for 22 years.
Most recently, Judge Kaplan has been a coach and advocate involved in legal, cultural and mental health issues.
Atalia Katz
Atalia Katz is a prolific photographer, with works extending from social minded documentary to stylized still-lifes of her frozen sculptures.
She has traveled extensively around the world, capturing a variety of moments, views and people through a strong personal perspective showing her love of humanity. Her works have been exhibited in New York, Scarsdale, Denver, Jerusalem, and Tel-Aviv.
Atalia is involved in many non-profit activities and organizations, using photography as a way to get communities involved, including “Jdoco” - a group of philanthropic photographers documenting Jewish communities all over the world.
She divides her time between New York City and Tel-Aviv.
Karen Kennedy
Karen Kennedy is the president and founder of National Asset Services, which specializes in the management of tenant-in-common properties.
In addition to her background in asset and property management, she has extensive experience in leasing, project management, construction, and the development of commercial and retail properties.
Karen’s grandfather, Louis Boyar, was the founder of SAE's Mae Boyar High School and Educational Residence in Jerusalem, which is named in memory of his wife, Mae Boyar.
David Mallach - Chairman of the Board
David Mallach has been a leader in the American Jewish community for over 40 years, most recently as executive vice-chairman of the United Israel Appeal, part of the Jewish Federations of North America.
Previously, David was managing director of the Commission on Jewish People at UJA-Federation of New York for 15 years, and spent 17 years in community relations and leadership positions with the United Jewish Communities of Metro West New Jersey.
Early in his varied career, David worked at the Simmons Rehabilitation Center for the Blind in Beer Sheva and as director of Israel and international concerns at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Philadelphia.
Shaul Maouda
Shaul Maouda is senior executive vice president for Professional Security Consultants (PSC), based out of Los Angeles, CA. He is responsible for overseeing security operations for over 150 shopping centers and commercial accounts such as Westfield, General Grown Properties, Starwood Retail, and related companies.
Before immigrating to the United States and joining PSC in 1989, Shaul held the rank of captain of the Parachute Commander Terrorism Unit for the Israel Defense Forces.
A 1982 graduate of the Steinberg-Kazenelson High School, he is a member of the Dept. of Homeland Security, Infrastructure Protection for the Private Sector Committee.
Eitan Moran - General Director, SAE
Eitan Moran is the Executive Director of the Society for Advancement of Education, Jerusalem (SAE), the most recognized Israeli non-profit organization educating and advocating for under served youth in Israel.
In this role, he oversees 3000 students in 18 high schools and educational residences, and a variety of national support projects for students across Israel and manages a budget of over 25 million dollars and over of 700 employees.
Eitan has served as executive director of SAE since graduating from the prestigious Mandel School for Educational Leadership in 2008. Eitan is a founding member of the Nadav Merhav Democratic School in Modi’in, which he helped establish in 1999.
Eitan holds an MA in management and public policy from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, and a BA cum laude in sociology and political science from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he was awarded a Rich Foundation Fellowship for academic achievement.
Eitan is a recent graduate of the Tavistok Institute of Human Relations – a non-profit that applies approaches and concepts from the social sciences in order to create innovative, effective methods for dealing with core subjects and current issues.
Rae Ringel
Rae Ringel is a certified executive coach and founding president of the Ringel Group. She is a faculty member at Georgetown University's Institute for Transformational Leadership and founding director of their certificate program in the art of facilitation and design. She is also adjunct faculty at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business.
Rae offers extensive experience in the areas of fundraising and board development. Prior to starting the Ringel Group, Rae was the director of professional and volunteer development at United Jewish Communities.
A Phi Beta Kappa graduate from the University of Rochester, Rae received her master’s degree in organizational psychology from Columbia University, and earned her leadership coaching certification from Georgetown University. She was a Wexner Graduate Fellow and now holds a faculty position with the Wexner Foundation.
Yair Segev – Treasurer
Yair Segev, a native of Israel, is the New York leader of Escalon Services, a Silicon Valley based service provider that delivers customized and comprehensive solutions for startups and international businesses in the area of finance and accounting, human resources, payroll, benefits, and taxation.
Yair is known within the industry as a business and financial leader who is an expert in developing and delivering strategic plans and execution of company-wide financial policies and procedures. Yair holds degrees in accounting and economics from Tel Aviv University.
Janis L. Oolie - Executive Director
Janis was born in New York City and raised in New Jersey. From an early age her father, a former president of the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ, instilled in her the need to help others, the virtues of philanthropy, and commitment to Israel.
Those ties to Israel have only grown deeper after multiple visits, both personal and professional.
During a 20+ year career in development, Janis has held leadership positions with the Jewish Federation of Northern NJ, the Jewish Federation of Princeton, United Way of Greater Mercer County, Bloomfield College, and Jewish Family Services of Middlesex County.
Janis holds a BA from Simmons University, and resides in Central New Jersey with her husband Robert. When not working, Janis enjoys time with her daughter Kylie and her husband Tom, her stepson Ryan, her grandson Rory, as well as her mother and sisters, all of whom live in the NY metro area.
