Jewish Placemaking Residency

Valerie is originally from Cali, Colombia, but she moved to the U.S. for high school, where she attended the American Hebrew Academy in Greensboro, North Carolina. After graduation, she spent two formative years in Israel studying at Lindenbaum Seminary in the South American program, and then serving as a madricha (counselor) at Emunah V’Omanut. She recently graduated from Franklin & Marshall College with a degree in Psychology and has extensive experience working with individuals with disabilities. She has worked at Kohelet Yeshiva, Camp Ramah Day Camp in Boston, and in a variety of religious school settings. Now based in Philadelphia, Valerie loves the city and how walkable it is. Through her work as a Moishe House Without Walls Fellow, she creates meaningful and welcoming spaces for young adults. As a certified yoga instructor and life coach, she brings a unique and holistic perspective to her work with students. Outside of work, you can find Valerie practicing yoga or pilates, traveling, playing board games, drawing, enjoying picnics, and spending time in nature. She is very excited to begin her journey at Makom and looks forward to continuing to grow as a Jewish educator.

Ash is a spirited play arts educator born and raised just outside Philadelphia, where they earned a B.A. in Theater from Temple University in 2016. They have taught at Beth Tikvah B’nai Jeshurun Religious School, Germantown Jewish Center, with The Bible Players, with Moishe House, as Jewish Learning Venture’s PJ Our Way Associate, and spent over a decade working at Ramah Day Camp in Philadelphia. At Makom, Ash has worn many hats, and they are excited to continue learning and growing here. Outside of educational spaces, Ash makes functional ceramics with their roommate, with whom they also raise two mini golden doodles, Freya and Lucky.

Miriam is a connector who loves facilitating meaningful relationship-building and learning opportunities for people of all ages. She’s been a counselor at a Jewish day camp, taught in the public school system and worked for the Jewish Federation and synagogue in Memphis, TN, and was the Education and Programming Director at a synagogue in Arlington, VA. Miriam loves growing not only as an  educator, but as a student. She received her undergraduate degree in Communications from NC State University, has taken classes through Pardes and Hadar’s Project Zug program, and is currently working on her Masters in Jewish Education at Gratz College. As someone who’s been following Makom’s journey for nearly 5 years, Miriam is very excited about the opportunity to fully immerse herself in Makom’s pedagogy and work towards being able to empower other educators with the tools and best practices to bring Jewish Placemaking into their communities. When Miriam’s not working, you can find her exploring local coffee shops, writing spoken word, and enjoying quality time with friends.

Sami is a creative and energetic jewish educator who grew up in different states along the east coast including Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Florida. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Chinese language and culture from New College of Florida in Sarasota and an associates degree in hospitality and tourism management from Valencia College in Orlando simultaneously. She has taught in a few different religious schools (in the states listed above)!! Her most recent teaching experience was teaching toddlers in Taipei, Taiwan. Sami also grew up leading synagogue services and tutoring students in Torah chanting and Hebrew reading. Sami brings her creativity into the classroom along with her patience and understanding to help students relax and express themselves in whatever way works best for their brain. When not at school she can usually be found with yarn trailing behind her as she knits, crochets, makes her own jewelry, dabbles in pottery, and plays card games with her friends. If you do see yarn trailing from her please let her know so that no one trips!