Hal Ossman, Executive Director

(607) 255-4227

hjo9@cornell.edu

Ossman earned his bachelor’s degree in History and Judaic Studies at the University of Arizona and a Master’s of Management from the Heller School for Social Policy and a Master’s of Jewish Communal Service at the Hornstein School of Jewish Communal Service at Brandeis University. He returned to the University of Arizona in 2001 to serve as Hillel Assistant Director. After serving as Young Leadership Division Director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix, he returned to the Hillel movement as Associate Director of the University of Wisconsin Hillel Foundation. At Wisconsin he provided vision for programming and leadership development, and supervised programming staff.

Executive Director of the University of Delaware Hillel Foundation since 2007, Ossman helped Hillel keep pace with the university’s growing Jewish student population, strengthening its student program, budget, professional staff and governance. He grew Hillel’s annual budget by 65 percent, and expanded the professional staff from three to six. Delaware Hillel was one of only ten Hillels to be awarded a four‐year grant from the Jim Joseph Foundation for Hillel’s Senior Jewish Educator and Campus Entrepreneur Initiatives.

 

 

Rabbi Brian Fink, Rabbinic Fellow

(607) 255-9721

bdf44@cornell.edu

A life-long Cleveland Browns fan, Brian grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and was very active in NFTY, the national Reform youth group, participating in URJ Kutz Camp and working for two summers at OSRUI summer camp in Wisconsin.  After attending college at Tulane University and developing a love for New Orleans Jazz, Brian moved to Brooklyn, participated in the Avodah: Jewish Service Corps, and advocated on behalf of disadvantaged New Yorkers at the Urban Justice Center legal non-profit in Manhattan.  He was ordained as a rabbi in June 2011 from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia, and while in school, studied for a year in Israel, worked at a number of synagogues, served as a chaplain for hospital patients, and was the rabbinic intern at the University of Delaware Hillel.  Brian and his fiancée Aileen are very excited to be in Ithaca, NY, and look forward to getting to know the Cornell Hillel community.  He would love to learn about your plans to change the world.

Julia Levy, Associate Director

(607) 592-8754

Jml82@cornell.edu

As Associate Director, Julia oversees the development, alumni/parent initiatives, and works with the Board of Trustees.  In her fifth year as a staff member, Julia served as a Research Assistant at Tanner & Co., Inc before joining Hillel’s staff. A 2005 magna cum laude Cornell graduate and active Hillel leader while a student, Julia serves as Co-President of her class and as a member of the University Council. Raised in Marietta, Georgia, she enjoys writing, exploring live music venues, and foodie adventures. Julia divides her time between Ithaca and New York City. 

Alexis Robins, Engagement Associate

(607) 255-6159

amr372@cornell.edu

Alexis, who likes to go by the nickname of Lexi, graduated from The Pennsylvania State University in May with a bachelor’s degree in Jewish Studies and Sociology. Lexi is excited to be the new Engagement Associate at Cornell Hillel and looks forward to meeting the many wonderful students on campus. At Penn State, Lexi was active at Hillel and learned the fundamentals of engagement by being a Peer Network Engagement Intern, a MASA representative on campus, and a Facing Change Intern. Born and raised a Jersey girl, Lexi enjoys going to concerts, taking photographs, and traveling in her free time.

 

 

Rabbi Kate Speizer, Associate Director/Campus Rabbi

(607) 255-9772

ks667@cornell.edu

Rabbi Kate is a resource for students, faculty, and staff to enrich and deepen Jewish Life at Cornell. Her journey into the world of Jewish Communal Leadership formally began when she served as a volunteer in Israel on Project OTZMA.  Her first professional position in the field was as Program Director at the University of Pennsylvania Hillel.  Kate's rabbinic studies were done at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, first in Jerusalem and then in Los Angeles. Highlights in her life are her husband, Ilan, and their children Yoni and Shira. Other passions include the outdoors, cooking, creating art, and spending time with friends and family.   

Shoshi Tesfi, Israel Fellow

(607) 255-9769

st668@cornell.edu

Shoshi Tesfi is Cornell's Israel Fellow.  She is from Beer Sheva and studied Tourism and Hospitality Management at Ben Gurion University.  In her free time, Shoshi enjoys listening to music, reading books, and travelling.  On campus you'll find her innovating new ways to make Israeli culture come alive.  You can meet up with her to practice your Hebrew, join in for an Israeli film screening, or even travel with her to get a taste of our homeland yourself on Taglit-Birthright Israel.  The options are endless in terms of bringing Israel to Ithaca and Cornellians to Israel. 

Rachel began her Hillel career in 2002. She has worked at the Johns Hopkins University Hillel, Hillel of Greater Philadelphia, and the University of Delaware. She received her Masters Degree in Higher Education Administration from New York University and her BA from Rutgers University. Outside of work she can often be found at the gym or running, crocheting & knitting, or catching up on the many hours of "junk" TV waiting on the DVR. Rachel lives in Ithaca with her husband, adorable daughter Sage, and cute dog, Orly.

Rabbi Ami Silver, JLIC Co-Educator

(607) 793-8598

ads297@cornell.edu

Ami is the JLIC co-educator on campus. Born and raised in New York City, Ami is returning to the Empire State after many years abroad. He spent his first year after high school studying at Yeshivat in the north of Israel, and then received a B.A. in Jewish Thought and World Religions from McGill University which included a year and a half of classes at Hebrew University. Since that time he has been living in and around Jerusalem, studying at Yeshivat Bat Ayin and Yeshivat Sulam Yaakov, where he received his semicha (ordination) and mentored newcomers to Jewish learning at Ashrei, Sulam Yaakov's beginners' program. For years, Ami and his wife Eliana have been hosting a lively Shabbat table and an open door for people who are hungry for Torah. Before coming to Cornell, Ami has worked as a tree-planter in the Canadian hinterlands, a Jewish outdoor educator in Israel, and a translator for the Steinsaltz Center. He has also trained in various counseling programs.

Ami strives to unearth relevant life lessons from all areas of Torah learning and observance. To that end, he is passionate about helping others discover their personal connection to Torah and Judaism, and enhancing that connection through fun, meaningful experiences. He is excited to share his love for people and Torah at Cornell, and to invigorate the Jewish experience on campus. His other loves include hiking, running, basketball, and playing guitar, and he is always up for a good shmooze (tea/coffee on the house), game of basketball or jam session.

Eliana Silver, JLIC Co-Educator

esk77@cornell.edu

Eliana is the JLIC co-educator on campus. She grew up in a small town in Massachusetts, leaving early to attend college where she graduated with a B.A. in psychology. In 2004, Eliana made aliyah and immersed herself in intensive yeshiva studies in the heart of Jerusalem for five years. During that time Eliana taught Torah, ran a healthy catering company, and worked as an editor and translator for the Steinsaltz Center. She played an integral role in founding and running the Ve’ani Tefilah minyan, studied counseling at the Jerusalem Polarity School, and trained as a group facilitator for Jewish women’s groups.

Eliana loves cooking, especially large nourishing meals in the grand tradition of her Jewish foremothers—her grandmother authored many wholesome kosher cookbooks. She loves great coffee shops, reading the New Yorker and all good writing, hiking, and dancing (her guilty pleasure is “So You Think Can Dance”). As a Torah educator, Eliana’s passion is developing personal relationships that foster the individual’s discovery of a meaningful Jewish experience. Eliana can be found around campus wearing the newest (and cutest) addition to the Silver family, Noveya Tzion.