Student Profiles

Student Profiles

We welcome you to read about a few of the students at Hebrew College below. For statistics about the Hebrew College student body, please click here.

Becky Wexler

Cantor Educator Program student

Becky Wexler is training to be a cantor at Hebrew College. Originally from Washington, D.C., she holds a bachelor of the arts degree in music and religious studies from Macalester College (St. Paul, MN), a certificate of study from the Zoltán Kodály Institute (Kesckemét, Hungary), and a master’s degree of the arts in religion from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music (New Haven, CT). Becky enjoys an active performance career as a klezmer clarinetist. She has performed internationally and has received acclaim for her technical mastery, warm tone, and unique use of vibrato. On stage, she has played with Klezwoods, Provitantz, the Zamir Chorale of Boston, East Rock Klezmer, the Lithuanian Empire, and many other established musicians. She is the music director at Congregation Kahal B’raira (Cambridge, MA) and has also created and led services at Temple Beth Zion (Brookline, MA), where she also works as an educator, Temple Emanu El (Providence, RI), Hebrew College, and Yale University. Becky relates her story of how she came to Hebrew College:

“Some years ago, I sat in the library of the Yale Divinity School pondering the perennial question of all graduate students: so what exactly does one do with a degree in...? In my case, it was a master's degree of the arts in religion, with a specialization in liturgical musicology, which is just about as obscure an academic niche as you can get. I did not wish to pursue a Ph.D., nor did I wish to go continue along a career path that I had started in music administration. As a third option, I had at that time established myself as a klezmer clarinetist, but it wasn't really a lucrative career choice, as far as I could tell.

“And then, after a Yiddish music festival in an art museum in Winnipeg of all places, I had a revelation in the plane on the way home. At 25,000 feet in the air, I knew that I was going to become a cantor. Intrigued by a lecture I had attended, given by Professor Joshua Jacobson, I decided to investigate Hebrew College. It’s a perfect fit. Here, I can stay in my Ivory Tower, but also get very practical vocational training from top tier cantors, rabbis, and educators. It’s a beautiful intersection of serious study and community engagement. We are artisans and artists, presented with a world of possibilities for us to inspire and touch the communities we serve.”

Nate DeGroot

Rabbinical Student

Nate DeGroot, a graduate of Vanderbilt University, is a first-year rabbinical student at Hebrew College. Nate came to Judaism and the Rabbinical School “by way of life,” as he puts it. He notes, “Since I was young, I have found the Divine in day-to-day living, whether through sports, cooking, listening to music, or building a campfire. It wasn’t until college when I discovered that there was a Jewish language to put to my experiences and in fact, an entire tradition dedicated to trying to understand the experience of what it means to be alive.”

“If it weren't for Hebrew College, I wouldn't be in Rabbinical School. I grew up transdenominationally long before I ever knew the term. I had my bar mitzvah at a Conservative shul, with our Jewish Renewal rabbi/friend playing guitar on the bimah and our Chabad rabbi balancing a folding chair on his chin at my party, which was held in a barn overlooking an apple orchard. When I found Hebrew College and met the faculty, interacted with the students, and got a sense of the culture, I realized that I could, in fact, become a rabbi. I had found an institution that would support me in bringing my fullest, truest self to class each day.”

“Hebrew College challenges its students to deeply study and honor our ancient wisdom and sources while simultaneously fostering an environment that demands of us to think beyond conventional structures and borders and play with our concepts of what organized Judaism means now and especially what it may mean into the future, empowering us to participate as responsible members in this timeless conversation.”

Lori Riegel

Master of Jewish Education (MJEd) student

Lori Riegel is in the Hebrew College Master of Jewish Education program and has been a Jewish educator for 22 years. She is the Religious and Cultural Education Coordinator at Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging in Tucson, AZ and was previously the Religious School Director at Temple Emanu-El. Lori is the recipient of the Southern Arizona Outstanding Jewish Educator Award and the Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award for Excellence in Jewish Education. She has attended and presented at numerous Jewish educator conferences, including CAJE, NewCAJE, MANAJE and the MOFET Institute Seminar for Educators and Community Leaders in Israel. Lori is the proud parent of a fourteen year old daughter, who is following in her mother's footsteps as a B'nai Mitzvah tutor at her congregation.

“My interest in enrolling at Hebrew college was based on my desire to add tools to my educator's toolbox. I had looked into other distance learning programs over the last few years, but had never finalized my plans because the details just didn't work with my busy life. When I looked into the Hebrew College MJEd program, the staff made the process as easy and painless as possible for me. They were not only helpful, but seemed to genuinely care about my experience and were sincere in their advice.”

“My favorite part of my Hebrew College experience is the practical knowledge and usable techniques I have learned. Every class I have taken so far has had immediate application in my professional life. I keep asking myself why I didn't decide to do this sooner, as what I have learned and am learning at Hebrew College has made me a better Jewish educator and empowered and reinforced my decision making process as an administrator.”

Andrea Rose Cheatham Kasper

Doctorate of Education student and MJEd alumna

Andrea Rose Cheatham Kasper, a 2011 winner of the Jewish Futures Competition, is committed to simple, resourceful living and envisions a Jewish community that appreciates the various and diverse skills of its members. She is excited about the idea of developing a Jewish vocational high school. She holds a BA from The George Washington University, a Masters degree in Jewish Education from Hebrew College and is an Ed.D. candidate in the collaborative doctoral program between Northeastern’s College of Professional Studies Doctorate in Education with a specialization in Jewish Educational Leadership from Hebrew College. Originally from Israel, she has lived in the USA, Japan, Panama and currently lives in Iceland. These diverse countries have influenced her educational vision and philosophy. As a professional dancer she is intimately connected to the arts and creative process and was recently awarded a regional grant for the production of her work. She is married to Jacob, a marine fisheries' biologist and has two children Zelia (3) and Lazer (1).

“I originally enrolled for the master’s degree in Jewish education when I returned from Panama under the advice of a mentor who truly believed that Hebrew College’s non-denominational status gave the school freedom and breadth. While working on my master’s I was given ample opportunity to explore my interests and develop my Judaism guided by the personal relationships I had with my professors.

“I have always thrived in small and intimate environments and Hebrew College provided this. At the same time as I was forwarding my academic goals I was developing relationships that inevitably lead to my coming back for an Ed.D.”

Barbara Haber

Master of Jewish Education (MJEd) Student

Barbara Haber is enrolled in the Master of Jewish Education program at Hebrew College. She been teaching in Jewish schools for 12 years, both in the classroom and in running family education workshops, and has recently taken on a new administrative position, assisting the Educational Director of her congregational religious school.

“Now that my children are grown, I have decided to take the plunge and continue my formal education, combining my love of teaching with my passion for introducing children to the joys of Jewish life, culture, and values. While researching online programs that would provide the flexibility I needed with my busy work schedule, I was instantly drawn to the MJEd program at Hebrew College. The curriculum is varied and well-rounded. The thoughtful outline of each course and the wide-ranging perspectives offered by my knowledgeable and supportive instructors all seem to pull together, thus providing me with a practical, comprehensive, fulfilling, and creatively designed course of study.

“A huge benefit of Hebrew College’s online program is the demographically and geographically diverse cross-section of my fellow students. It has been amazing sharing this opportunity for growth with such wonderfully inspiring and dedicated learners, and being exposed to a variety of individual experiences across many different settings.

“I have already brought so much of what I have discovered through Hebrew College to both my teaching and administrative roles; I am implementing new practices in the classroom and have been sharing timely and innovative ideas and techniques with my faculty. I am so delighted to have been reminded that one of my favorite things about Judaism is that the exploring, the questioning, and the learning truly never end, and to quote Rabbi Ben Bag Bag: ‘Delve and delve into it, for all is in it; see with it; grow old and worn in it; do not budge from it, for there is nothing better.’ (Pirkei Avot, Chapter 5).”

Ben Gladstone

Prozdor Student

Ben Gladstone is a Prozdor student. He attended Temple Emeth Religious School prior to Prozdor. He says that Prozdor at Hebrew College was the natural next step in his Jewish education. He was inspired by the variety of course and programmatic opportunities available to him there.

“To me, Prozdor stands out mostly because it offers such a huge variety of experiences to accommodate the variety of Jewish teens who attend. I am currently taking classes on Israel & America, the ך”תנ, Judaism through conversation, and Hebrew. Those will all have very profound effects on my life, and the effects will be that much more profound because they each help me develop entirely different aspects of my Jewish identity. I love the variety of Prozdor, and that’s hard to find anywhere else.”

“One of my favorite aspects of Prozdor is that it gives me a place to enhance, and hopefully apply, my interest in Israel. Prozdor for me has been a way to not only learn about Israel, but to find others who will help me support the country. This is a very valuable community for someone like me.”