Meet Our Administrators

Rabbi Daniel Alter, Head of School

 

Rabbi Daniel Alter joined Moriah in 2015. Previously he was the Head of School of the Denver Academy of Torah, a Modern Orthodox K-12 school and the Rosh Kehillah of the DAT Community. He was also the founder of the DAT Minyan, the largest Modern Orthodox synagogue in Denver and the founder of the DAT High School. He is married to Rivka, a Moriah alum, and they are the parents of seven children, including Moriah alumni and students.

 

 

 

 

 

Morah Odelia Danishefsky, Associate Principal, The Gwendolyn and Joseph Straus Lower School

 

Morah Odelia Danishefsky has served as an Associate Principal at Moriah since 1995. For the previous five years, she taught Moriah's third, fifth, seventh and eighth grades. Morah Odelia, as she is affectionately known, came to Moriah with a wealth of experience in Jewish education. She taught at both the Shulamith School in Brooklyn and at Yeshiva of North Jersey. Morah Odelia is continually involved in professional development, recently traveling to Israel with a UJA Federation mission as well as attending a Harvard Principals Institute under a grant from the AviChai Foundation, among many other programs. She and her husband live in Bergenfield and have four married children and many grandchildren.

 

 

 

Mrs. Tzipporah Boim, Associate Principal, Middle School

 

Mrs. Tzipporah Boim joined The Moriah School administration in 2016 as the Associate Principal of the Middle School. A member of the Ramaz faculty for over 23 years, Mrs. Boim, a veteran teacher, held numerous administrative roles during her tenure, including teacher mentor, Faculty Council Representative and Faculty Liaison to the Parents Council. In addition, she was a longtime Cooperating Teacher for Stern College, guiding women completing their fieldwork at Ramaz. Mrs. Boim brings an expertise in experiential education, having served as Head Counselor at Camp Mesorah for many years. She is a lay leader in her community, serving on the Yeshiva of Central Queens Board of Education and on the Young Israel of Jamaica Estates Executive Board. Mrs. Boim and her husband, Moshe, live in Jamaica Estates, Queens with their four children.

 

 

 

Morah Divsha Tollinsky, Early Childhood Director, The Zahava and Moshael Straus Early Childhood Center

 

Morah Divsha has been the Early Childhood Director at Moriah since 2011. Morah Divsha earned a BS in Biology from Yeshiva University and two Masters Degrees from the Bank Street School of Education, one Masters in Early Childhood Special Education and a second in Leadership for Educational Change. Prior to joining Moriah, Divsha served as both the Science Coordinator and Director of After-School Programming at the Ramaz Lower School. She also served as a mentor for her colleagues at Ramaz. Morah Divsha has participated on several professional development initiatives including Hidden Sparks, a mentor training program and also the Educational Leadership Advancement Initiative through Bar Ilan University and the Lookstein Center. Additionally, she spent two weeks in Israel at the Weizman Institute developing science curriculum for elementary school children. Morah Divsha and her husband, Martin, live in Teaneck with their four children.

 

 

 

 

Mrs. Alana Green, Director, Student Support Services

 

Mrs. Alana Green has been at Moriah since 2010. Mrs. Green's career has spanned both the cognitive-academic aspects of learning issues as well as the social, emotional and behavioral dimensions which often accompany those issues. She is well versed in the best practices of teaching toward different student modalities and strengths through incorporation into the classroom of differentiated instruction, multi-tiered learning strategies and a variety of specialized programs aimed at maximizing a child's cognitive abilities. Mrs. Green received her BA in Psychology and Education from Barnard College and a Masters degree in Learning Disabilities from Columbia University Teachers College. Mrs. Green, a graduate of Moriah, lives in Teaneck with her husband, Dr. Philip Green and their three children, all Moriah alumni.

 

 

 

Mr. Erik Kessler, Executive Director

 

Mr. Erik Kessler has been part of the Moriah family since 2008. Mr. Kessler is responsible for a myriad of "behind the scenes" duties, including the front office, security and scheduling. Mr. Kessler also coordinates Human Resources for Moriah's staff and scheduling of smachot in the Herschmann Social Hall. Prior to coming to Moriah, Mr. Kessler was the Director of Institutional Advancement at the Rutgers Hillel Foundation and has held positions at the United Jewish Communities. Mr. Kessler holds an MSW in Community Organization and an MA in Modern Jewish History, both from Yeshiva University and a BA in Economics from Rutgers University. He and his wife Dana, a pediatrician, live in Teaneck with their children (proud Moriah alumni and students) Noah, Jacob & Sarah.