Our Board

Rob Orley serves as a Principal at O2 Investment Partners, LLC. He’s a Real Estate Developer and a seasoned executive and private equity investor with more than 35 years of experience. Rob holds a J.D. degree from Detroit College of Law, a Bachelor’s Degree in Business from the University of Michigan, and an L.L.M. in Taxation from Boston University School of Law. Rob has served as an advisor to OneTable, helping us secure a match for Detroit funding and hosting a Shabbat dinner to introduce OneTable to the Detroit community with his wife, Marcie Hermelin Orley. Rob is an active JFNA Cabinet alum.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the OneTable Board because I loved their mission: bringing Shabbos to millennials. 

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is where everything starts for me. It’s my favorite day of the week. It’s my favorite meal, and that has nothing to do with food. It is where I stop every week, bless my family, and count my blessings. Celebrating Shabbat was the beginning of my Jewish journey.

Sara Bloom is the founder and the chair of the Board of Directors of Hebrew Public. From 2004 to 2008, she was a weekly columnist for The New York Sun, focusing on raising children in New York City. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life, OneTable, the Jewish Food Society, and the Areivim Philanthropic Group. She works as a mediator at the Long Island Dispute Resolution Center and in a private practice specializing in family disputes. Sara has six children and lives in New York City.

Why did you join the OneTable board?
My father, Michael Steinhardt, believes that having regular Shabbat dinners is a critical component of Jewish continuity, one that is accessible to all Jews, regardless of levels of observance or educational background. We started OneTable, and I joined the board in the hopes that adults in their 20s and 30s would develop this joyous, lifelong habit of having Shabbat dinners with family and friends.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is the opportunity to recharge and reconnect with people I love. Dinner each Friday with my family and friends is the grounding force in my life, around which everything else revolves. It’s also always about the challah…

Julie is a community activist and investor who is passionate about education, social justice, and children. She has mentored over 100 students through the Posse Foundation, Teach for America, Women of Tomorrow, and Achieve Miami. She co-chairs the advisory board of The Center for High Impact Philanthropy (CHIP) at the University of Pennsylvania, is on the advisory board of The School of Social Policy and Practice (SP2), and is an active member of the Trustee Council for Penn Women. She is a director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Jewish Philanthropy and on the boards of Teach for America – Miami Dade and the Greater Miami Jewish Federation. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and currently resides in Miami, FL, with her family.

Why did you join the OneTable board?
I was inspired to join the board by my mother-in-law, Nina Franklin (of blessed memory), whose deep love of Shabbat united her large, growing family each week. I also can’t say no to Sara Bloom — a true inspiration who enriches everything she touches.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat symbolizes family, ritual, peace, and shalom.

David is President & CEO of The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life, which is dedicated to revitalizing Jewish identity through innovative initiatives that build connections with the richness of Jewish civilization, the Hebrew language, and the life and culture of Israel. He holds a B.A. from Hamilton College, an M.A. from Duke University in Comparative Religion, and Rabbinical Ordination from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. In addition to the OneTable Board, he serves on the Boards of The American Pardes Foundation, the Council for Hebrew Language and Culture, and YAFFED. He lives in Harlem with his wife, Judith Turner, and their three children, Nomi, Anina, and Ziv.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the OneTable Board at the inception of the project in early 2014 in order to help realize Michael Steinhardt’s vision for harnessing the power and meaning of the Friday night Shabbat dinner experience to give American Jewish young adults opportunities for Jewish expression and connection.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat provides the metronome of my life, setting a rhythm whose spiritual discipline opens a window to the infinite in the context of the finite.

Kari is the Director, External Affairs at the William Davidson Foundation, where she oversees the Foundation’s work in community relations, communications, special events, and board support. A proud two-time graduate of the University of Michigan, Kari is also a trustee of Clover Hill Park Cemetery, a Board Member of JPro, and an active 2G speaker at the Zekelman Holocaust Center in suburban Detroit. Kari lives in Michigan with her husband and dog and is the proud mother of two young women.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
Shabbat is my favorite Jewish holiday – and with OneTable, I am fortunate enough to work with an organization that deeply understands the joys and opportunities each week offers us in resetting ourselves, celebrating our Judaism, and appreciating a great meal and conversation with family, and friends.

Steven Boal is the CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Matia Mobility, a manufacturer of robotic standing wheelchairs. Prior to Matia Mobility, Steven founded Quotient (NYSE:QUOT) in 1998 and served as its CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors. Prior to founding Quotient, Steven served as VP of business development for Integral Development Corporation. Steven also previously was VP and head of global emerging markets derivative technology at J.P. Morgan. He is also the Founder and Chairman of electronic gift card company Cashstar (sold to Blackhawk). He has held board positions on the Oshman Family JCC, Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School, and Kehillah Jewish High School.

Lauren is the Founder of Love + Chew Brands, a protein cookie company based out of San Francisco. Before starting Love + Chew Brands, Lauren worked in renewable energy for companies such as Tesla and Stem for 6 years. She graduated from the University of California, San Diego. She is currently involved with Jewish Nevada & Three Square Food Bank and completed her Jewish conversion in 2018. She splits her time between Las Vegas and San Francisco with her husband and two kids.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I am a Jew by choice and wanted to give back to the Jewish community with my time and resources. I think Shabbat is one of the easiest ways to get involved, and I love what OneTable does by sharing the joy of Shabbat.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is a weekly ritual that I share with my two little ones- it is a time to reflect on the week and a time for spirituality.

Jake Cohen is a cookbook author and nice Jewish boy from New York. A former food staffer at Saveur, food editor of Tasting Table and Time Out New York, and editorial director of the Feedfeed, Jake wrote his first book, Jew-ish, about his love of Jewish food and Shabbat. When he isn’t writing about food, he’s posting challah-braiding videos and recipes on his Instagram and TikTok (@jakecohen).

After completing his JD/MBA, Gregg built a career working with and contributing to the development of world-changing start-up companies. In 2016, Gregg founded G Three Media – a media relations and strategic marketing agency focused on helping startups find their voice and communicate their vision to the world. He’s worked with renowned tech companies, including Face.com (acquired by Facebook), AOL, Docusign, Element AI, and Ripcord. Gregg lives in San Francisco and New York.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
It’s rare when you see an opportunity to work with amazing people who are dedicated to accomplishing extraordinary things. From the moment I joined, I felt lucky and honored to be in the presence of like-minded people who are passionate about all things Am Yisrael Chai. Since joining, OneTable has grown beyond my wildest expectations and I’m proud to have a meaningful part in contributing to its continued success. 

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat is the vehicle through which the ordinary becomes extraordinary and meaningful. Growing up, it was the ritual that connected our family on a weekly basis, and now that I’m a busy adult, it’s evolved into a habitual palace in time where we have the opportunity to be present, reflective, and joyful. Only Shabbat has the power to regularly elevate a day of the week into something pristine.

David is the Executive Managing Director, Head of Family Office Services of Cresset Asset Management. From 2018-2021, he served as President of Berman Capital Advisors, which merged with Cresset in October of 2021. Previously, he was the President and CEO of the Birthright Israel Foundation. David serves on the Board of the Atlanta Jewish Federation, The iCenter, and is a past member of Young Presidents Organization, Cincinnati. David and his wife, Stacey, are Founding Members of the Atlanta Greenlight Fund. David participated in Leadership Cincinnati Class XXII and was recognized as a Cincinnati “40 Under 40” by the Cincinnati Business Courier.

Emeri is a parent education and mental health consultant, community volunteer, philanthropist, and life-long learner. Focusing on developmental and clinical psychology for over 30 years, Emeri works with families to create long-term, healthy relationships. She previously worked as the Associate Director/Director for Education at the Anti-Defamation League in San Francisco. Emeri is active on various boards and committees, including regional theater companies, education and mental health organizations, and Jewish non-profits. She is also passionate about collective grant-making, having co-founded and managed a women’s philanthropy fund that granted over $400,000 in 5 years. Emeri resides in Boulder, CO, with her husband, Brad; they are the proud parents of three young women.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the Board after advising leadership almost since the founding of the organization. It is a much-needed, brilliant pathway to connection and belonging. 

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat means breath, and light, and gathering, and friendship.

Debbie serves as Senior Advisor to The Paul E. Singer Foundation and is Board President of Momentum. She joined The Singer Foundation in 2013 to help establish and grow its efforts in Global Jewish philanthropy, build relationships for the foundation, and scale entrepreneurial projects. Debbie also serves as Co-Chair of Areivim, and is on the Boards of The Harold Grinspoon Foundation, the Jewish Food Society, and the Jewish Funders Network. Prior to her nonprofit roles, she served as Director of Investor Relations for Multex, Inc. She began her career at Merrill Lynch & Co. Debbie holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and an AB in biology from Harvard College. She lives in Scarsdale, New York, with her husband and their three children.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I was one of the co-founders of OneTable. We believed — and still believe — that Shabbat is a meaningful way for Jews of all ages to find meaning, community, and ritual. We hope that OneTable makes Shabbat personal, accessible, and meaningful and that it leads to regular Shabbat meals and unity and stimulates curiosity about the Jewish people and Israel.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat marks the end of the work week and the beginning of time with my family and friends. The rituals of lighting candles, blessing the wine, and challah bring our family together after a hectic week and reconnect us to each other. We use prayer books and kippot from prior generations to connect us spiritually to our ancestors. Post-October 7, we have found tremendous gratitude for Shabbat and always light an extra candle for our extended family — the millions of Jews— in Israel.

Rena is an advisor, strategist, and philanthropist in the non-profit community. In the Philadelphia area, she serves on the Board of Perelman Jewish Day School and is a member of the University of Pennsylvania’s Trustees Council for Penn Women and of the Thomas Jefferson University Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center President’s Advisory Council. Nationally, Rena is an advocate for Jewish identity-building programs and cochairs Changemakers, a global young adult leadership initiative for Jewish Federations of North America, upon whose Board of Trustees she sits. She has been involved in several Israeli television and film productions, using the power of storytelling to change perspective. Rena received her BA from the University of Pennsylvania and her MBA and law degree from Villanova University. She practiced corporate law and was a consultant to several non-profit women’s organizations before devoting her energies to family and volunteerism. Rena and her husband created the Kopelman Foundation, which funds early-stage, entrepreneurial social projects.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
OneTable has brilliantly found a scalable way to elevate and amplify Shabbat from a moment to an experience. I joined the OneTable Board to be part of the incredible team facilitating this work.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
For me, Shabbat is both the end and the beginning of the week — time to wind down and be contemplative and also to ramp up for what comes next. 

Adam is president of Circle of Service Foundation based in Chicago. He has served on the board of COSF since 1997 and joined COSF professionally as president in 2007. Prior to 2007, Adam practiced corporate law as a partner at Kirkland & Ellis. He is a member of the Boards of the Partnership for College Completion, OneTable, Jewish Funders Network, and Chicago Jewish Day School.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I am inspired by how OneTable supports young adults to experience how Shabbat dinner has coalesced people for centuries, and also how to adapt it as their own today.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
A weekly break from the routine – permitting us to rest and to be refreshed by reflection and gathering with family and friends (old and new).

Kylie is a Dean’s Doctoral Fellow at NYU, concentrating in Jewish philosophy. Her research focuses on the intersection between the Black and Jewish community through the philosophies of Moses Mendelssohn and Booker T. Washington. In 2021, Kylie was named an “aspiring Jewish philosopher” by the New York Jewish Week for their annual 36 Under 36. Kylie has hosted two #1 Jewish podcasts with Tablet Studios: “How to Fix a Soul in 30 Days” and “49 Days to Stretch My Soul.” She has also hosted a YouTube series on the history of the relationship between the Black and Jewish communities with Unpacked, which has amassed over 1.2 million views. She currently lives in Upstate New York with her canine sidekick, Miley.

Why did you join the OneTable Board?
I joined the OneTable Board because I am passionate about the journey of Jewish self-discovery and exploration and the spaces like OneTable that support Jews in that process.

What does Shabbat mean to you?
Shabbat means a time of supercharging. It’s stepping into a space in time where I joyfully receive energy from the Divine without the expectation of giving anything in return.

Barbara Schneider, Ph.D is the John A. Hannah Chair University Distinguished Professor in the College of Education and Department of Sociology at Michigan State University.

Barbara has published 19 books and over 100 refereed journal articles. She is the past President of the American Educational Research Association, a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a fellow in the National Academy of Education.

Eli Schaap is a Senior Vice President at The Steinhardt Foundation For Jewish Life. He has conducted action research and published several articles on the culture of employment, recruitment, and retention of Jewish educators, on early childhood Jewish education, and on institutional finances.

Previously, he worked as a consultant to several national Jewish organizations and also served as the Associate Executive Director of CAJE.

Michael Rubel is the product manager for Carefull, a software company working to defend older adults against fraud, scams, and money mistakes. He is also the founder of Schmutz, a Jewish food brand serving up the first everyday haroset. Previously, Michael worked at innovation strategy firm Fahrenheit 212, where he developed new products for brands like Oreo, Estée Lauder, and Panasonic. He holds a BA in Political Science, with a concentration in Jewish Studies, from Williams College.

Arielle Levites, Ph.D is the managing director at CASJE (the Collaborative for Applied Studies in Jewish Education). Her research focuses on contemporary American Jewish education.

She holds a BA from Brown University in Religious Studies, a MSEd in Religious Education from the University of Pennsylvania, and a PhD from NYU in Education and Jewish Studies.

Tova Katz joined the One8 Foundation in 2012 to work on the Foundation’s Israel and Jewish life portfolio as their Portfolio Manager. Tova earned a BA in history from Columbia University and is a Wexner Graduate Fellow and Davidson Scholar.

Tova also received her MBA from Brandeis University’s Heller School for Social Policy and Management in 2012. Prior to that, she spent four years at the Foundation for Jewish Camp.

Rella Kaplowitz is the Senior Program Officer for Evaluation and Learning at the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation. Rella holds a degree in Psychology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and is a Six Sigma Green Belt.

Rella is also the author of the Schusterman Foundation’s Data Playbook, an online resource for organizations looking to enhance their use of data for decision-making and storytelling.

Gage Gorsky is a queer mixed Mexican Jewish multimodal research advisor, data analyst, and program evaluator. They have a doctorate in Educational Measurement and Statistics from the University of Washington, where their research inquiry bridged social science themes to explore the intersections of identity and math achievement.

In 2020, they helped lead “Beyond the Count,” the largest-ever study of Jews of Color released in August 2021. They currently serve as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Graduate School of Education, concentration in Jewish Studies, at Stanford University.

Simon Wenet has been living between Los Angeles and Sun Valley, Idaho for the last year and works as the Director of Product Management at Nightfall.ai, a data privacy and security company. He graduated from the University of Michigan before moving to Tel Aviv to raise capital for early-stage Israeli startups, where he first became exposed to the world of technology. Over the past five years, Simon has spent time in leadership roles with local and global foundations including Brothers for Life – a support organization for wounded Israeli combat soldiers – and BikeMS – a fundraising effort in the fight for a cure to Multiple Sclerosis.

Ben Weinberg is a systems thinker and product leader. He’s currently the Director of Product at Everly, a legacy preservation and grief support startup. Previously, Ben was the Founder and CEO of Encircle and a product manager at a scaling B2B SaaS company. He’s drawn to unifying human experiences, whether it’s exploring mortality or how food gets to our plates. When Ben isn’t building products, you can find him surfing, playing guitar, or working in his garden.

Sean Lynch is a product strategist with an aptitude for transforming large “unsolvable” problems into realizable solutions and opportunities. He is laser-focused on ensuring teams solve the right problems for the right users with the least amount of risk. During his tenure at Huge, he led transformative engagements for clients such as Canada Goose, Carhartt, Gartner, MongoDB, Northern Trust, United Airlines, National Geographic, Merck KGaA, and Verizon.

Meredith Lewis previously served as the Director of Content, Education, and Family Experience for PJ Library in North America. In that role, she managed the creation of books and other new content, oversaw PJ Library’s role in the field of Jewish education, and served as the chief “knower” of families for the PJ Library enterprise. She also worked at 70 Faces Media (MyJewishLearning.com and Kveller.com) in a variety of roles, including managing editor, interim executive director, and chief operating officer, and helped lead My Jewish Learning into a merger with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. She holds an MPA and an MA in Hebrew and Judaic Studies from New York University and a BS in Journalism from Northwestern University. She completed a graduate certificate in Early Childhood Technology from Tufts University. Meredith and her husband, Ben, live in Northampton, MA, with their two children, Ari and Micah.

Andrew Keene grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and now lives in Washington, DC. Andrew is very active in the Reform Movement and serves as a Board Member for several organizations within the movement. Andrew is a Senior Program Manager at BlueLabs, leading a team of data scientists who support Healthcare.Gov public outreach.

Cameron Cegala is a Co-Founder at General Mills, building and scaling a new company to create transformative growth. She began her career at P&G and, more recently, was co-founder & President of consumer tech startup AdKaddy.

Rabbi Vanessa Ochs, Ph.D., is a Professor Emeritus in the University of Virginia Department of Religious Studies and Rabbi Sally Priesand Visiting Professor, Hebrew Union College 2023-2024.

Her books include The Passover Haggadah: A Biography (Princeton University Press, 2020), Inventing Jewish Ritual (winner of a 2007 National Jewish Book Award), Sarah Laughed, The Jewish Dream Book (with Elizabeth Ochs), Words on Fire: One Woman’s Journey into the Sacred, and Safe and Sound: Protecting Your Child In An Unpredictable World. For her writing, she was awarded a Creative Writing Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Dr. Jon Levisohn is the Mandel Associate Professor of Jewish Educational Thought at Brandeis University, where he also directs the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education. A philosopher of Jewish and general education, his recent publications include the edited volume “Beyond Jewish Identity” and two position papers for the Applied Research Collective on American Jewry at NYU: “A New Paradigm of Jewish Literacy” and “Producers Not Possessors.”

Rabbi Jessica Minnen is a writer, ritualist, and liturgist committed to the discipline of delight. Inspired by user-centered design, she consults with organizations across the country to create, deliver, and scale transformative Jewish learning. She was a part of the founding team of OneTable and served as Rabbi in Residence from 2014-2021. Originally from Paducah, Kentucky, Jessica is an alumna of Washington University in St. Louis, the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, Paideia: The European Institute for Jewish Studies in Sweden, Baltimore Hebrew University, and the Jewish Theological Seminary. She is also a Fellow of Rabbis Without Borders, Reboot, the Shalom Hartman Institute’s Women’s Leadership Mission, and the Ruskay Institute for Professional Leadership. Jessica lives in Denver, Colorado, and is mom to one amazing dog and one amazing human.

After a career as an attorney and child advocate, Alison Kur obtained a Masters degree from the Hornstein Program at Brandeis University and made the career change to Jewish education. She is the Executive Director of Jewish Living at Temple Beth Elohim in Wellesley, MA. Prior to TBE, Alison worked at Combined Jewish Philanthropies.

Rabbi Matt Green is the Associate Rabbi of Congregation Beth Elohim in Brooklyn, where he is also the director of the Brooklyn Jews community. Matt was ordained from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 2018, the same year he was named one of the New York Jewish Week’s 36-Under-36 for his surprising experiments in building queer Jewish community.

Rabbi Lisa Goldstein is a teacher, coach, and consultant with almost 25 years of executive experience. She teaches a wide variety of online courses with an emphasis on spiritual resilience, meditation, and the teachings of R. Nahman of Breslov. Educated at Brown University and Hebrew Union College, Rabbi Goldstein has worked as the director of Hillel of San Diego and the Executive Director of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. She is a faculty member for Jewish Pedagogies for Well-Being at M2, a research program for master educators, and is currently working for certification in NARM, a therapeutic approach to healing developmental trauma.

Alisa Robbins Doctoroff has been active on the boards of a wide spectrum of organizations that promote engagement with Jewish life and identity and that invest in the development of Jewish educational and religious leadership. Alisa is the immediate past chair of the Jim Joseph Foundation and past president and chair of UJA-Federation of NY. She is also a past president of the Abraham Joshua Heschel School and was instrumental both in founding its high school division and expanding its campus. Alisa has served on the boards of the Jewish Theological Seminary, the Hadar Institute, and Montefiore Health Systems. Alisa graduated from Harvard College, holds an MBA from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago, and an MA from the Jewish Theological Seminary. She lives in New York City with her husband, Dan. They have three grown children and two grandchildren.

A retired business owner, Fred Claar is actively involved in Jewish education as a Board Member, teacher, and lifelong learner. He is the co-author with Joyce, his wife of 58 years, of Values and Ethics: Torah Topics for Today, a book that easily brings Judaism into family discussions.