Adult Learning Faculty

Emanuel Abramovits is a Mechanical Engineer with an MBA, Concerts promoter since 2000, responsible for many shows by international artists in Venezuela, like Itzhak Perlman, Gustavo Dudamel, Sarah Brightman, Roger Hodgson (Supertramp), Kansas, Megadeth, Dream Theater, Slash, Backstreet Boys, ASIA, Journey, Kenny G and all main local Symphony Orchestras. Designed and staged many original events, like MOZARTFEST, PINK FLOYD NUESTRO TRIBUTO (Event of the Year winner), OFRENDA PARA VYTAS, EL CAMINO DE SANTIAGO LLEGA A TI (world premier), etc..Cultural Director at UNION ISRAELITA DE CARACAS from 2008 to 2019, in charge of documenting Holocaust survivors’ stories, the history of the local Jewish Community, art exhibitions, lectures, film cycles, orchestral concerts, Limmud contents, etc. Recent exhibitions included the History of Yiddish Culture in 2017 and the History of Jewish Music in 2018.

Dr. Amon graduated summa cum laude with Highest Honors in Medieval History, with a focus on the Iberian Inquisition, before earning a J. D., LL.M in alternative dispute resolution and a J.S.D. (PhD in Law) in comparative law, criminal procedure, and legal history, all from Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Amon studied at Utrecht University, Hebrew University, and the Sorbonne; lectured on criminal procedure, the Inquisition, and Sephardic history in the United States and Canada to professional and lay audiences; and served as an Adjunct Professor of Law to visiting students, lawyers, and judges. Most recently, he has been published in law review and professional journals. A first generation American, Dr. Isaac Amon's paternal ancestors originated in 15th century Spain before leaving the Iberian Peninsula due to the Expulsion of 1492. Over the centuries, following their arrival in the Ottoman Empire, they served as Chief Rabbis, diplomats, and physicians to the Sultans. Isaac brings his unique skillset to manage the Research & Project Development at the Jewish Heritage Alliance .

Rabbi Dr. Haskell M. Bernat received undergraduate degrees from Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary. He was ordained At the Hebrew Union College and received the Masters Degree with Honors. Upon Ordination he was appointed to his seminary as a Teaching Fellow in Talmud and completed the fellowship at Brandeis University in Jewish Mysticism. He earned a Doctorate in Interreligious Studies from St Thomas University. An Orthodox Jewish upbringing (where Yiddish was his first language) and his early Yeshiva education is coupled with advanced scholarship in Western Civilization. He brings this blended background to the Melton classroom.

Dr. Batia Cohen earned her Ph.D. in Mesoamerican Studies from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and a Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design from the Universidad Metropolitana in Mexico City. She was an adjunct professor at Florida International University and she has taught in Florida for the past 15 years. Batia has published numerous articles in specialized Art and History magazines. She is currently a collaborator of a cultural magazine in Spanish online; LetraUrbana.com. She is the author of the historical novel Una Amapola Entre Cactus. Batia is a proud Melton graduate and serves on the Melton & More Adult Learning Advisory Board.

Marsha B. Cohen, Ph.D. is an independent scholar, researcher and writer, who holds Melton’s Deborah and Michael Troner Endowed Faculty Chair. She earned her PhD in International Relations from Florida International University and taught for over a decade, specializing in the Middle East and North Africa and the Role of Religion in World Affairs. Marsha received her BA in Political Philosophy from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Marsha has been teaching for the Department of Adult Learning & Growth as part of the Melton faculty for 20 plus years.

I know how important it is to be surrounded by loving community and people who care. I have lived in lots of different places and seen Jewish life expressed in lots of different ways. While home is Portland, Oregon, I was born in Rochester, New York, where much of my family remains, grew up in northern California and even lived in Germany (I can’t say I remember it well, I do have a love of piping hot soft pretzels—a holdover favorite snack since I was a kid). During high school, I was inspired by the RAC L’taken program, NFTY, and the rabbis at my synagogue to commit to leaving this world better than I found it. After high school, I moved to Washington, DC where I went to college at American University. While at American, I studied abroad in Belgium where I held an internship with a Jewish NGO. It was my abroad work experience that made things click—I wanted to be a rabbi! I knew that becoming a rabbi was the right path for me because it was the clearest way that I could make an impact on my community. My alma mater’s motto is “Ideas into action, action into service.” I read that statement not as an ideal, but as an imperative. Read more at RabbiJasonCook.com

Rabbi Ed Farber serves as Rabbi Emeritus at Beth Torah Benny Rok Campus in North Dade. A graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary, he is a Miami native and has served his entire Rabbinic career in three Miami congregations. Rabbi Farber brings deep scholarship to his teaching coupled with a commitment to tradition and a lively teaching style.

Dr. Samuel Edelman has served as the first executive director of Scholars for Peace in the Middle East and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the American Jewish University in Los Angeles. Currently he is one of the founding faculty members of the new Academic Council for Israel, and its executive director, and a member of the Academic Engagement Network (AEN). Edelman is an Academic Fellow and an adjunct professor of Israel Studies and Zionism of the Sue and Leonard Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies at the University of Miami and a lecturer at Florida Atlantic University LifeLong Learning Society and for the Miami-Dade CAJE. He is the former Director of the Israel on Campus Coalition Academic Affairs Department and the National Academic Network and its Fellows Program. He is also an emeritus professor of Jewish, Israel and Holocaust Studies as well as Rhetoric and Communication Studies. In addition to being one of the key academics fighting against BDS on campuses and in academic professional organizations, he continues to lecture and teach on subjects such as Anti-Semitism, Genocide, Holocaust and resistance, the Arab Israeli conflict, Zionism, the Arab Spring, The Changing Map of the Middle East, Jewish Peoplehood, the history of Israel and more. Edelman is also the co-director of the California State Center of Excellence in Holocaust, Genocide, Human Rights and Tolerance Education. Edelman is currently completing a new book entitled the Age of Hate with his wife and colleague, Prof. Carol Edelman.

Mrs. Henie Hajdenberg, studied in Buenos Aires and at the Tel Aviv University, where she specialized in Hebrew Language and Literature. In Buenos Aires she held many important positions in the field of Jewish education and she was for many years the Dean of Mijlelet Sazar, the Jewish Teaches' College , under the supervision of the Tel Aviv University. Henie was for twelve years a lecturer of Modern Hebrew at the University of Miami . She has authored many publications including: Keneged Kulam, Pedagogies of the Talmud ( Sifriat Poalim),The Mystical World of Rabbi Nachmann of Braslav (Tel Aviv University), Sifrut Yafa (Ort Argentina) and Lengua de Tierra-an anthology of Israeli contemporary stories, (Adriana Hidalgo Editora).

Rabbi Frederick ‘Fred’ Klein, a board certified chaplain, is Director of Mishkan Miami: The Jewish Connection for Spiritual Support, a program of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation and serves as Executive Vice President of the Rabbinical Association of Greater Miami. In this capacity he overseas Jewish pastoral care support for Miami’s Jewish Community, trains volunteers in friendly visiting and bikkur cholim, consults with area synagogues in creating caring community, and organizes conferences on spirituality, illness and aging. As director of the interdenominational Rabbinical Association of Greater Miami, he provides local spiritual leadership with a voice in communal affairs. Rabbi Klein also is engaged in teaching Torah to Jews of all backgrounds. He serves as the in-house rabbi for the Jewish Federation of Miami. Rabbi Klein is Miami native and graduated magna cum laude from Brown University, where he received a bachelor’s degree in religious studies. While in rabbinical school at Yeshiva University, he received an MA in Bible at Revel, and later earned an MPhil in Jewish history from Columbia University. During rabbinical school, Rabbi Klein was awarded the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, and has received numerous awards for his work with aging populations and community work.

Dr. Sandra Lilienthal has a Masters in Jewish Studies and a Doctorate in Jewish Education. In 2015, she received the prestigious Covenant Award for Excellence in Jewish Education. Sandra has over 25 years of experience in Jewish Education working with all ages in both Brazil and the US. For the past 15 years, Dr. Lilienthal has focused exclusively on teaching adults. She is a Melton faculty member and the author of the Pillars of Judaism curriculum. Sandra is currently working on the Living Wisdom curriculum - nine new courses being taught by Melton schools all around the world. She is a guest speaker at many synagogues in the tri-county area, presents at Limmud conferences in the US and Canada and is invited for scholar-in-residence programs around the country.

Rabbi Norman Lipson moved to Miami, FL in 1955. Following graduation from the University of Miami, he entered the Hebrew-Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, Ohio and was ordained in 1972. He has served on the national staff of the Anti-Defamation League and as spiritual leader of congregations in Mississippi, Texas, Hollywood, FL and most recently Temple Dor Dorim in Weston, where he was the Founding Rabbi, and now is Emeritus. For years, Rabbi Lipson’s been a sought-after teacher in Broward and luckily for us, now “brings his talents to North Dade/Aventura. He is married and the proud grandfather of four brilliant grandchildren (direct quote :-).

Dr. Ofer Margalit recently relocated with his family from Jerusalem to Miami, where they have been living for the past few months. With 20 years of experience in education, Dr. Margalit has dedicated his career to teaching, curriculum development, and mentoring new and experienced teachers. Holding a Ph.D. in Jewish philosophy, Dr. Margalit has taught Jewish and Israel Studies at universities and high-school in Israel. He is passionate about fostering personal responsibility, exploring Jewish ethics, and bridging philosophical insights with contemporary societal challenges. His work emphasizes the importance of critical thinking and fostering meaningful relationships with each other, including with the divine. He is the author of a book “Prayer and Anxiety”, and is currently working on a new book exploring the visions of leading intellectuals in Israel for the country’s future following the October 7th war.

Rabbi Dr. Leon Weissberg is the former Director of the Leo Martin March of the Living in Miami-Dade and in Boca Raton. He has a doctorate in Educational Leadership and offers courses at various South Florida universities and schools. Leon has been teaching Melton courses for the 35 plus years, developing a fan base and following wherever he goes.

Dr. Marina Zilbergerts is an author and scholar of Jewish literature and thought. From 2016 to 2022, she served as Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is the author of The Yeshiva and the Rise of Modern Hebrew Literature (Indiana University Press, 2022) and the poetry collection You Were Adam (Wipf and Stock, 2022). Dr. Zilbergerts lectures widely on Torah and Jewish thought and regularly contributes to both scholarly and public intellectual platforms. With an undergraduate background in the sciences and a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from Stanford University, her work bridges the sciences, humanities, and philosophy. Her current book project, Consciousness and the Bible in the Age of AI, reflects her interdisciplinary approach to Jewish texts.