Congregational School Staff

Holli Goldenberg

Hebrew School Director, Zayin class, Tot and Teen Coordinator

Holli is an accomplished educator by profession. She is currently working as a district administrator within the school district of Philadelphia. She oversees the English as a second language program at multiple district schools. Holli has extensive experience in both formal and informal Jewish education and has a background in theater.

Holli is also our current Teen Leadership and Social Programming Coordinator.

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Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Congregational School Curriculum Development

Gabby has worked in Jewish education as an education director, curriculum writer, teacher, author and youth director/advisor for over 20 years.

At Mishkan Shalom, she created Celebrations!, an award-winning Shabbat family educational program for children with special needs and their families. She directs Mishkan's chapter while expanding the program throughout the region, including the development of a social and social action group for young adults with special needs, Mitzvah Menshes. She teaches our very popular teen cooking program, Food for Thought.

She serves as Chief Program Officer at Jewish Learning Venture, working on disability inclusion with synagogues and schools across the area.

Gabby is the author of two books of plays for young people including Extraordinary Jews: Their Lives on Stage. Her nonfiction books include The Creative Jewish Wedding Book and most recently The Little Gate-Crasher. She is a popular writer and blogger about Jewish parenting, arts, and special needs topics.

Gabby holds a B.F.A. in theatre and creative writing from Emerson College and an M.A. in Jewish Studies from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.

Julia Weekes

Gan, Alef, Bet/Gimel Judaics

Julia has been at Mishkan for years as a teacher and a parent. She is the mom of Judah and Isaiah. Julia has primarily been Mishkan’s Kitah Gimel teacher, but has also taught Kitah Dalet, Bet Hebrew, served as a substitute teacher, and occasional tutor.

Julia structures the class as a Kehillah where each person is integral in creating the most joyful and productive learning environment. She utilizes cooperative and experiential learning for all aspects of the curriculum.

Amy Goldman

Gimel Hebrew, Vav Judaics, Hay Hebrew

Amy joined our teaching staff in 2020 and has extensive experience in Jewish education. Amy loves the creative arts and cooking--two passions that she’s already brought to her students at Mishkan!

Cantor David Acker

Hay Judaics, Vav Hebrew

David holds a Masters in Cantorial Studies and Jewish Music from Gratz College as well as music degrees from Temple University’s Esther Boyer College of Music and Swarthmore College. He is also a candidate for a Masters in Jewish Education at Gratz College. David challenges his students to invest their own creativity, imaginations and intelligence into the development of their Jewish identity. Through experiential learning, he facilitates his students' discovery of the relevance of Jewish customs, literature, prayers and ideas. He also believes that students feel much more comfortable in the synagogue when they know they are competent in Hebrew, so he designs games and engaging exercises to help them learn.

Prior to teaching at Mishkan Shalom, David served as cantor and music specialist at Congregation Ohev Shalom (Wallingford, PA) and Or Shalom (Berwyn, PA). At Mishkan he has led clubs that created and performed plays and raps for Hannukah, Purim, and Passover, as well as storytelling and trope clubs. He enjoys singing all kinds of music: opera, musical theater and lieder as well as liturgical music. David is drawn to teaching in the synagogue, because within it he experiences the whole gamut of Jewish life: prayer, education, b’nai-mitzvah preparation, lifecycle, and community.