Leslie Scheck, M.A.R.E., is the Director of Early Childhood Education at Temple Solel in Cardiff by the Sea, California, and is passionate about Jewish Early Childhood Education. Her career spans over 20 years as a preschool teacher, summer camp counselor, summer camp director, youth advisor, religious school teacher, song leader, elementary school teacher, and ECC Director. Leslie is currently in her 19th school year as a Director of Early Childhood Education and has had the privilege of leading three different schools in Arizona and California.

Leslie earned her undergraduate degree from Arizona State University in Elementary Education with an emphasis in Early Childhood and an ESL endorsement. She was part of Cohort 2 of the EMA Program at HUC, earning her Masters in Jewish Educational Leadership.

Leslie has been involved with ECE-RJ since 2011 and has volunteered over the years - working on conferences, the Israel trip, the scholarship committee, the membership committee, fundraising, marketing and communications - and is now honored to be our president. She loves this organization so much and is passionate about helping early childhood educators find their people!

Leslie lives in San Diego and enjoys spending time on its miles of beautiful sandy beaches.

Mihaela Schwartz, Ph.D., serves as First Vice President of Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism (ECE-RJ), where she leads governance reform, board facilitation, and strategic planning for the organization’s national leadership. 

A senior early childhood education scholar-practitioner with more than 25 years of experience, she brings to ECE-RJ a career spanning inclusive classroom teaching, multi-site program leadership, and national board service. She began her career in education consulting and exhibition curation for European cultural organizations before teaching in New York City public and charter schools, where she served children in inclusive PreK through Grade 4 classrooms. She went on to direct early childhood programs across the New York and Philadelphia regions, most recently serving as Director of the MLRT School for Early Childhood Education in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. As a program leader, she launched new programs, supervised large teams of educators, and built learning communities rooted in Reggio Emilia-inspired documentation and the developmental-interaction approach.

She holds a Ph.D. from Babeș-Bolyai University and a dual M.S.Ed. degrees from Bank Street College of Education, a Pennsylvania Principal I Certificate (PreK–12), and certification in special education. She is currently pursuing executive coaching certification through the Teleos Leadership Institute, extending her lifelong commitment to developing leaders in mission-driven organizations.

Her scholarship and practice are anchored in Jewish ethical frameworks—b’tzelem Elohim (every person created in the divine image), chanoch la’na’ar al pi darko (educating each child according to their way), chesed (lovingkindness), kehillah (sacred community), and hakarat hatov (gratitude)—which she uses as genuine intellectual and pedagogical foundations. She writes and presents at the intersection of Jewish values, early childhood pedagogy, and organizational leadership, with forthcoming work examining the management capacity gap in mission-driven early childhood organizations.

Allison Weil is the Director of Early Childhood Education at Temple Isaiah and leads the Rabbi Mark and Morah Renee Panoff Preschool. She holds a BS in Elementary Education from Penn State and MA in Jewish Education from the William Davidson Graduate School, part of the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City. Allison has worked as both a Jewish and secular educator for over 18 years. She has been a teacher in public and private Jewish day schools, supplementary religious schools, and served as a counselor and unit head at Camp Ramah for multiple summers. Allison has also worked in family programming with PJ Library and the Jewish Federation of Howard County.

When she transitioned to being an Early Childhood Director, she was thrilled that her contract included membership in ECE-RJ. She joined right after she started and has loved the support she receives from colleagues across the country. Her first conference was in 2022 in San Diego. Last year, she served on the Hospitality Committee for the 2026 conference in Philadelphia and will now be leading the 2027 Development Committee in Seattle, as part of her role as the VP of Financial Support.

Allison lives in Laurel, Maryland with her husband, Matt, and their daughters, Abigail and Isabel. If she’s not at work, she’s probably taking a nap or reading.

Meagan Friedman is the Senior Director of Early Childhood Education at Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, TX. She joined the Temple Emanu-El ECEC team in 2023.

She earned a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in early childhood education from the University of Houston Clear Lake. She is working on her EdD in Early Childhood Educational Leadership at AJU. Meagan grew up involved in the URJ world through her childhood Temple, religious school, and Jacobs Camp. She has worked in Jewish education for much of her career, spending 20 years in JCC’s. Her roles have included preschool teacher, summer camp counselor, summer camp director, religious school teacher, elementary school teacher, and ECC Director.

Meagan’s first ECE-RJ conference was in 2024. She loved the opportunity to network and meet other directors. She left that conference knowing she wanted to be more involved in ECE-RJ. In 2025, she helped with the programming committee, and in 2026, she co-chaired the conference in her role as VP of Learning. She loves being a part of a team of leaders who work hard to collaborate, support, and advocate for Early Childhood Education.

Meagan lives in Dallas, TX, and has two sons, ages 16 and 19.

Sheila Purdin began her career in early education thirty years ago in her native Seattle, WA. She is currently the Senior Director of Early Childhood Education at Temple Sinai in Denver, CO, serves as VP of Learning for ECE-RJ, is an adjunct professor at American Jewish University, and co-author of What is Jewish About Loose Parts. She is a past member of the Efshar Project board and, during her twenty years in Atlanta, served on the Jewish Early Childhood Council of Atlanta (as co-chair and Kallah planning chair) and the PJ Library Atlanta board. She participated in the URJ Pursuing Excellence in Your Early Childhood Center Community of Practice and is a Simms/Mann Institute The First 36 Project Fellow. Sheila has been a member of Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism since 2008 and previously served as their VP of Marketing. She lives in Denver with her husband, Mark, her five chickens, and has two adult children and a grandson who are pretty fantastic.

Cathy Goldberg is the Early Childhood Education Director at Congregation Beth Israel in San Diego, where she leads the Bill and Sid Rubin Preschool & Infant Center. With 45 years of experience in early childhood education, including 23 years in Jewish early childhood education, Cathy is passionate about creating warm, relationship-based learning environments for children, families, and educators.

Cathy joined ECE-RJ in 2004 and has served on several committees before becoming VP of Membership. Through ECE-RJ conferences, she has built lasting friendships and a network of inspiring colleagues from across the country. She loves the energy, learning, collaboration, and sense of belonging that ECE-RJ brings to Jewish early childhood professionals.

Cathy lives in Ocean Beach, California, and enjoys taking walks and watching the sunset.

Congregation Kehillath Israel is proud to have Stacey Gabriel serving as the Assistant Director of The Judge Lewis and Mrs. Mildred Goldberg Preschool. Stacey holds a BA in Elementary Education from New England College and an M.Ed. in Intensive Special Education from Lesley University.

With more than 20 years of experience in Jewish education, Stacey has dedicated her career to supporting children, families, and educators. She began her journey at Temple Beth Avodah, where she spent many years growing as both an educator and leader within the community. Her passion for early childhood education and building strong relationships with families led her to her current role at Congregation Kehillath Israel Preschool, where she continues to inspire and support her school community each day.

In 2018, Stacey attended her first Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism conference in Israel, an experience that deepened her connection to the organization and its mission. Since then, she has served on a variety of committees, including as Chair of the Communications Committee, and has volunteered extensively during the planning process for conferences and events.

Stacey lives in Newton, MA with her husband Adam, their two young adult sons, and their very energetic dog, Ginger.

Jen Schiffer serves as the director at the L’Dor V’Dor Early Childhood Center at the The Community Synagogue in Port Washington, New York. Jen has been involved in ECE-RJ in numerous roles - serving on the ECE-RJ Communications Committee, as well as the Conference Planning Committee. Jen is also a regular contributor to the UNITE newsletter.

Jen earned her Bachelor’s degree from The University of Pennsylvania, and received her Master’s degree in teaching Spanish and TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) from New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development. A lifelong learner, Jen went on to add an additional Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education to complete her resume. Most recently, Jen earned her certificate in Early Education Leadership from Harvard Graduate School of Education. She also holds a NYS Training & Technical Assistant Professional (T-TAP) Credential as a Professional Development Specialist Trainer in Early Childhood, and serves as treasurer on the board of the Jewish Early Childhood Association (JECA).

When not at work, Jen spends her time on the pickle ball court, on the yoga mat or walking in the early morning hours. She lives in Port Washington, New York with her husband Michael and two teenagers, Jonah and Michael.

Ellen holds a Joint Master’s degree in Jewish Education and Jewish Communal Service from Hebrew Union College. Since receiving her Master’s degree, family and early childhood education have been the focus of her work. From 2003-2008, she was an educator at Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills, CA. There she ran a weekly family education program and Hebrew school. From 2008-2010, she served as the Assistant Director at the Peninsula Jewish Community Center preschool and completed her coursework in early childhood education. She served as the Early Childhood Director of Temple Sinai in Oakland for twelve years and is currently a Senior Educator at Jewish LearningWorks. In her position, she supports the Jewish early childhood schools across the Bay Area. Her passion for Jewish early childhood education is based on the belief that the core mission of this work is to support children in their growth through play and to inspire families to embark on Jewish journeys. When not at work, she spends as much time outside as possible whether, it is yoga, bike riding, running or hiking and parenting her tween daughter with her husband. 

Tricia Ginis is the Executive Director of Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism. She earned a B.A. in Psychology from Arizona State University with a focus on child development and family studies. Tricia’s role as Executive Director involves working closely with the Board of ECE-RJ planning and implementing professional development opportunities, webinars, and conferences. She provides guidance to congregations who are going through the placement process and focuses her time on advocacy in the areas of compensation and benefits for early childhood professionals in collaboration with related organizations to bring together like-minded individuals to move the needle on fair and equitable compensation, and retention in early childhood education. Tricia is also a Mentor for American Jewish University where she works directly with masters-level students providing guidance and insight as they pursue an advanced degree in Jewish Early Childhood Education.

Rebecca has been the administrative assistant for ECE-RJ since 2025. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Education from the University of Hartford. Rebecca is also the Operations Manager at the Early Learning Center at Temple Beth Avodah in Newton, MA. 

Outside of work, she loves to read, cook, and do Pilates. Rebecca lives with her husband Andrew, daughter Ava, and their dog Enzo.

Nicki Federman is the owner of Sensible Ledgers, LLC, a virtual bookkeeping and financial consultation services company. I work with small to medium sized businesses to establish sound bookkeeping systems and practices enabling them to reach their financial goals. I provide full charge bookkeeping services including accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, bank reconciliations, sales tax preparation, inventory control, general ledger maintenance, financial statement preparation and presentation, budgeting and more. I have an extensive bookkeeping background working with various types of businesses, but my passion is working with non-profit organizations like ECE-RJ and helping them to achieve their organization's missions.

In 2025, Julie Harris became the URJ Liaison to ECE-RJ. She joined the URJ Congregation Services team in 2022 and is the Manager of congregational services and Special Projects. She supports congregational leaders by creating and providing URJ resources that increase efficiency, governance, and engagement. These resources include essential toolkits for leaders. Julie has worked in the Jewish community for over twenty-five years in various roles for day schools, Hillel, JCCs, and camps, and serving as president on the day school board.

Julie is a proud graduate of the Hebrew Union College with a double master’s degree in Jewish education and Non-Profit Management; in 2022, Julie received her honorary doctorate from the HUR-JIR’s Zelikow School of Non-Profit Management. Julie and her husband, Etan, live in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with their dog, Hailey. They have two wonderful adult sons, Noam and Jayden.

Elaine Gaidemak, RJE has been an educator for her entire life.  Beginning as a first grade teacher in a rural Ohio, she went on to teach second and third grades in New Jersey and for the Department of the Army in Vicenza, Italy.  She began her career in Jewish Early Childhood Education when her son was three years old.  She taught two, three and four year olds at the JCC (then called the “Y”) in West Orange, NJ,  and helped found a UAHC sponsored Jewish Parenting Center at Temple Sharey Tefilo-Israel in South Orange, NJ where she went on to found and become the first Director of their preschool.  While the Religious School Director at Temple B’nai Or in Morristown, NJ, Elaine earned the title of Reform Jewish Educator. Her final professional experience was as Director of the prestigious early childhood program at Congregation B’nai Jeshurun in Short Hills, NJ.  Elaine, a founding member of ECE-RJ, was a leading force in the creation of the By-Laws.  As the first Vice President of Administration she created the database and most of the procedures presently in use by ECE-RJ.  As the organization grew, she was hired as the first Executive Administrator, a position she held until March of 2016 when the position was eliminated.  Currently Elaine is a member of the Advisory Board.  She has an adult son and a grandson who is the joy of her life.

Cathy Rolland, RJE, is director of families with young children at the Union for Reform Judaism and the inaugural president of the Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism (ECE-RJ). In her role, she provides support and guidance to the URJ Communities of Practices focusing on early childhood excellence and connecting families with young children.  She is the lead advisor and mentor-coach to the BUILDing Jewish ECE and the Chicago Early Engagement Leadership initiatives and oversees the URJ’s partnership with PJ Library.  Cathy was the director of Mountain Top School for Young Children at Temple Har Shalom in Warren, New Jersey, for 11 years before joining the URJ. Cathy recently earned a master’s degree in Jewish education from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and a RJE title. She also earned a graduate certificate in Jewish Early Childhood Education from Gratz College. Cathy and her husband Bob are based in New Jersey, and try to visit their three sons who live in Arizona, Colorado and California as often as possible! 

Norma Cahen has been involved in Early Childhood Education since 1976.  She earned her first EC degree from the American Montessori Society in 1984 and her Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education in 1996.   In 1998 she received her Master’s Degree in Pre-K/Primary with a specialization in Administration and Management.  From 1989 until 2013, Norma was the Early Childhood Director at a URJ affiliated temple early childhood center in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. During that time she also taught 6^th Grade Judaic Studies.  Norma was an adjunct professor at Broward College teaching Early Childhood Literature, Creative Activities for Young Children, The Philosophy of Early Childhood and the state mandated Administration and Management Director Credential for over ten years.  Retiring in 2013, she and her husband moved to North Carolina to enjoy mountain life, but was recruited to become the Early Childhood Director at the Louisville, KY Jewish Community Center in 2015.  One of her most outstanding honors was to have been among the original, founding “mothers” of ECE-RJ.  She served as the first Vice President of Membership and subsequently became the second National President (2008-2010). Norma and her husband, Howie, have four sons, four daughter-in-laws and six grandchildren.

Coming Soon!

Sari Luck Schneider is the Immediate Past President on the ECE-RJ Board. She was previously, the President, the Executive Vice President and the Vice President of Communications on the ECE-RJ Board.

Sari was the founding director of the Temple Shaaray Tefila early childhood school in New York City; she recently retired after 20 years leading the school.  Over the last several years, Sari was also a mentor in JECELI (Jewish Early Childhood Education Leadership Institute).  Sari lives in New York City with her husband; her children and grandchildren also live in NYC.

Heidi Baker has been in the field of Early Childhood Education for the past 25 years.  She has worked in both private and public sectors, including Head Start. Her previous experiences include Director of a Jewish preschool during the inaugural year of the program, owned, operated and managed a private preschool program, and is currently Director of Education at Temple Beth Avodah in Newton, MA.    She received her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and her Master’s degree in Jewish Education at Hebrew College. She is a founding member and proud to be the current president of the Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism (ECE-RJ).  She has two young adult children and lives in Easton, MA with her husband Todd, and her dog Charleston, and cats Allie and Alex. 

Jennie is a graduate of Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion, earning a Masters of Arts in Jewish Education in May 2017. She is also a graduate of Parsons School of Design with a bachelors degree in design marketing. She attended Fairleigh Dickinson Graduate School of Education, and holds licenses in both elementary and early childhood education. She has been the Director of Early Childhood Education at Temple B'nai Or since 2005.Prior to her work in early childhood, Jennie held high level marketing, operations, and communication positions in the fashion, pharmaceutical, and advertising industries. She has served numerous positions on the ECE-RJ board including National Conference Chair, VP of Marketing, First Vice President and President. Jennie believes that early childhood education is a sacred calling, and knows that the future of  Judaism rests safely in the work of early childhood Jewish educators.

Lori earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of Cincinnati. Since graduating, she has earned a Childcare Administrative Award and an Early Childhood Literacy Mentoring Award from Cuyahoga County Community College. Before becoming the Director of Early Childhood Education for The Temple - Tifereth Israel Early Learning Center, Ganon Gil, Lori worked as a preschool teacher, director of a corporate day care program, and consultant to several local childcare programs. In August of 2020 Lori and her husband David relocated to Columbus, Ohio. Where Lori is a Professional Development Specialist and a Coach for Action for Children and she serves as the Early Childhood Consultant for the Jewish Education Center in Cleveland in addition to being a Bachelors’s Degree mentor for American Jewish University.  Lori and David have two daughters Zoe, who attends Kent State University, and Sydney, who attends Ohio University and a Labradoodle, Ziggy. 

Fern Rappaport Katz has been the Director of Early Childhood Education at Chicago Sinai Congregation since 2012. She has an extensive background in early childhood education and special education as both a teacher and an administrator. Fern holds a Bachelor of Science in Education from Northern Illinois University and a Master’s in Education from University of Illinois-Chicago, as well as an M.A. in Jewish Professional Studies from Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership.

Before becoming Sinai’s Early Childhood Education Director, Fern was an early childhood director for the JCC of Chicago and early childhood education coordinator and instructor at Governors State University. She has also taught children with special needs as well as religious school in Illinois and New Jersey. 

Fern is past president of Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism and an active member of the Jewish Early Childhood Directors Council in Chicago. She was also active in the Chicago Early Engagement Leadership Initiative. Fern has led three schools (including Sinai Preschool) through the process of reaching accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). Fern’s article “Trust and Separation: God, Abraham, and Early Childhood Educators” was published in the Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education journal.

Fern finds joy in learning, teaching, and in Judaism, and believes we are all on a journey of exploration, discovery, and lifelong learning.

Lisa Samick has been working in Jewish Education for more than 20 years – initially focusing on informal High School programming, before returning to her original love of Early Childhood.  She has her BA in Early Childhood Education from George Washington University and has completed all of her coursework for her PhD in Education and Jewish Studies at NYU, focusing on Jewish Early Childhood Education.  Before starting as the Director of Early Childhood and Family Engagement at Temple Israel of the City of New York, she worked as the Director at the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue and as the Education Coordinator at Park Avenue Synagogue.  She lives in NYC with her 14-year old daughter, Jenna – a very proud graduate of the ECLC at Temple Israel.