2010 Achievements and Awards

L-R: Dr. Jonathan Mirvis, International Director of the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School; Sidney Shapiro, Director of Telfed, The South African Zionist Federation; Viv Anstey, Director of the Cape Town Mini-School; Lauren Snitcher, Cape Town Mini-School Recruitment; and Judy Mars Kupchan, North American Director of the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School.

The Florence Melton Award

The 2010 Florence Melton International Award was presented in Israel on January 18, 2011, to The Florence Melton Adult Mini-School of Cape Town. This award was launched in 2009 to memorialize our founder Florence Melton, z"l, and to provide a cash award to one Mini-School, whose accomplishments are stellar.

Melton International Director Dr. Jonathan Mirvis stated, “In receiving the Florence Melton Award, Cape Town's Melton has established itself as a global centre of excellence. [Director] Viv Anstey's achievements now serve as a benchmark for our other Melton directors in the United States, Canada, the UK and Australia.”

Cape Town’s success lies in two areas, said Viv Anstey at the award ceremony: “The exceptional quality and dedication of the Melton faculty, Jeremy Wanderer, Esther Maizels, Ronnie Gotkin, Yoni Hoffman Wanderer, Aviva Laskov and now Bryan Opert who are handpicked for the courses they teach; and, the other feature of excellence is the depth and breadth of Melton’s academic curriculum. It has made an important mark on Jewish learning in the city.”

Sidney Shapiro, Director of Telfed, The South African Zionist Federation, said he was impressed by what Melton has brought to Cape Town. After sharing the Cape Town context to the directors and staff, he pledged Telfed’s commitment to work with Melton to bridge Israel and Cape Town through education.

The ceremony took place during the International Directors Conference.

Directors Certification Awards

LR: Judy Mars Kupchan, North American Director; Viv Anstey, Cape Town Mini-School Director; and Dr. Yonatan Mirvis, International Director.	LR: Judy Mars Kupchan, North American Director; Laurie Hoffman, Rockland County, NY, Mini-School Director; and Dr. Yonatan Mirvis, International Director.
	LR: Judy Mars Kupchan, North American Director; Sue Parker Gerson, Regional Director and Denver Mini-School Director; Sarah Liebman, Portland, OR, Mini-School Director; and Dr. Yonatan Mirvis, International Director.
LR: Judy Mars Kupchan, North American Director; Sue Parker Gerson, Regional Director and Denver Mini-School Director; Orit Sommer, Salt Lake City Mini-School Director; and Dr. Yonatan Mirvis, International Director.	LR: Judy Mars Kupchan, North American Director; Aliza Sperling, Washington, D.C., Mini-School Director; Dr. Yonatan Mirvis, International Director; and Haim Aronovitz, Director of the Melton Israel Seminars.

The Director Certification identifies the proficiencies necessary for being a successful director and recognizes those directors who demonstrate these best practices. The certification was instituted in 2003. The 2010 recipients are:

• Viv Anstey holds a Masters Degree in Social Work and a Masters Degree in Jewish Communal Service from Brandeis University, Boston, USA. She is formerly a Community Consultant for the South African Jewish Board of Deputies and the first Director of the South African Jewish Museum, Cape Town. She directs the Cape Town Mini-School.
  
  
• Laurie Hoffman has a BS in Art Education from the University of Minnesota and a Masters of Arts degree from the Jewish Theological Seminary in Jewish Education. She spent three years studying and working in Israel and is a graduate of the Mandel Teacher Educator Institute. Laurie has been a professional Jewish educator for more than 30 years, as a teacher and administrator in varied Jewish educational settings. She is the director of the Mini-School in Rockland County, NY.
  
  
• Frieda Hershman Huberman holds a B.S. in Education from Temple University, a B.H.L. and Hebrew Teacher’s Diploma from Gratz College, and an M.A. in Jewish education and Contemporary Jewish Studies from Brandeis University. She also studied for a year at the Hebrew University and the Melton Center for Jewish Education in the Diaspora. Frieda has worked in Jewish education and communal service for over thirty years, in Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and New Jersey, serving as a synagogue program director, a synagogue director of education, and an associate principal of a Solomon Schechter Day School. She directs the Northern New Jersey Mini-School. (No award photo because presentation was made on Shabbat.)
  
  
• Keith Kanter directs two Florence Melton Adult Mini-School programs — the Limud North Consortium and the Lakeview Consortium of the Community Foundation for Jewish Education of Metropolitan Chicago. Keith is a licensed and experienced attorney. In addition, he holds an Associate of Hebrew Literature Degree cum laude from the Hebrew Theological College (1974) and has been actively engaged in Jewish Education for over 25 years. (No award photo because presentation was made on Shabbat.)
  
  
• Sarah Liebman holds a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Portland State University and a Bachelor of Arts in History with Honors from Grinnell College in Iowa. One of three Americans to win the 2008 Charlie Award, an award recognizing Birthright alumni for outstanding post-Birthright service to their local Jewish communities, she is also the founding director of Machar and Urban Jews PDX, organizations serving Jewish young adults in Portland. She directs the Mini-School in Portland, OR.
  
  
• Orit Sommer moved with her family from Israel to Utah three years ago following her husband's work, not knowing that she would be faced with such a wonderful opportunity to be involved with Jewish education. A background in social and organizational psychology, teaching and education and Jewish history serves her in the many challenges of creating the best Jewish learning environment in the small Utah community. In addition to directing the Salt Lake City Mini-School, Orit is also the director of the Religious School in Congregation Kol Ami.
  
  
• Aliza Sperling directs the Mini-School in Washington, D.C. She is the founder and director of the Women's Beit Midrash in Washington.

> View the list of all past achievement and award winners