Israel in Depth Fellowship

Mikhael Reuven Kesher is a curator of educational experiences and resources, whose professional passion is supporting Jewish educators and learners in building informed, constructive, and committed relationships with am yisrael (the Jewish people) and medinat yisrael (the Jewish state). As a British-born Israeli-by-choice and American-in-the-making, he cares deeply about strengthening each Jew’s connection to global Jewry. Before joining The Jewish Education Project as Director, Israel Education, Mikhael worked at Harvard Hillel, MIT Hillel, and Hebrew College. He holds Master’s degrees in Philosophy (University of Cambridge), Near Eastern & Judaic Studies (Brandeis University), and Jewish professional leadership (Brandeis University). At home, Mikhael is an avid reader, ḥevruta enthusiast, and devoted abba to two young children.

Dr. Jonathan Golden is Director of Wellspring Leadership Initiatives at Shalom Hartman Institute of North America. Previously he served as the Israel Curriculum Coordinator and a history teacher at Gann Academy, a pluralistic Jewish high school in Waltham, MA where he taught since 1999. During his career at Gann, he has taught AP American History, chaired the History Department, served as Assistant Head of School and Director of Academic Operations, and mentored numerous teachers and department chair. He teaches adult education courses on contemporary Israel at synagogues and homes in the Greater Boston area and is a member of CJP’s Boston-Haifa Shared Society Task Force and a Community Representative of JCRC Boston. A graduate of Princeton University, Jonathan received his M.J.Ed. from Hebrew College and Ph.D. from Brandeis University.

My route to becoming a Rabbi was certainly not a straight line! My first step was on Masada at 5:30 am on my 2001 Birthright Israel trip. As I watched the sun rise out of the Dead Sea, I felt connected to the Jewish people in a way I never had before. That moment catalyzed a trajectory that culminated three years later in a call to HUC-JIR from my cubicle at GE. In between those two moments, yes I got my Bachelors degree in Information Systems, but more importantly I fell in love with the wisdom of the Jewish tradition, and helping individual Jews and Jewish communities thrive. That passion has only grown over these past twenty years as I continue to invest in my own learning and growth, and create opportunities for communities and individuals to do the same. I live in Westchester, NY with my wife Kate, our three sons, Benji, Micah, and Ezra and our dog Gizmo.