Teachers
Denise Della Porta, M.S.
Christian Educator
Westchester & Orange / Rockland/Bergen
Denise has a Masters in Education and Counseling, and a Certificate in Catholic Youth Ministry from the Center of Ministry Development in Naugatuck, CT. Her training and experiences include serving as Director of Youth Programs at the Marydell Faith & Life Center and other Roman Catholic institutions, as well as on several Indian Reservations in San Diego, CA. Her love for children led her to the IFC where she has taught for many years, both in Orange/Rockland/Bergen and in Westchester.
Anna DeWeese
IFC Teacher Coordinator & Christian Educator
Westchester & Orange/Rockland/Bergen
Anna is a graduate of Union Theological Seminary where she received a Master of Arts in Systematic Theology, with an expressed interest in interfaith dialogue and social justice. She works at Fordham University as the Intervention Coordinator for CARE for Teachers NYC research project, studying a mindfulness-based professional development program designed to address teacher stress and well-being, and she also serves as a CARE program facilitator. She serves on the National Board for Church Women United, as a Young Church Women United representative. She also has experience as a writer and guest lecturer on the topic of faith and spiritual identity formation. She was an inaugural contributor to the Journal of Inter-Religious Studies “State of Formation” blog from 2008-2013, and was selected as a contributor to the forthcoming book, Kissing in the Chapel, Praying in the Frat House: Wrestling with Faith and College (Nov. 2014); she has also guest lectured at Penn State University. Her father was a United Methodist minister, and she has many years of experience teaching and working in church education settings. She has been teaching for the IFC since 2008, and has taught classes for both children and adults in the Orange/Rockland/Bergen, Westchester and New York City chapters.
Debra Fricano
Jewish Educator
Westchester & Orange/Rockland/Bergen
Debra was raised in an interfaith family in NYC, and is grateful to find an organization like IFC. For the past 6 years, she has explored the pluralistic Jewish community by working in different congregational schools and sleep away camps. Her specialization is in prayer, music, storytelling, and values based games. This semester Debra will complete her Masters in Experiential Education at the Jewish Theological Seminary.
Annette Kasle
Jewish Educator
New York City & Long Island
Annette was raised in a Conservative Jewish household where she observed and enjoyed all the holidays and rituals. Annette was trained as an attorney but is currently enrolled at the Jewish Theological Seminary. She recently received her Masters degree in Bible and is pursuing a Doctorate in Hebrew Letters.
Claire Mitchell
Christian Educator
Long Island
Claire is an experienced teacher, having taught every age from elementary school through college. She also has worked for several years as a religious formation educator with children through confirmation age at a Roman Catholic church. Claire has been teaching with us since 2010.
Penny Silverman
Jewish Educator
Long Island
Penny is a very experienced Jewish educator with strong background in early childhood education. She has taught and developed both Jewish and secular programs at the Early Childhood Center at the Community Synagogue of Port Washington for two decades. She is very interested in the interfaith implications of her work as a Jewish educator. She has been teaching with the IFC for several years.
Leslie Stern
Jewish Educator
Long Island
Leslie is an experienced English teacher who has taught in public schools in NYC and LI. Herself the child of interfaith marriage, she wishes there was an IFC when she was growing up and so is especially eager to teach for us. She studied Judaism and eventually formally converted. She now lives in Port Washington, where she is an active member of Temple Beth Israel. She has been teaching with the IFC since 2010.
Former Teachers
We are proud to have seeded a generation of clergy and educators, who, having taught in our schools, value our vision for interfaith families. Today, they are in positions of leadership around the country.

Rabbi Nehama Benmosche
Rabbi. Machar: The Washington Congregation for Secular Judaism

Rabbi Lavey Derby
Director of Jewish & Family Life, Peninsula Jewish Community Center, California. Formerly: Senior Rabbi, Congregation Kol Shofar, Tiburon, CA

Rabbi Joseph Berman
Rabbi, Temple B’nai Israel, Revere, MA

Gina Bria
CEO at HYCHIA, Founder, The Hydration Foundation, New York

Rev. Joel A. Gibson
Director of Faith Based Initiatives, Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies. Formerly: sub dean of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine

Rabbi Michelle Dardashti
Associate Chaplain of the University for the Jewish Community at Brown and Rabbi of Brown RISD Hillel

Kate Fridkis
Cantor, Congregation Kehilat Shalom, Belle Mead, NJ

Rev. Joel A. Gibson
Director of Faith Based Initiatives, Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies. Formerly: sub dean of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine

Rev. Dr. Beth Glover
Director, Pastoral Care & Education, New York- Presbyterian, The University Hospital Columbia and Cornell

Rev. Samantha Gonzalez Block
Associate Pastor at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, Asheville, NC

Moshe Goodman
Teacher, Abraham Joshua Heschel School (independent Jewish day school), New York

Rabbi Ben Greenberg
Planning Executive, UJA-Federation of NY

Rabbi Hannah Greenstein
VP Outreach, Israel and Overseas, Milwaukee Jewish Federation, Milwaukee, WI

Rev. Drew Harrison
Pastor, First Presbyterian Church, San Saba, TX

Rev. Erin Keys
Associate Minister for Congregational Life, First Presbyterian Church, Greenwich, CT

Kate O'Brien
Director of Education Innovation and Organizing, Workmen's Circle

Rabbi Aaron Potek
Campus Rabbi, Northwestern University

Madeline Richer
Teacher, Bronx Career and College Prep, Teach for America, New York

Andi Rosenthal
Planning Executive, SYNERGY at UJA-Federation of New York

Andrew Rosenthal, MDiv, LMSW
Coordinator of Clinical Services at Block Institute

Rabbi Ari Saks
Rabbi, Congregation Beth Mordecai, Perth Amboy, NJ


Nathan Smith
Teacher
Rev. Richard E. Spalding
Chaplain to the College, Williams College

Rebekah Wedge Thornhill
Curriculum Developer, Metropolitan New York Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Leo Cimini - Christian Educator