Strategic Plan Board of Trustees 2008-2009
SSDS is run by a Board of Trustees made up of parents, community members and leaders. SSDS serves the Jewish Community of Greater Albuquerque and beyond and seeks to make Jewish Day School education available to any family that wants it. To offset the cost of financial aid, SSDS raises money, is a beneficiary of the Jewish Federation of Greater Albuquerque, and receives donations and support from many members of the Jewish community.
- Morris Albert, MSW
- Morris, a native New Mexican, is the Director of Member Services for the Jewish Community Center of Greater Albuquerque. He received his Master of Social Work and Certificate in Jewish Communal Studies degrees from Wurzweiller School of Social Work at Yeshiva University. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of New Mexico. Morris returned to Albuquerque in 2003 after working as a Jewish Communal professional in Jewish Federations in Toronto, Canada, Stamford, Connecticut and New York City. A long-time active member in Albuquerque's Jewish Community, Morris has held volunteer positions on the Jewish Federation of Greater Albuquerque Board of Directors (1987-1994) as well as chaired numerous committees and programs. Morris is the proud father of one Solomon Schechter graduate and a current Solomon Schechter student.
Back to top- Gavriela de Boer
- Gavriela has a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from the University of Maryland and a Master of Arts in Graphic Design from the University of Baltimore. She was born in Israel and is fluent in Hebrew as well as speaking German, French and Yiddish. In the area of music, Gavriela has extensive experience in music education where she has been a song leader, cantor, teacher, music director and developer of new Jewish music curricula. Gavriela spent many years as a touring performer and recording artist under the name of Judi Tal. Gavriela has been a member and chairperson of the New Mexico Hepatitis C Alliance.
- Andrew Gans, MPH
- Andrew joined the Schechter Board in 2005 as Campaign Chair and also served as Vice President prior to stepping up to President in 2007. Andrew comes from a family very involved in Jewish community service and fund raising in New Jersey and California and has continued this tradition in Albuquerque. He has worked with a variety of government and non-profit organizations in the fields of health, social services and education as a consultant for over a decade, having started his business in California in 1996. Andrew is currently the HIV Prevention Program Manager for the New Mexico Department of Health.
- Lori Garin
- Lori is the owner of Weaving Web Designs, a firm specializing in web development and internet marketing. Prior to founding her own company, Lori was a programmer and systems analyst in New York and New Mexico. She has been an advocate of Jewish education since her daughter’s experience at Solomon Schechter Day School. "My daughter’s life was greatly enriched during her years at SSDS by the school’s academic excellence as well as through the Jewish values and perspective taught there. All students at SSDS are enveloped by the nurturing instructors, rabbi, and school principal. The ethical foundation and confidence the kids develop are impressive." Lori has served on Jewish Federation’s Allocation Committee and this year will be working with JFNM to draw in young families that previously have not been exposed to the funding JFNM champions in order to "repair the world" in both local and global communities. Regarding SSDS, Lori "… wants to help ensure the success of the school so it can provide other children with an experience as positive as the one my child had there."
- Roberta Haynes-Sparks
- Roberta received her B.A. in Chemistry from the University of New Mexico and her MA in Adult Education from the University of New Mexico. Roberta works for the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility as the Water Education Coordinator. She has served on the Board of Trustees for Congregation B’nai Israel and also served as a member of the Board of Directors for the Jewish Federation of Greater Albuquerque. Roberta is currently a member of the New Mexico AIPAC Council and the proud grandma of a student at Schechter.
- Karen Higgins
- Karen Higgins is a technical manager at Sandia National Laboratories where she has worked for the last 26+ years. She holds a BS in Pre-Med from the University of Colorado and did graduate work in Electrical Engineering at UNM. A Colorado native, she has lived in Albuquerque since 1976. Her identical twin sons, Aaron and Adam Heyman, attended Albuquerque's first Hebrew day school, Akiba, in the late '70's and her grandson Sam is a Solomon Schechter alumni. With another grandson soon of age to attend the school, she has an interest in helping to make the school a premier educational facility. In addition to her scientific work in analytical chemistry, she has acquired skills in strategic planning and meeting management/facilitating.
- Marisa Johnson
- Marisa Johnson is serving her fourth term on the Solomon Schechter board. She has volunteered at the school in many ways since her oldest son, Avery, started in first grade. Marisa studied Japanese and Communications and Journalism at UNM. Marisa comes from a family of Holocaust survivors and is very committed to supporting Jewish life in our community. She is a mother of two boys, both enrolled at Solomon Schechter. Marisa was a stay-at-home mom for seven years, but is now a Real Estate agent.
- Stuart Lipkowitz
- Stuart Lipkowitz was born and raised in New York. He attended public schools and graduated from the City College of New York with a Bachelor of Science in Ethnomusicology. He subsequently studied violin making and was the co-owner of Lipkowitz and Lacy Musical Instruments. He has been a union organizer and worked as a head chef. His Master's degree (in literature) is from the University of Delaware. He studied Klezmer violin with Leon Schwartz--one of the last remaining, European born Klezmer violinists. Since 1995, he has worked at Albuquerque Academy as a teacher of history and English. He is also the coordinator of the year-long diversity project at the Academy--designing programs to introduce the Academy community to important people and issues in the areas of politics, culture, and the arts. He heads the Kompanye ensemble--a group that plays music and song of the late 19th and early 20th century from the Yiddish speaking world. His wife, Stephanie, also works at the Academy as director of curriculum development and as head of the English department. They have two children, who both attend SSDS.
- Perry Pintzow
- Originally from Miami, Florida, Perry Pintzow and his wife have lived in Albuquerque for 5 years. Perry is a strong believer in Jewish traditions and is working to raise his children with these same values. He is the proud father of two, one of whom is currently an SSDS student. Perry holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology. He has over 20 years experience in engineering and project management fields. Perry is the owner of two companies — Jobsite Software, Inc. which develops and maintains databases for tracking the Network Implementation for Cingular Wireless. The second company, JSI Resources, LLC. addresses the consulting needs of the telecommunications industry by supplying skilled engineers and project managers. Customer base includes Cingular Wireless, Nokia, Inc., AT&T, and ADC Telecom.
- Stephen Ruskin, CPA
- Stephen Ruskin holds a Bachelor of Arts from Brandeis University and has taken accounting and business course work at University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ. His accounting career spans two continents including working as Controller at Dinstuhl’s Famous Candies in Memphis, TN and at HOPE, Inc., a mental health facility in Tucson, Arizona. His family moved to Israel where he was a staff accountant with Don Shrensky in Jerusalem. Moving back to the United States and to Albuquerque two years ago Stephen joined the Vaughn Group as a staff accountant. Stephen is married with two children, both attending SSDS.
- Rabbi Arthur Flicker
- Arthur Flicker is Rabbi of Congregation B’nai Israel in Albuquerque, New Mexico - a position he assumed in August of 2002. He received his bachelor’s degree in History from Northwestern University in 1971 and his master’s degree from Ohio State University in 1990. He received rabbinic ordination from Rabbi Reuben Luckens in 1989. Rabbi Flicker has served congregations in Tyler, Texas, Cincinnati, Ohio, and Columbus, Ohio. He has had numerous articles published, is a member of the Rabbinic Cabinet of the United Jewish Communities, a member of the American Association of Rabbis and served on the Board of the Jewish Federation of Greater Albuquerque. Rabbi Flicker services as an Albuquerque Police Chaplain. In 2002, Rabbi Flicker was awarded the Martin Luther King Spirit Award by the Baptist Ministers Conference of Greater Cincinnati. Rabbi Flicker has been involved with the school since he first arrived in Albuquerque and serves as rabbinical adviser to the board.
- Kathryn Weil
- Dr. Weil came to Solomon Schechter as the Head of School in July, 2001. She retired from her position as Assistant Superintendent for Accountability and Information Services with the New Mexico State Department of Education. An Albuquerque native, Dr. Weil has served in the Rio Rancho School District as Principal of Lincoln Middle School and Assistant Principal of Martin Luther King Elementary School. She was the Testing Assessment Coordinator for Albuquerque Public Schools for 8 years. She has held a part-time faculty position at the UNM College of Education. Dr. Weil has 10 years of experience as an elementary school counselor at various schools within the APS system. She holds a Ph.D. from UNM’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction in Multicultural Teacher Education with a major in Early Childhood Development and a minor in Psychology. She also received her MA in Guidance and Counseling from UNM and her BA in Psychology from University of Wisconsin. At one time Dr. Weil also ran the Congregation B’nai Israel Religious School and served as the Education Vice President on B’nai Israel’s Board of Trustees.
- Scott Weiner
-
Scott Weiner holds a BS in Biology from the State University of New York at Albany, a MSPH in Environmental Sciences and Engineering from UNC-Chapel Hill and a MBA from Georgia State University. Scott and his family are new arrivals to the Albuquerque area having moved from Massachusetts during the winter of 2006/07. Prior to living in Massachusetts, Scott and his wife lived for over 20 years in Atlanta, Georgia. Scott is currently employed as the Environmental Safety and Health Manager for Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute, the only private basic science, biomedical research organization totally dedicated to the prevention, treatment, and cure of respiratory diseases. Scott is the proud father of a Solomon Schechter student with an additional student just a couple of years away.
Solomon Schechter Day School of Albuquerque
Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Jewish Community Campus
5520A Wyoming Boulevard NE
Albuquerque, NM 87109 505/232-2325 (phone)
505/232-3422 (fax)