Who We Are
Our Staff
Adina Mermelstein Konikoff
Executive Director
Adina Mermelstein Konikoff brings almost two decades of leadership experience at Jewish communal organizations both domestically and internationally to the role of interim Executive Director. She comes to this work with a deep commitment to human rights and a lifelong history of working to promote and support Jewish values and community.
Prior to joining YAFFED, Adina was a leader in the efforts to support the landmark trial against the white nationalists and neo-Nazis that terrorized Charlottesville in 2017, raising over four million dollars for the cause. In past roles she led a national rabbinic network supporting the rights of marginalized communities around the world and spearheaded engagement and outreach to young Jewish adults through volunteerism. She is a proud alum of the Drisha Institute for Jewish Education, the Columbia Business School Institute for Jewish Executive Leadership, and Boston University.
She lives in the suburbs of New York with her college-sweetheart and three school aged children and enjoys being outdoors, traveling and reading.
Beatrice Weber
Senior Advisor
Beatrice Weber was raised in an Ultra-Orthodox Jewish community and was married off to a Rabbi in an arranged marriage before graduating high school. Despite harsh opposition from the community and her family, she left her marriage several years ago and currently lives in Brooklyn with the two youngest of her ten children. Beatrice holds an MBA and an undergraduate degree in Psychology and speaks and writes about women’s empowerment and education issues in the Ultra-Orthodox community. In September 2019, she filed a lawsuit against her nine-year-old son’s Hasidic Yeshiva and the NYC Department of Education contending that he was not receiving an adequate education.
Chris Hazen
Legal Counsel
Chris Hazen provides legal advice and counsel on organizational activities and policies. He graduated from Seton Hall University School of Law with a J.D., and holds a B.A. in Government and Politics from Saint John’s University. Previously Of Counsel to the Law Firm of Steifman, L.L.P., he worked on class action and administrative litigation. Chris has worked for New York City’s Administration For Children Services (ACS) as a staff attorney, and briefly taught social studies in a well-regarded Yeshiva. His prior experience protecting neglected and abused New York children, coupled with his experience in a Yeshiva, made YAFFED an obvious next stop in his legal career. Chris’ proudest accomplishments remain winning the heart of his wife, and fathering his two beautiful sons.
Ben Tocker
Communications and Development Manager
Ben Tocker is YAFFED’s Communications and Development Manager, coordinating advocacy and development messaging across platforms. He holds a BA in Media Studies from CUNY Queens College. Ben joined YAFFED from the film production sector, where he worked with productions throughout the entire range of the industry, from independent filmmakers and student projects to major budget films, TV, film festivals, and other large-scale media events. He then transitioned careers to apply his values of social justice and his passion for activism toward creating positive change in the Jewish community. A 6th generation New Yorker, Ben grew up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan attending Yeshivish and Modern-Orthodox yeshivas, which shaped his strong belief that every yeshiva should provide a sound, basic education. He now calls Bushwick, Brooklyn home. In his free time, he enjoys volunteering as a member of his local Community Board, biking, live music, gardening, and sports.
Izzy Canning
Development and Executive Assistant
As Development and Executive Assistant, Izzy Canning provides development and administrative support to assist the team in achieving their goals. Izzy brings a passion for the Jewish nonprofit sphere and is inspired by youth identity exploration.
Izzy received a Bachelors of Science in Human Development from Binghamton University. Prior to joining YAFFED, Izzy served with CityYear as a student success coach. Additionally they have held various leadership positions in Hillel at Binghamton, Young Judaea and Camp Young Judaea Sprout Lake. Izzy is a highly motivated and creative individual with a passion for social justice, program development, and community organizing. Izzy currently lives in Manhattan. Outside of work Izzy loves painting, doing yoga, playing pickleball and kickball.
Shaindy Weichman
Parent Ambassador
Shaindy Weichman grew up in a Williamsburg, Brooklyn ultra-Orthodox community. By 19 years old, she was already a wife and mother. Later, Shaindy endured a four-year-long custody battle. As part of the case, Shaindy sought to be granted the right to enroll her son in a school that provided students with a basic secular education, unlike the ultra-Orthodox yeshiva he had been attending since the age of three, that did not. Despite ultimately losing the custody battle, and the right to change her son’s school, today Shaindy is a strong advocate for her community’s right, and access, to a basic secular education.
Our Board
Barbra Rothschild
Barbra Rothschild is YAFFED’s board chair. Barbara trained as a physician and is a lecturer in clinical ethics at Columbia University. She was an ethics researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the area of informed consent and genetic research as well as the researcher’s perception of intellectual property. She has been teaching medical ethics at the graduate level for 20 years. She also serves as an advisor to the Oak Foundation and serves on the board of Retro Report, a documentary news organization that uses the past to inform us about the present.
Anita Altman
Anita Altman is an activist and a life-long New Yorker. She is a graduate of CCNY and the New School for Social Research. A recent retiree, Ms. Altman had an almost 50-year career in New York City government and the nonprofit sector. For almost 3 decades she held a prominent position as a Jewish communal professional on the staff of UJA-Federation of New York.
There she played an instrumental role in organizing a Jewish response to the AIDS epidemic, helped put family violence in the Jewish community and addressing the needs and fostering inclusion for people with disabilities on the communal agenda, as well as championed programming to help enable seniors to age in their own communities. For 25 years she was responsible for the Rose Biller scholarship program, which has provided financial assistance to hundreds of Footsteps members. Ms. Altman was a recipient of the 2008 Woman of Valor award from the New York Board of Rabbis and is the founder of the ReelAbilities film festival.
There she played an instrumental role in organizing a Jewish response to the AIDS epidemic, helped put family violence in the Jewish community and addressing the needs and fostering inclusion for people with disabilities on the communal agenda, as well as championed programming to help enable seniors to age in their own communities. For 25 years she was responsible for the Rose Biller scholarship program, which has provided financial assistance to hundreds of Footsteps members. Ms. Altman was a recipient of the 2008 Woman of Valor award from the New York Board of Rabbis and is the founder of the ReelAbilities film festival.
Eric Huang
Eric is a lawyer and partner at Quinn Emanuel in New York, specializing in patent litigation. He also serves as Board Treasurer at the New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI). From 2009 through 2022, he served as a trustee with the Blue School, an independent school in New York City. Born in New York and a product of NYC public schools, Eric has an engineering degree from the University of Michigan. And a law degree from George Washington University Law School.
Malkie Schwartz
Malkie Schwartz is an attorney who works at the Hunter College Foundation and is the Director of the Eva Kastan Grove Fellowship Program at Hunter College. In her role as Director, she works with policymakers, politicians, and advocates to engage students in projects that advance the public good. Malkie was raised Lubavitch in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. In 2000, Malkie chose to leave her community of origin, and three years later founded Footsteps, the first organization in North America to assist people who wish to leave the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community and live in mainstream society.
Malkie also served as Director of Community Engagement at the Institute of Southern Jewish life in Jackson, Mississippi from 2009-2015. Now, 19 years after leaving her community, Malkie continues to care about the issues that affect people who leave—as well as those who choose to stay—in insular religious communities of all faiths.
Rabbi David Gedzelman
Rabbi David Gedzelman is the President & CEO of The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life, which focuses on revitalizing Jewish identity through education and cultural initiatives. He has played a key role in developing Hebrew language public charter schools, which the Foundation has supported since 2007, and is a strong advocate for Hebrew fluency and literacy in North America. He played a lead role in founding both the World Zionist Organization’s Council on Hebrew Language and Culture and Brandeis University’s Consortium for the Teaching of Hebrew Language and Culture. He also helped launch Kayitz Kef, bringing Hebrew immersion programs to camps across North America. In addition, Rabbi Gedzelman has overseen numerous initiatives supporting Jewish early childhood education, post-Birthright programming, and OneTable, which encourages young adults to engage each other in Friday night Shabbat dinner experiences. He holds academic degrees from Hamilton College, Duke University, and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, and has studied in Israel at Hebrew University and the Pardes Institute. Rabbi Gedzelman serves on multiple boards and lives in Harlem in New York City, with his wife Judith Turner and their three children, Nomi, Anina and Ziv.
Rabbinical Council
YAFFED Rabbinical Council (YRC) is an interdenominational body of rabbis united by their abiding commitment to Jewish learning and shared concern about the lack of adequate general studies (secular) education in Hasidic yeshivas.
YRC members are committed to supporting YAFFED’s mission by offering ongoing counsel as well as support in name and deed to the organization, thereby offering YAFFED enhanced recognition in the eyes of the public at large- from policymakers to community leaders. The YRC’s diverse range of voices bring increased exposure and awareness about YAFFED, helping the organization ensure that yeshivas sufficiently prepare their students for economic self-sufficiency and meaningful societal participation.
YAFFED Rabbinical Council:
- Rabbi Marc Angel
- Rabbi Andy Bachman
- Rabbi David Gedzelman
- Rabbi Andrue Kahn
- Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky
- Rabbi Ysoscher Katz
- Rabbi Dianne Cohler-Esses
- Rabbi J. Rolando Matalon
- Rabbi Shira Milgrom
- Rabbi Mike Moskowitz
- Rabbi Benjamin Sharff
- Rabbi Gordon Tucker
- Rabbi Burton Vizotzky
- Rabbi Simkha Weintraub
- Rabbi Eric Yoffie
Advisory Council:
- Anita Altman
- Oscar Cohen
- J. E.
- Debra Fine
- Chaim Fishman
- Ellen Gibbs
- Judith Ginsburg
- Ronald Slusky
- Eric Yoffie
Legal Advisory Committee:
- David Shapiro
- Victor Kovner
- Dena S. Davis
- Malkie Schwartz
- Eric Huang