Rabbi Jay Perlman
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Rabbi Jay Perlman is a Senior Rabbi at Temple Beth Shalom. Since his arrival in Needham in the summer of 2003, Rabbi Perlman has been dedicated to nurturing a warm, vibrant, spiritually meaningful community. He is proud to share in this sacred service with many outstanding clergy, professional, and lay leaders.
Rabbi Perlman is active in both the Needham and the Greater Boston Jewish community. He is an active member of the Needham Clergy Association, including having recently served as president. He currently serves on the New England Regional Board of the Anti-Defamation League. He frequently dedicates two weeks during summer to serve on the faculty at the Union for Reform Judaism’s Camp Eisner. Rabbi Perlman has served as a rabbinic mentor for both the Hebrew College Rabbinic Program and the rabbinical school at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. He is a regular teacher for the URJ’s “Taste of Judaism” and “Introduction to Judaism” programs and is a member of the Needham Coalition for Suicide Prevention.
Before coming to the Boston area, Rabbi Perlman served at Congregation Shaare Emeth in St. Louis, MO. While there, he was awarded UJA Federation’s Rabbinic Award for outstanding community leadership. Rabbi Perlman was active in the development of innovative worship experiences, creative youth programming, and in working with the St. Louis Jewish deaf community. In addition, Rabbi Perlman was the founding Rabbinic Director of the Fleischer Jewish Healing Center of St. Louis.
Rabbi Perlman was ordained from the Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1996. While at HUC, he was the recipient of a number of academic awards, including his selection as a Steinhardt Scholar for his work in informal education.
Rabbi Perlman is originally from the Boston area. He is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Brandeis University, where he received his B.A. in both History and Near East and Judaic Studies. Rabbi Perlman has participated in numerous study opportunities in Israel, including programs at the Hartman Institute, the Conservative Yeshiva, the Pardes Institute, Hebrew University, and through the World Zionist Organization.
Rabbi Perlman has a passion for teaching, learning, building bridges, and sharing the beauty of our Jewish tradition. He joyfully shares his life with his wife, Emily, and their children Liana and Jonah.
K-12 Learning At Temple Beth Shalom
Inclusion Support
Didi Poliak
Assistant Director of K-12 Inclusion
Pronouns: She/Her
I am very excited to return to TBS after a few years away in this new role! I am originally from New York, where I grew up involved in my Reform synagogue and finding my love of Judaism at Eisner Camp. After graduating from the University of Delaware, I began at TBS as a JLG. The few years I was at TBS were great and educational and I learned a lot about myself, the ways we can teach and help children, and about my own Judaism. I left TBS in 2020 to pursue my Masters degree in Social Work and am thrilled to be back in this wonderful community in this new role as the Assistant Director of K-12 Inclusion. I believe that Jewish education is so important and I am so excited to be able to provide support so that all of our learners can grow and be a part of this great community!
Zoe Summit
Mondays Only
Pronouns: She/Her
I have loved supporting Mayim and Mayim Tamid once a week for the past 7 years, and am excited to support again on Mondays this year! When I'm not at TBS, I teach in an ABA-based program in Boston Public Schools. I feel strongly that, as educators, it is our job to meet each student where they are and foster a love for learning and for Judaism from there. As a special educator and BCBA, I am a firm believer in individualizing education and I love how many access points there are to each concept in the TBS curricula! My favorite part of this work is building relationships with amazing teachers, students, and parents. I love learning from, and growing with, everyone in this community!
Sara Berk
Director of K-12 Learning and Inclusion
Pronouns: She/Her
All children can succeed when they are provided with the right tools and support, which is why I love working at Temple Beth Shalom! TBS is a place where curriculum and support are provided in a way that allows each child to be successful.
As the Director of K-12 Learning and Inclusion, I collaborate with Jewish Learning Guides (JLGs) and families to ensure that all children can successfully access the curriculum. I provide training for the K-12 faculty in order to support each child and teen in the Mayim and Etzim learning programs.
Prior to joining the team at TBS in 2013, I worked as a special educator in MA and NYC. I am a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and have a Masters Degree in Special Education. In January 2021, I founded Sara's Joyful Baking, which allows me to combine my love of teaching with baking.