Rachel Bergstein
Director, Center for Excellence and Engagement in Jewish History

Rachel Bergstein is the Director of the CESJDS Center for Excellence and Engagement in Jewish History and the Evonne and Elliot Schnitzer Family Jewish History Department Chair at the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School. She has an undergraduate degree in Jewish Studies from the University of Pennsylvania, and a graduate degree in Jewish history from Yale University. Rachel also studied at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and at the Drisha Institute for Jewish Education in New York. Rachel teaches courses on American Jewish History and Modern Jewish History with a particular emphasis on culture, race, and religion. Her dissertation research focused on the role of Jews in the American South. Rachel has offered adult education lectures and classes at various local institutions and has served as a synagogue Scholar-in-Residence. In 2016, Rachel was awarded the Beryl and Norman Meyer Outstanding Educator Award from the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, and in 2020, Rachel was selected as a University of Chicago Outstanding Educator. In 2022, Rachel partnered with the Shalom Hartman Institute to organize a conference of Jewish History teachers from across the United States. Rachel has taught at CESJDS since 2012.    

Dr. Sara Coxe
High School Jewish History Teacher

Dr. Sara Coxe teaches a variety of different courses, including Ancient and Medieval Jewish History, Modern Jewish History, History of Modern Israel, and Comparative Religion.  Sara has an undergraduate degree in religion from Emory University, a Masters degree in Jewish Studies from the Jewish Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. in religious studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara.  In addition to her experience in the high school classroom, she previously served as the Director of Education and Youth in a synagogue in Connecticut.  Sara joined the CESJDS Jewish History department in 2004.
 

Dr. Anna Band
High School Jewish History Teacher

Dr. Anna Band received her PhD in History with Distinction from the University of Chicago in the summer of 2022. Her field of specialization is Modern Jewish History, and her dissertation examined the relationship between Jewish dwelling space and belonging in interwar Germany. At the University of Chicago, Anna designed and taught numerous undergraduate courses in Jewish History, on topics such as Jewish Migration and Urbanization, the Holocaust and Human Rights, and Gender and Jewish History. In 2020, Anna received the Wayne C. Booth Prize for Excellence in Teaching, the highest university-wide teaching honor awarded to graduate students at the University of Chicago, in recognition of her work. Anna also holds a BA with High Honors in History and Jewish Studies from Oberlin College, and an MA in History from the University of Chicago. Anna began teaching at CESJDS in the fall of 2022. 

Jeremy Shine
High School Jewish History Teacher

Jeremy Shine teaches Jewish History and Israel Studies with an expertise in the study of Jewish history, the history of the Middle East, Holocaust, and European History. He has worked extensively in Jewish day schools, serving most recently as a Jewish History and Israel Education Teacher at Shalhevet High School. He has served as Director of the Samson Advanced Institute of Jewish Studies and Dean at the Tarbut V’Torah Community Day School, and has taught Jewish History and Jewish Studies at Milken Community High School, Hillel Day School of San Francisco, and at the San Diego Jewish Academy. In addition, he has taught numerous college courses at American Jewish University, Touro College, and the University of Michigan and has presented at the Wellspring Summit for Educators at the Shalom Hartmann Institute in Jerusalem. I hold an MAT from American Jewish University, a BA in International Relations and Russian-Slavonic Studies from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and All-But-Dissertation in the PhD program in Political Science at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Questions?  

Please contact us at JewishHistory@cesjds.org.