Faculty and staff
The Syracuse Hebrew Day School is an extraordinary place for children. It is a place where all of our energies are dedicated to helping children become their best selves. We purposefully create an environment to meet their needs from early childhood to emerging adolescence.
Laura Lavine
Head of School
Head of School Laura Lavine describes the Syracuse Hebrew Day School as a “gem of a school.” With more than forty years in education, she is delighted to be leading a school in which students meet the New York State Learning Standards and the demands of a robust curriculum of Hebrew and Jewish studies.
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Laura Lavine
Head of School
Melissa Klemperer
Executive Assistant
Mrs. Klemperer has a Bachelor’s degree in Management from Syracuse University. While earning her Master’s degree in Elementary and Special Education K-6 from LeMoyne College, she student taught at the Syracuse Hebrew Day School.
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Melissa Klemperer
Executive Assistant
Sherrii McCombie
Nurse
Mrs. McCombie received her LPN license in 1982 after attending BOCES during her junior and senior years in high school. She worked as an LPN while attending Nursing School at St. Elizabeth's College of Nursing in Utica, NY. She graduated and obtained her Registered Nursing License in 1985. She has done many types of nursing over the past 38 years but especially loves what she does at SHDS.
Sherrii McCombie
Nurse
Sheree Galek
Bookkeeper
Ms. Galek earned her Associate’s degree in music from Onondaga Community College and has been teaching band students of all ages for approximately fifteen years. She has also worked as an account lead, operational integration specialist, and pricing analyst at a third-party logistics company for ten years. She serves as the bookkeeper for SHDS and is pursuing a degree in Paralegal Studies at Bryant and Stratton.
Sheree Galek
Bookkeeper
Kate Hinman
Music
Mrs. Hinman is excited to be part of the teaching team at SHDS. She studied Music Education at Ithaca College and then pursued a Masters Degree in Music Education at Syracuse University.
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Kate Hinman
Music
Pamela Wells
6th Grade Cantillation
Mrs. Wells became a professional Torah reader in 2003. She is the Ba’alat Kriah at a local synagogue, and has taught Torah cantillation to approximately one hundred Bar/Bat Mitzvah students.
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Pamela Wells
6th Grade Cantillation
Phyllis Zames
Kita Alef and Kita Bet - 4th and 5th Grade English Language Arts
Mrs. Zames is proud to be an SHDS graduate, parent, and teacher. She has a bachelor's degree in Communication from Cornell University, with a concentration in Near Eastern Studies. After receiving her master's degree from the Bank Street College of Education, she became certified as an elementary school teacher in New Jersey.
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Phyllis Zames
Kita Alef and Kita Bet - 4th and 5th Grade English Language Arts
Yvonne Fix
1st and 2nd grade
Yvonne Fix earned her undergraduate degree in Art History from Syracuse University and is part-way through her Masters in Elementary Education at LeMoyne College.
Ms. Fix is completing her first year of teaching at SHDS where she previously completed her student teaching and taught as a substitute teacher.
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Yvonne Fix
1st and 2nd grade
Jackie Kassel
Resource
As far back as Mrs. Kassel can remember, she has always wanted to be a teacher. She never even thought about doing anything else. She graduated from Syracuse University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Education.
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Jackie Kassel
Resource
Moshe Alfasi
5th and 6th grade Hebrew
Mr. Alfasi is proud to be a teacher at SHDS. He has a Bachelor's degree in Communication from Sapir College in Israel, including a concentration in Sociology.
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Moshe Alfasi
5th and 6th grade Hebrew
Rabbi Shore
3-6 Chumash/Dinim
Rabbi Evan Shore’s tenure at SHDS has covered more than thirty years including being a proud parent of three graduates of the Day School. At Yeshiva University, he earned a Bachelor’s degree in History, received ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, and attended The Azrieli School of Education, specializing in Elementary Jewish Education.
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Rabbi Shore
3-6 Chumash/Dinim
Susan Fix
Art
Art teacher Mrs. Susan Fix attended OCC and SUNY at Oswego. She worked at Modern Kitchens of Syracuse as a designer then become an Art Teacher at Hillbrook Detention Center in Syracuse.
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Susan Fix
Art
Michal Downie
K, 3rd and 4th Hebrew
Born and raised in Israel, Mrs. Downie has been part of the Syracuse Jewish community since 1996. For more than twenty years, she has been teaching Hebrew and Jewish Studies in many of the Syracuse Jewish schools.
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Michal Downie
K, 3rd and 4th Hebrew
Allison Garza
Kindergarten
Ms. Garza teaches kindergarten, and sixth grade English Language Arts at SHDS. She received both her BS in Elementary Education and Psychology and MS in Literacy and Reading Education from SUNY at Oswego.
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Allison Garza
Kindergarten
Stacy Seidman
3rd and 4th Grade, Technology
Mrs. Seidman has had a life-long love of teaching and working with children, and is honored to be a part of the Syracuse Hebrew Day School faculty. Her time at SHDS started as PTO president and parent, then moved into the rewarding role of teacher.
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Stacy Seidman
3rd and 4th Grade, Technology
Jean Smith
5th and 6th Grade
When she was eight years old, Mrs. Smith decided that teaching was for her and has never looked back. She taught her brothers, her dolls, even her cat.
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Jean Smith
5th and 6th Grade
Colton Oliver
Physical Education
Mr. Oliver is a graduate of Fayetteville-Manlius High School. He has a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from The College at Brockport. While at Brockport, Mr. Oliver was a member of the Men’s Varsity Lacrosse team for four years and was named captain his senior year.
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Colton Oliver
Physical Education