Rachel Isaacs was named one of “America’s Most Inspiring Rabbis” (2014) by the Jewish Daily Forward. Ordained in 2011 by the Jewish Theological Seminary, where she studied as a Wexner Graduate Fellow, Isaacs is the spiritual leader of Beth Israel Congregation. She is also the inaugural holder of the Dorothy “Bibby” Levine Alfond chair in Jewish Studies, teaching courses on Hebrew, Jewish theology, and Jewish humor. In 2016, she delivered the final Hanukkah benediction of the Obama administration at the White House. She lives in Waterville with her wife, Melanie Weiss, and their daughters, Nitzan and Hadas.
David Freidenreich is the Pulver Family Professor of Jewish Studies and chair of Colby’s Jewish Studies department. He teaches a wide range of courses on Judaism, Jewish history, and comparative religion, directs Colby’s Maine Jewish History Project, and lectures widely to community and academic audiences. He received his Ph.D. from Columbia University and rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary.
Vanessa Bernier brings extensive expertise in strategic relationship building and community engagement to the Center. As founder of Ten21 Consulting and former program officer at Rose Community Foundation in Denver, she has spent over a decade building meaningful partnerships with funders and stakeholders with a results-oriented approach. Through Ten21 Consulting, she works to advance donor intent through strategic philanthropy, community partnerships and research. At Rose Community Foundation, she managed a $3M annual grantmaking portfolio, developed strategic grantmaking frameworks, and created systems to assess community impact. She has also led a Jewish community study that informed regional philanthropy and community priorities. A new Mainer, Vanessa enjoys exploring New England with her family.
Erica Asch is the spiritual leader of Congregation Beth El in Augusta, Maine. She received her rabbinic ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 2008 and then took a position as a community organizer with the Industrial Areas Foundation. After three years with IAF, she served at Temple Sinai in Washington, D.C., before moving to Augusta in June 2013. She was installed as president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis in February 2023 in Tel Aviv.
Lauren Cohen Fisher serves in a joint role as Jewish Studies faculty and Colby’s Hillel advisor. She returns to Waterville after years at Hillel International’s Center for Jewish and Israel Education, where she developed Masterclass: Israel, a pedagogy fellowship for Hillel professionals across North America, and Kol Yisrael, a six-week learning cohort about Israel that is slated to reach its 1,000th student this year. Lauren received her bachelor’s degree in Government and Creative Writing from Colby and her master’s in Security/Diplomacy Studies from Tel Aviv University. She will be teaching the Israel-related courses in the Jewish Studies department. Lauren has been recognized as a national leader in Israel education, consulting for the Foundation for Jewish Camps, BBYO, Makom, Hillel International, and Moishe House. When not on campus, Lauren can be found singing niggunim to herself, hiking, gathering community, or trying to get her friends to participate in ice breakers.
Caitlin Kincaid serves as the program coordinator for The Center for Small Town Jewish Life. Caitlin supervises the multicultural and interfaith programs and fellowships at The Center, and provides general program support wherever needed. She graduated from Colby in 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in Religious Studies and Middle Eastern Studies. She enjoys living and working in Waterville.
Sheila Nesis is Associate Director of Spiritual Music at the Center and Cantor in Residence at Etz Chaim Synagogue in Portland, Maine. She is an alumni of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality’s clergy leadership program and member of their Hevraya program. Cantor Nesis seeks to cultivate awakeness through prayer, teaching, and song. Her writings appear in various Jewish publications, including The Times of Israel, Kveller, The Forward, and Ritualwell. Originally from Argentina, she lives in Cumberland Foreside, Maine, with her husband and two children.
Bill Robinson has over 30 years of experience building impactful nonprofit organizations and writing about the future of Jewish life and learning in America. He served as executive director of Na’aleh: The Hub for Leadership Learning in Baltimore, building the largest community-based Jewish leadership organization in North America and designed its distinctive training model, which focuses on seven core practices of Jewish leadership. A scholar of and longtime advocate for the transformation of Jewish education, Robinson has written numerous articles on new approaches to learning. As dean of the Jewish Theological Seminary’s William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education and the Chief Strategy Officer of the Jewish Education Project, he also helped to make that transformation a reality. He holds has an interdisciplinary doctorate in the social sciences with a dissertation focused on rabbinic leadership.
Liz Soloway Snider joined the Center in its early days as an all-around office person. She now serves as program coordinator, supporting all Center programs and running the Fall Shabbaton. Previously she served as administrator and educator at Adas Yoshuron Synagogue in Rockland, Maine. She also worked at the Wexner Learning Center of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., and as an editor at Moment Magazine. A native of New York, she graduated from Brown University with a degree in religious studies. She lives with her family in Belfast, Maine.
Caralyn Soucy is the administrative assistant for the Center for Small Town Jewish Life. A native of Waterville, Maine, Caralyn brings with her over 10 years’ experience as an administrative professional. Caralyn works with all of the Center’s staff in a broad array of tasks, providing general support wherever needed.
