Kavana Programming Board
Jeremy Derfner, Adult Education Team Co-Chair
Jeremy is a staff writer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he is on leave from a PhD program in American History at Columbia University. Prior to beginning graduate school, he was a journalist in Washington, DC, first at The American Prospect and then at Slate. Jeremy earned his BA from Brown University.
Dr. Noam Pianko, Adult Education Team Co-Chair
Noam is an Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Washington. He enjoys applying his theoretical interests in Contemporary America Judaism to the practical questions of how to create new models of Jewish community. Originally from New York City, Noam received his PhD from Yale University and his BA from Brown University. He is an alumnus of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship and the Bronfman Youth Fellowship in Israel.
Ingrid Elliott, Family Education Team Co-Chair
Ingrid is currently a PhD candidate in Art History at the University of Chicago. Her research addresses questions of nationalism and domesticity in modern Cuban art. She won a Fulbright-Hays fellowship that enabled her to conduct dissertation research in Havana, Cuba. Since returning home to the Northwest, Ingrid has been juggling writing up her research with raising two sons. Ingrid’s Jewish journey began in 1997 when she married her Jewish partner, and together they embarked on a search for a community in which to raise their children. Ingrid is thrilled to be able to create with Kavana what her family couldn’t find elsewhere, as well as to explore her fascination with cultural history and community building in a new context, together with her family.
Scott Porad, Family Education Team Co-Chair
Scott's professional experience is in creating industry-leading Web properties in online media (ESPN.com, icanhascheezburger.com) and in e-commerce and online retailing (drugstore.com). In those efforts, Scott has held a variety of positions and is currently the Chief Technology Officer at Pet Holdings, Inc. Outside of work, Scott loves going on adventures with his wife and boys, hearing live music, playing golf and basketball, and sunshine!
Mark Fefer, People Team Co-Chair
Mark has divided his writing career between business journalism, consumer magazines, and the alternative press. He is currently the editor in chief of Seattle Weekly, where he has spent a decade writing and editing. He has also worked at Fortune magazine, Bloomberg News, and Savvy Woman (sadly, defunct). A Seattle native, Mark graduated from Harvard College with a degree in English and recently spent a year and a half in New York City on a semi-sabbatical pursuing Jewish studies.
Sprout Hochberg, People Team Co-Chair
Sprout is the regional recruitment manager for the Puget Sound Blood Center, helping recruit more than 200,000 blood donors and 3,000 volunteers every year. Previously she spent ten years at the YMCA of Greater Seattle working with at-risk middle school youth. She has also been a camp director for programs ranging from the YMCA to a small camp for youth with HIV and AIDS. Last year, Sprout fulfilled a lifelong dream and became a foster parent, adopting her son Isaac and giving him his first ever permanent home. Isaac has loved his first year in Kavana and being introduced to Judaism. He is thrilled with all of the new holidays he gets to celebrate.
Kate Koester, Social Justice Team Co-Chair
Kate earned her Masters in Social Policy and Practice from University of Pennsylvania, and has dedicated much of her professional efforts toward protecting human rights and violence reduction. Before moving to Seattle, she worked as an Evaluation Specialist for a violence prevention project in the Boston Public Schools. She explored international social justice issues through study and service learning in Israel, India, Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala, Ecuador, Quebec, Ghana and Thailand. Kate has also served as an AJWS Volunteer Summer Group Leader and a Mayyim Hayyim volunteer mikveh guide. Kate loves practicing yoga, dancing, hiking and enjoying time with her husband, Dan, and son, Noah.
Jane Bierman Seibel, Social Justice Team Co-Chair
Jane co-founded and served as executive director of Passages Northwest, a not-for-profit created to inspire courage and leadership in girls through the integrated exploration of the arts and the natural environment. Previously, Jane worked for the Woodland Park Zoo on “Zoomazium,” a new exhibit where toddlers and young children can run, jump, and learn about nature. She also worked as a shipboard naturalist for Clipper and Lindblad/Special Expeditions, traveling the world teaching about everything from tropical rainforests to penguins in Antarctica. After graduate school, Jane directed a National Science Foundation grant, “Rural Girls in Science,” for the Center for Research on Women at the University of Washington. She earned her masters degree in Forest Ecology from the University of Washington and her undergraduate degree from Colorado College. Most of her days are filled with jumping in mud puddles or picking up worms with her two young sons.