Drexel Staff | Hillel in Philadelphia

	Sara Fischer Director sfischer@phillyhillel.org Sara came to the United States from her native England for a year, six years ago. After working at Cornell Hillel, Sara decided that she loved working with Jewish students, but didn’t love the four feet of snow that accumulated outside her door from November to April while living in Ithaca, NY. Moving to San Francisco, Sara had the opportunity to work with students in a multi-campus Hillel. Moving to Philly in 2004, Sara became Philly Hillel director in 2005. Sara lives in the ‘burbs with her husband Bruce and adorable daughter, Leah.
	Jody Peskin Program Director Jpeskin@drexelhillel.org
	Rachel Kaplan Jewish Campus Service Corps Fellow rkaplan@templehillel.com Rachel is the Jewish Campus Service Corps (JCSC) Fellow at the Hillel in Philadelphia. Rachel just moved to Philadelphia from Long Island, New York. She graduated in May with a BA in History from Binghamton University. Rachel was involved with Hillel in college; in fact she met some of her best friends at Shabbat dinner. She is excited to help you have equally great experiences at Hillel. When she is not doing Jewish activities, Rachel has been caught crocheting while watching Grey's and flipping through People magazine (her guilty pleasure) and taking pictures. She is looking forward to getting to know Philadelphia (hopefully without getting too lost) and all of you!
	Mark Melamut Rabbinic Educator mmelamut@drexelhillel.org Before moving to Philadelphia to begin his Rabbinical Studies at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC), Mark Melamut lived in several places, including St. Louis, Vermont, New Haven, and the cities of Arad and Jerusalem in Israel. Born in Mobile, Alabama, in a small Jewish community, Mark temporarily left his Southern roots when he entered college. Starting out as an accounting major at Washington University, Mark slowly came to the realization that number crunching was not for him. He was looking for something a little more meaningful. So, initially he settled in Burlington, Vermont, and worked for the U.S. Immigration as an accountant, before deciding to pursue Religious Studies at the Yale Divinity School. His interest in religion led him to delve deeper into his own Jewish background, studying in Israel at the WUJS Institute and at the Pardes Institute. Mark eventually found his Jewish home at RRC, where he will graduate this coming June. When he is not engaged in Jewish studies, Mark enjoys hiking and camping, biking, cooking, music, reading, movies, and spending time with his wife, Hayley, and his two cats, China and Zutra. This summer in Philadelphia, he especially enjoyed seeing his favorite boyhood band, the Police, in concert. Mark is excited to be the Rabbinic Educator at Drexel University’s Hillel this year, and to join the team of the Drexel Dragons.