Meet our Staff

Lisa Goldstein Executive Director

Rabbi Lisa Goldstein

(858) 550-2210

Rabbi Lisa has been the Executive Director of Hillel of San Diego for thirteen years. Originally from a small town near Pasadena, she studied history at Brown University and then went on to Rabbinical School, where she also earned a Masters in Jewish Education. She has lived in five cities across the United States and has also spent significant time in Germany and Israel. She tries to travel abroad at least twice a year, sometimes with students and sometimes on her own. She also loves hiking, reading and great conversations (preferably over coffee). She is spending the 2009-2010 academic year in Jerusalem as part of the Mandel Jerusalem Fellowship, where she is using her sabbatical to work on a project involving social justice and spirituality.  She will return to San Diego in June 2010.

Jackie Tolley SDSU Director

Jackie Tolley

(619) 583-6080

Jackie, Director of Hillel at SDSU, was born in Washington, D.C. but San Diego is definitely her home now, having lived here longer than she lived in her own hometown.  A graduate of the University of Maryland, she majored in Education and was a public school teacher before finding her passion for working on campus.  She loves her job because she helps young Jewish adults connect to their Judaism, works with terrific students and staff to create a welcoming Jewish community at SDSU, and can have coffee with students and talk about life, the world and everything in between!  She loves hanging out with her family and friends, cheering enthusiastically for the San Diego Padres, reading fiction and non-fiction (loved all 7 Harry Potters, The Tipping Point, The Kite Runner etc.), snorkeling on vacation, listening to music and just enjoying life. 

Lori Bolotin Development Director

Lori Bolotin

(858) 550-1798

Lori, a native San Diegan, remembers San Diego when Mission Valley was corn fields rather than shopping centers! Prior to joining Hillel as the Development Director, she was an active volunteer in the San Diego Jewish Community and most recently the Campaign Chair for UJF Womens' Division. Before that, her career of close to 20 years was in apparel manufacturing where she was the Vice President of Private Label for The Weekend Exercise Co. In her free time she reads, does Sudoku, plays bridge, loves to cook and looks for new donors!!!

Keri CopansUCSD Assistant Director

Keri Copans

(858) 550-1793

Originally from Boston, Keri is a UCSD Alumna and the Assistant Director at UCSD Hillel. She has been with Hillel of San Diego for over six years, and loves working with the various student leaders on campus to create a wide range of programs. She received her Masters in Non Profit Management at USD. When she's not working, she loves to travel, scrapbook and spend time with her husband Shaun and her cat Archie.

Amy Bebchick North County Program Coordinator

Amy Bebchick

(760) 828-7230

Beginning her tenth year of Hillel work, Amy is excited to begin a new challenge-building Jewish campus life in North County! Working with students at California State University San Marcos, MiraCosta College, and Palomar College, faculty, staff, and the community, we're connecting students to each other, organizing Shabbat and holiday programming, traveling to Israel and for Alternative Spring Break, developing leadership skills, and participating in other unique Jewish experiences. Having moved from Massachusetts to Washington, DC, to Israel, to Ohio, Amy now happily resides in Carlsbad with her husband Jeff, and their daughter Siona.

Yvonne LawrenceOffice Manager at SDSU

Yvonne Lawrence

(619) 583-6080

Yvonne Lawrence has been the office manager for Hillel of San Diego for over 14 years. She enjoys her job and finds it to be very rewarding, especially when she has a lasting impact on students' lives. When Yvonne is not at work, she enjoys spending time with her family, camping, and watching football and soap operas.

Glenda Jaffe Graduate Student Program Associate

Glenda Jaffe

(858) 550-1795

Glenda is originally from Cape Town, South Africa- which you can tell as soon as she starts speaking - and has lived in San Diego for 21 glorious years . She has been happily involved in Jewish Communal work for most of this time. She is passionate about Israeli dancing and going on long walks and talks. (always looking for walking buddies to join her - "ten miles today - anyone". She is an avid reader of good , long novels. Her pride and joy - her 2 teenage daughters, Liora and Atara who will hopefully become very active Hillel members in the near future

Danielle DestanIsrael Program Coordinator

Danielle Desta

Ruth Kerman SDSU Program Director

Ruth Kerman

Ruth is thrilled to return to work at her Alma Mater, SDSU, after spending the last two years working for Hillel at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Ruth knew immediately upon completing her schooling that she wanted to give back to Hillel because it gave her so much as a student. Ruth graduated from SDSU in 2007 with a degree in Social Sciences. During her college years, she also spent two years in Manhattan studying Musical Theatre at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, but after 2 years in the Big Apple Ruth knew the West Coast was the place for her. Ruth grew up in Valencia, CA (yes, that's where Magic Mountain is!) and is very close with her family. When not working you can find Ruth doing Yoga, singing, working on a crossword, or driving to see a friend in whatever city they may be in. But her favorite thing to do is go to a really good concert!

Leah Newman UCSD Program Director

Leah Newman

Originally from the Bay Area, Leah graduated from UCSD in 2007 and then moved to Washington, D.C. to work for Hillel at the University of Maryland. She is so happy to be back in San Diego as the Program Director at UCSD. She loves working with students and looks forward to being a resource to the already amazing Jewish community on campus. She also cannot wait to staff the AJWS trip to Central America during Spring Break! Leah's love of San Diego is especially due to the following: Croutons, Golden Spoon, sunsets, and real Mexican food.


Erica Feinman The Lipinsky Engagement Associate at SDSU

Erica Feinman

Erica is eager to begin the exciting new adventures of being The Lipinsky Engagement Associate at SDSU. She is a graduate from California State University, Northridge, and received her degree in Sociology and Jewish Studies. She attended and worked at Gindling Hilltop Camp for 11 years and loved every moment of it. Erica is excited to be working at a university in Southern California, being a Southern California native, and her favorite things in life are laughing, karaoke, taking pictures, traveling and eating great food.