Author Archive

Faye Mishna

Faye Mishna is a Professor at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work (FIFSW) at the University of Toronto. She joined the Faculty as an Assistant Professor and served as Dean from 2009 to 2019. She is cross appointed to the University of Toronto’s Department of Psychiatry, an Invited Member, Wilson Centre, and a Senior Fellow, Massey College. Prior to her appointment at the University, she had over 20 years of practice experience in children’s mental health. Her program of research focuses on bullying/ cyberbullying and consensual sexting and non-consensual image sharing among youth; informal cyber technology use in social work practice; and clinical practice. Faye is the author of 2 books on bullying. She maintains a small private practice in psychotherapy and supervision.
Rabbi Lipner graduated from Toronto’s Yeshivat Or Chaim High School and then continued his studies at Yeshivat HaKotel in Jerusalem, followed by Yeshiva University where he ultimately received his B.A. in Economics and M.A. in Education, as well as his Semicha (rabbinic ordination) through the Rabbeinu Isaac Eichanan Theological Seminary. After travelling the globe to participate in educational programs in Israel, the US, Europe and Australia, Rabbi Lipner finally returned to Toronto. For nearly 10 years, Rabbi Rafi served as a popular teacher at TanenbaumCHAT. 15 years ago, he founded The House, a young adult learning centre, which today inspires over 2500 participants annually.
Rabbi Seth Grauer has been the Rosh Yeshiva and Head of School of Bnei Akiva Schools since 2013. He also serves as the Honorary President of Mizrachi Canada. Rabbi Grauer previously served as the Assistant Principal at Yeshiva University High School for Girls (“Central”) in New York and was a leading educator for nine years at Ramaz Upper School in Manhattan. Rabbi Grauer studied at Yeshivat Har Etzion in Israel for two years, served as their Director of Alumni Affairs for nearly five years, is a member of their Board of Directors and is the current Chair of their Rabbinic Committee. Rabbi Grauer received his B.A. in History (honours) from Yeshiva University, his semicha from Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) of Yeshiva University, and his doctorate in Education from the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration at Yeshiva University. He also earned a J.D. from Fordham Law School.
For the last twenty years, Lisa has been actively practicing in the Hospice Palliative Care field, her experience encompassing leadership, program development and clinical service delivery roles. In her previous capacity as Manager of Hospice and Holocaust Survivor Services at JF&CS, she identified and introduced key operational and organizational changes driving a fourfold increase in the number of Hospice clients served. In parallel, Lisa oversaw the ongoing delivery of critical assistance to nearly a thousand Toronto-based Holocaust survivors living below the poverty line. Lisa’s commitment to developing best-practices in end-of-life care and bereavement is further evident in her executive sponsorship of the development of common evidence-based standards, practices and tools for the Ontario regional collaborative comprised of 24 hospices. Lisa holds a Master of Social Work from the University of Toronto and sits on the Accreditation Review Panel for Hospice Palliative Care Ontario. She is also a frequent conference speaker on the topics of culturally attuned hospice service delivery, trauma informed care, and grief & bereavement practices.

Schlesinger

Michael has spent almost 30 years focusing his career on helping not-for-profit and public sector organizations.  He is an organizational design expert and has guided many organizations through periods of significant growth and amalgamations.  Michael has been a member of several volunteer boards, including Achilles International Canada (where he is also a running guide for visually impaired athletes) and Camp Ramah in Canada. Michael holds a Masters of Industrial Relations and Human Resources from U. of T.  and is also a lecturer in that same program in the area of Consulting Skills Practice and Theory.  He still plays in the same band he formed in high school at CHAT and is the proud father of two teenagers.