Education Administration Team

Prior to being appointed CEO, Rabbi Rosenblum served as principal of the boys division. During his tenure, Yeshiva was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence by the U.S. Department of Education. He also led the effort to document the school’s systems, processes, and methodologies. This documentation was submitted to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which accredited Yeshiva’s middle school program.

Rabbi Rosenblum has over 30 years of experience as an innovative educator and administrator. Among his accomplishments, he founded the International Sefer HaMitzvos Competition and authored the Sefer HaMitzvos booklets used by 40 schools. He also worked on both the ground-breaking Gemara Berura teaching methodology and Hascholas Gemara workbook, which incorporated Differentiated Instruction (DI) and Understanding by Design (UBD) learning techniques. In addition, Rabbi Rosenblum headed the team responsible for establishing the Zekelman Standards for Chumash and Talmud, which have been implemented in over 50 schools.

Rabbi Rosenblum has given educational leadership seminars for principals and school leaders and has served as a consultant for tens of schools in the U.S. and Canada. Rabbi Rosenblum was ordained by the United Lubavitch Yeshiva.

Mrs. Batsheva Deren manages policies and procedures and supervises Judaic teachers and curriculum across Yeshiva Girls School. She is responsible for scheduling, curriculum development, extracurricular activities, and personnel management. She oversees the maintenance of the school’s motivational framework, maintains concurrent disciplinary policies, and works with parents to address behavioral and emotional health issues. Mrs. Deren seeks to imbue her own passion to and commitment for learning into each and every one of her students.

Mrs. Deren graduated from Beit Rivkah Seminary in Kfar Chabad, and has since continued her education with AJL, the Lookstein Center, and Menachem Foundation training. In her 40+ years as an educator and administrator at Yeshiva Schools, Mrs. Deren has worked in numerous positions and overseen many innovations and advancements across curricula and educational and administrative processes.

Rabbi Mannis Frankel was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. After completing his formal Yeshiva studies, he set his eye on making a difference in the world of education and began teaching.

While working at his first part-time teaching job in Los Angeles in 2006, he received his Rabbinic ordination. In 2008, with the goal of making education his choice of career, he completed the MEF Teacher Induction Program.

In 2014, Rabbi Frankel recieved the Eisenberg Award for Excellence in Education from the MEF.

In 2015, Rabbi Frankel moved with his family to Pittsburgh to accept a teaching position at Yeshiva Schools. In 2019, he took on a leadership role at Yeshiva, becoming the principal of the boys elementary and middle school.

Rabbi Frankel is passionate about education with a student-centered approach. He works to bring out each child’s inner strength and help them develop the best version of themselves.

Mrs. Nami Freidman is responsible for managing policies and procedures and supervising Judaic teachers and curriculum to ensure that each student in those grades develops as a whole child. She is responsible for scheduling, curriculum development, extracurricular activities, and personnel management. As assistant principal, she attends to the educational, social, emotional, and behavioral needs of all students in Grades 1-6 over the whole day, from arrival to well after dismissal. She also assists the principal with transitional grades and high school students when needed. Mrs. Friedman graduated from Beis Rivka Seminary in New York and is continuing her education with the Sara Schenirer Institute. As a regular member of Menachem Foundation think tanks, conventions, and symposia, she participates in developing programs towards excellence in education and social and emotional learning. She is proud of each and every student under her care, and invests time and effort to see them grow and succeed.

Dr. Yisroel King is a graduate of Carlow University where he received his MS in professional counseling and PsyD in counseling psychology. He recently completed his pre-doctoral residency at Mid-Ohio Psychological Services in Columbus, OH, where he worked in a community mental health setting with both children and adolescents.

He currently works as a therapist at Sprout Center for Emotional Growth and Development, in addition to heading up the wellness division at Yeshiva.

An alum of Yeshiva Schools, Mrs. Rabinowitz has a teaching certificate from Bais Chana Seminary, where she received two years of teacher training, and a bachelor’s degree in education from Michigan Jewish Institute. She brings a decade of classroom experience, both in Israel and Crown Heights and, of course, here at Yeshiva Schools, where she has taught the 6th grade girls for many years.

Her focus will be to help create and nurture a culture and climate of joy, pride in yiddishkeit, achievement, responsibility, respect, and emotional health within the context of day-to-day school life.

Rabbi Yaacov Sebbag brings with him an impressively broad educational background. He previously served as the principal at Darchai Menachem Boys School in Brooklyn, and later at United Lubavitcher Yeshiva of Ocean Parkway.

As principal at United Lubavitcher Yeshiva of Ocean Parkway, Rabbi Sebbag led the charge for systematic school turnaround and revitalization.

His own education and certifications include extensive study and research in areas of special education, curriculum development, coaching, student temperament, parenting, school development, and classroom behavior management. He is currently a MSW student at Wurzweiler School of Social Work and has previously completed the Harvard Certificate in School Management and Leadership.

Rabbi Sebbag leads workshops and provides coaching for schools, parents, and camps around the world. He also serves as a board member for the Elementary School Standards Evaluation Committee.

Leah-Perl Shollar is currently a doctoral candidate at the Azrieli Graduate School of Education (Yeshiva University) and has a M.S. Education; she attended seminaries in Israel and Brooklyn. Shollar has over 30 years of experience as an educator with students from preschool to adults; currently, she teaches Chumash and Jewish history in our Girls High School. Prior to joining Yeshiva’s administration, Shollar worked at the Jewish Learning Institute as an instructional designer and curriculum specialist in partnership with Touro College, and published award-winning books for children, as well as works for adults. In her capacity as principal, Shollar oversees all aspects of the student learning experience, paying particular attention to the scholastic and hashkafic requirements of our curriculum, as well as the individual needs of each student.

Rabbi Eliezer Shusterman is the Principal of the Mesivta and Boys High School and is responsible for managing the day-to-day activities of the mesivta. In this role, he implements procedures, processes, and systems that promote operational efficiency and academic performance.

Rabbi Shusterman received a bachelor’s degree from the Rabbinical College of America. He received Rabbinic ordination from the Central Lubavitch Yeshiva. He has attended every professional development seminar and presentation given at Yeshiva over the last 25 years. In addition, he has given a number of presentations at Chabad educational conferences in New York.

His specific responsibilities include monitoring Judaic staff and ensuring that students meet curriculum goals. He also sees that the school’s disciplinary policies are maintained, and when necessary, works with parents to address behavioral and disciplinary issues. In addition to his supervisory responsibilities, Rabbi Shusterman teaches ninth grade Talmud.

During his career, Rabbi Shusterman has taught in Australia and South Africa, as well as in several American schools prior to joining Yeshiva in 1993. He has a passion and love for Jewish education and is now teaching a second generation of students in Pittsburgh. He gets tremendous nachas from seeing his students succeed in their respective fields in life.

Mindy Small earned a BA in Judaic Studies and Elementary Education from Stern College, Yeshiva University and a M.Ed. in Special Education from Duquesne University. She has worked as an administrator at Yeshiva Schools in several capacities for over 26 years, most recently participating in the Yeshiva’s yearlong endeavor in the acquisition of Middle States Accreditation for the elementary school. Mrs. Small is currently working in the elementary boys general studies department and is the team leader for the Safe and Resilient School Initiative. Mindy and her husband Mitchell have raised six children, who are proud to be Yeshiva graduates.

Rabbi Mendel Unsdorfer serves as the Assistant Principal for the Boys High School. In this capacity, he supports the principal and staff in their efforts to help students grow academically, socially, and spiritually. His duties include helping the principal and staff to identify the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to succeed at the post-mesivta level, and then helping them to devise a baseline curriculum that can be tailored to meet individual needs.

In addition to his administrative duties, Rabbi Unsdorfer develops and directs the nightly and weekend learning schedules, as well as all extra-curricular programming. All his efforts are designed to ensure students’ emotional and physical well-being. To that end, Rabbi Unsdorfer spends much of his time guiding and mentoring students.

Rabbi Unsdorfer received his Rabbinic ordination from Central Lubavitch Yeshiva in New York. Prior to arriving in Pittsburgh, he spent four years involved in post-high school boys administration and an additional three years as the assistant principal in the United Lubavitch Yeshiva in New York. He completed the Leadership for Educators course developed and presented by the Menachem Educational Foundation.