MEET THE TEAM
Staff
Rabbi Chaim Burg
Founder and Director
Rabbi Chaim Burg is the founder and director of Israel 2.0. He was ordained from Yeshivas Aish haTorah under the mentorship of Ha Rav Yitzchak Berkovits Shlita and he has a degree in Jewish Philosophy and Law. Prior to becoming a rabbi, he studied Communication Sciences in Anahuac University, Mexico City. Rabbi Burg has been involved in Jewish outreach for 18 years. He was the National Director of Aish Birthright from 2004 - 2010 and he founded Israel 2.0 in 2011.He lives in Passaic, NJ with his wife, Marilyn, and their children Gaby, Yosef Dov, and Molly.
Chava Shields
National Coordinator
Born and raised in LA, California, Chava graduated from UCLA with a degree in Biology and minor in Hebrew and Judaic Studies. Throughout her undergraduate career, she traveled to Israel on various study abroad programs and eventually spent a year immersed in Jewish studies at Neve Yerushalayim College after graduating. Chava is really excited to be part of the Israel 2.0 team, helping bring people to the most beautiful and spiritually uplifting place in the world. She currently lives in Jerusalem with her husband and son.
Partners
Alan Cutter
President of the Board
Alan earned his Masters Degree in Social Work from Yeshiva University in NYC. He is the founder and CEO of NYC’s premier digital media recruiting agency, AC LION. Alan has led the growing company for more than 20 years, and works pro bono as Director of the Career Center for J2J Network, a nonprofit organization. He is frequently quoted in Crain’s New York Business, maintaining an active and integral role in numerous community and political causes. Alan also has a monthly column in ClickZ on startups and has a strong following on LInkedIn for his weekly article. A passionate surfer, he often travels the coast of California and Long Island in search of the perfect wave.
Michael Chesal
Board Member
Michael Chesal is a partner of Peretz Chesal Herrmann Intellectual Property Lawyers. Previously he served as Chairman of The Florida Bar's Intellectual Property Law Committee. Most recently, Michael served as Chairman of the IP Certification Committee of The Florida Bar. Michael is also Chairman of Aish South Florida and has been affiliated with Aish since 1989. He taught a weekly course on Jewish Ethics at Aish for over five years and continues to give regular classes there on a variety of subjects.
Olami
"Inspiring Jewish Greatness"
Olami is a worldwide network of Jewish outreach efforts aiming to forge a deep, meaningful connection to Judaism based on practice and commitment. Olami’s partnering programs fuse both informal and formal Jewish education modules to create an engaging, inspiring and motivating environment for further Jewish engagement. On campus, Olami identifies unaffiliated Jewish students and offers a wide-range of opportunities for student transformation and identification through text study, experiential engagement and educational trips to Israel.
