Our Leadership

  • Rabbi Arthur Schneier

    Founder and Dean

    Rabbi Arthur Schneier is the Founder and Dean of Rabbi Arthur Schneier Park East Day School, Senior Rabbi at Park East Synagogue and Founder and President of the Appeal of Conscience Foundation.

    Widely recognized for his work on behalf of international understanding, religious freedom, and peaceful coexistence, Rabbi Schneier is passionate about sharing these goals and hopes with our children.

    He serves as Vice President of World Jewish Congress, Hon. Chairman of World Jewish Congress (America), Member of Council on Foreign Relations; Asia Society; United Nations Development Corporation; United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Committee on Conscience; Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations; Joint Distribution Committee.

    He has received many world leaders at Park East, including two Secretaries General of the U.N. In 2008, he was host to Pope Benedict XVI, the first ever Papal visit to a synagogue in the U.S. and in 2009 welcomed the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I.

    Born in Vienna in 1930, Rabbi Schneier survived the Holocaust in Budapest, Hungary and arrived in the United States in 1947. He is married to Elisabeth Nordmann Schneier.

  • Debbie Rochlin

    Principal

    Debbie Rochlin was promoted to Principal of RASPEDS in July 2021. She joined the RASPEDS faculty as a Floater Teacher in 1994 and has previously held the roles of Early Childhood Teacher, Assistant Director of Early Childhood, Associate Director of Early Childhood and Associate Director of Admissions.

    She serves as a liaison between RASPEDS teachers, parents and administrators, fostering these key relationships on behalf of the institution and oversees Admissions, the Early Childhood Program and Early Childhood Summer Program.

    Over the course of her 27-year tenure, her dedication to her students and their families has shaped the nurturing and supportive environment that makes our school unique and helps each student shine. In addition to her excellence as an educator, Debbie is a dynamic, collaborative and inspiring leader whose enthusiasm and dedication to every child is widely respected.

    Click here to read her Park East Profile.

  • Mimi Samter

    Director of Guidance

    Mimi Samter joined RASPEDS as Director of Guidance in July 2021.

    Ms. Samter is a licensed master social worker with more than 16 years of experience in school social work. Prior to joining Park East, she served as Director of Guidance and Student Services at Torah Academy for Girls in Far Rockaway and as a school social worker at several Jewish day schools, most recently at IVDU (Yachad) High School for Girls in Brooklyn. Ms. Samter received her Master of Social Work degree from Hunter College, Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Associate of Arts degree in Judaic Studies from the Stern College for Women at Yeshiva University.

    Click here to read her Park East Profile.

  • Cantor Benny Rogosnitzky

    Director

    Cantor Benny Rogosnitzky is a world-renowned Cantor, lecturer, teacher, mentor, and event producer. Affectionately known as “Cantor Benny,” he serves as Cantor at the historic Park East Synagogue, located on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

    Born in Liverpool, England, he earned a bachelor’s degree in Talmudic Studies in Manchester Yeshiva and an advanced degree in Music. He has performed for audiences of thousands at some of the world’s most prestigious venues, including the White House and the United Nations. As a lecturer of music and its application to prayer, Cantor Rogosnitzky routinely studies and practices both traditional and modern liturgy and music. In 2012, he worked with Sony Music on the production and marketing of the historic album and concert series, “Eternal Echoes: Songs and Dances for the Soul,” a collaboration between world-famous violinist Itzhak Perlman and Cantor Yitzchak Meir Helfgot.

    At Park East Synagogue, where he has served as Cantor since 2009, Cantor Rogosnitzky also leads marketing and community engagement efforts for both the Synagogue and Rabbi Arthur Schneier Park East Day School, where he serves as Director. He serves on the board of several charitable organizations and is the co-founder of Cantors World.

    Cantor Rogosnitzky is married and resides in New York.

    Follow Cantor Benny:

    Website
    Facebook
    YouTube
    Twitter
    LinkedIn

  • Rabbi Caleb Fischer

    Director of Development

    Rabbi Caleb Fischer joined RASPEDS as Director of Development in April 2022.

    Rabbi Fischer has close to a decade of experience working in the Jewish nonprofit sector. Prior to Park East, he served as Development Associate for the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary and Yeshiva University, where he managed a portfolio of donor relationships on behalf of the institution, interfacing with stakeholders at all levels in support of strategic goals and initiatives. He also spent several years engaged in Jewish community building via outreach, teaching Parshanut and Halakha, and served as the Associate Director of the Beis Community in Washington Heights.

    Driven by his passion for Jewish history and continuity, Rabbi Fischer received a B.A. with Honors in Jewish Studies from the University of Cincinnati, studied at Yeshivat Darché Noam (the David Shapell College of Jewish Studies) in Israel, and was among the first to receive the M.A. degree in Ancient Jewish History from the Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies at Yeshiva University. He also received Rabbinic Ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary at Yeshiva University.

    Rabbi Fischer currently lives in Washington Heights with his family.

  • Tracy Koy

    Curriculum Development Coordinator

    Tracy Koy joined RASPEDS as Curriculum Development Coordinator in July 2022. 

    In this role, she will support teacher instructional practices and ensure that students’ instructional learning needs are met. She enjoys working and collaborating with students, parents, educators, and administrators in support of student learning.

    Prior to Park East, Tracy served as Assistant Principal at The Roberto Clemente School in New York, where she oversaw grades 5-8, Special Education, Bilingual Education and summer school programs. She also served as Assistant Principal of W. Haywood Burns School in New York, where she collaborated with the Muscota New School elementary program (grades K-5) and directly supervised the Amistad Dual Language Spanish/English Program (grades 6-8). In addition to classroom and resource room teaching, she has extensive experience in professional development for teachers, including coordinating professional study groups, assessment, data collection and curriculum development, as well as independent student tutoring in reading and writing. 

    Tracy holds an MS in School Administration from Baruch College, an MS in Special Education from Hunter College, a Learning Consultant Certification from New York University and a BA in Nursery through Sixth Grade Education from St. Joseph’s College. She is certified as a Chef from The Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts. 

    Click here to read her Park East Profile.