David Barany is a native of Oakland, California, David earned an MAED from the University of Judaism in Los Angeles. He has BA's in Rabbinic Literature and Political Science. Before joining Congregation Beth Shalom, David was the assistant director of the Marshall Jewish Learning Center where he worked for eight years. 

He moved to Chicago from Los Angeles in 1992 to take the position of Education Director at Anshe Emet in Chicago. He also served B’nai Jehoshua Beth Elohim in Glenview and Congregation Solel in Highland Park in that capacity. David has developed curriculum and consulted in a variety of settings and wrote the “I Have Some Questions about God Teacher’s Guide” published by Torah Aura. He has served on planning committees for both the national Conference for Advancement of Jewish Education and the Midwest CAJE conference. 

He is married to Melissa and has two children, Avi and Kyra.

Naomi Weiss is a student in the Cantors Assembly CICA program who has spent the past several years working as a freelance b'nei mitzvah tutor, cantorial soloist and songleader at several synagogues in the Chicago area. She has worked for the past 6 years on Shabbat mornings leading the Kahal Minyan at Beth Emet the Free Synagogue and for the past 5 has led High Holy Day services at Anshe Emet Synagogue.  She has tutored b'nei mitzvah at Beth Emet, Anshe Emet, JRC, Chicago Sinai, and Temple Sholom, and has taught religious school and pre-school music as well.  She is passionate about making the bar and bat mitzvah experience a positive, challenging and rewarding one for our children.  This is her second career, the first being 15 years in the Visual Resources profession, most notably, the Slide Librarian at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Librarian and Rights and Reproductions Coordinator at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art.  She holds a B.A. in design and an M.A. in the history and theory of design from UCLA.  

After graduation, Leann put in 3 years with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism as Regional Youth Director of Seaboard Region and then Hagalil Region. It was at International USY Convention in 1988, that Leann was leading a delegation of teens from New Jersey to Chicago, when she met the CHUSY Region Fieldworker, Michael Blue, and the rest is history. 

Upon moving to the Chicago area in 1989, Leann worked as Youth Director for North Suburban Synagogue Beth El in Highland Park for six years. In 1995, Leann joined the staff of Congregation Beth Shalom as Youth Director, leading the chapter during many award winning years. 

In 2001, while still Youth Director, Leann began focusing on Adult Education and family programming, and in 2002, she took on her current role of Director of Jewish Life and Learning at Congregation Beth Shalom. Some of the programs she has developed are the CBS Shabbaton, Lamazel!, Megillah Mania, Making Sukkot Simple, Ideas Cafe and CBS University.

A native of Mobile, Alabama, Leann now calls Chicago home with her husband, Michael, and three boys, Adam, Marc and Paul.

Matt Rissien grew up in Overland Park, KS going to the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy, a K-12 Jewish day school. He became involved in a number of extra-curricular activities in the Jewish community, eventually becoming president of Kansas City Council BBYO his senior year. He attended the University of Kansas, where he graduated with a major in religious studies with a minor in Judaic studies. Throughout college he was very involved in KU Hillel, Chabad on Campus, student senate and was the spirit chair for Student Union Activities, an organization which puts big programs on campus. He was also the Jewish heritage chair for the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity. His Junior year, he created his own student organization which raised money to put on a week of cultural Israel events called Israel Week, which is still around to this day. Upon graduation, he received the Campanille Award; an award given to one individual by the chancellor for outstanding student leadership and achievement.

Rabbi Sander J. Mussman, R.J.E., served as Director of Education of Congregation Beth Shalom of Northbrook, Illinois from 1972 - 2002. During his years of devoted service, Rabbi Mussman, in addition to being Director of Education, filled in for a period of 19 months as the spiritual leader of the synagogue. Prior to his coming to Beth Shalom, he was the Director of Education of North Shore Congregation Israel, Glencoe, Illinois, Congregation Bnai Emunah, Skokie, Illinois, Director of Adult Studies, Houston Jewish Community Center, Houston, Texas and Congregation Bnai Shalom, Chicago, Illinois as well as a social worker for the Illinois Department of Welfare, Chicago, Illinois.