Leadership

Rabbi Ariel Cohen embodies the warmth, care, and generosity of spirit that are the trademarks of MDS. He is an excellent educator who is both admired and loved by his students.

Rabbi Cohen studied at Yeshivat Hakotel and received semicha (rabbinic ordination) from Yeshivat Ohr Hachaim. Rabbi Cohen made aliyah in 2006 and taught at Yeshivat Netiv Aryeh, before he and his family returned to the States. He began his career at Manhattan Day School in 2010.

At MDS, Rabbi Cohen has taught Judaic Studies and served as Mashgiach Ruchani and Dean of Students. He is currently the Assistant Principal and Director of Sephardic Education.

Rabbi Cohen received a Master’s in Educational Leadership, is a certified Positive Discipline Teacher, and is a Fellow of the Legacy YU Teach Cohort.

Morah Ashley began at Manhattan Day School in 2018 as a kindergarten teacher. More recently, she served as the Curriculum Coordinator for Early Childhood and First & Second Grade Literacy, spearheading curriculum development. Within this role, she spent time aligning the teaching and learning with developmental milestones, helped create a deeper understanding of how children learn at each age, and how to assess and instruct at the different grade levels. She is a passionate advocate for fostering young minds, and is a lifelong learner in the field of early childhood education. With degrees in Early Childhood Education, Special Education, and Literacy Education, she brings a multifaceted approach to nurturing young learners. A commitment to continuous learning fuels her passion. She has actively participated in professional development opportunities, including a variety of Orton-Gillingham trainings, leadership programs through Harvard University Graduate School of Education, and Singapore Math training. This dedication allows her to tailor her approach to meet the unique needs and diverse learning styles of each student.

Mrs. Dolly Masri joins MDS after 12 years in lower school education at Barkei Yeshivah, most recently as the Director of Teaching and Learning. Mrs. Masri institutes and oversees current best educational practices and teachers in 1st-5th grades, ensuring that our Lower School faculty meet the individual needs of every student

Dr. Pinny Feintuch supervises our mental health team, collaborating with the administration and faculty to support the mental health of all MDS students

Nava R. Silton, Ph.D. is a Developmental Psychologist and a full Psychology Professor at Marymount Manhattan College. Silton received her B.S. at Cornell University and her M.A. and Ph.D. at Fordham University. She has worked at Nickelodeon, Sesame Workshop and has consulted for Disney, Netflix, Apple, Blue’s Clues & You, 9Story Media Group and The Autism Seaver Center. She also serves as a Developmental Psychologist for two elementary schools. She has appeared over 200 times on Fox 5 News as a Parenting and Developmental Expert, and has appeared on Good Day New York, Good Day Street Talk and NBC. Silton has written over 36 peer-reviewed journal articles, over 20 chapters, book reviews and encyclopedia entries and has edited nine full textbooks, with a tenth on the way. Silton created the award-winning Realabilities Educational Comic Book Series and The Realabilities Mental Health Edition, which have been used in over 30 schools across the U.S. She also created Addy & Uno, The First Family Musical about Disabilities, Bullying and Kindness, which was nominated for an Off-Broadway Alliance Award and ran Off-Broadway for over 18 months at Theatre Row on 42nd Street in Manhattan. She has a variety of children’s TV shows with The Jim Henson Company, LeVar Burton Entertainment, Neptune Studios and Two Shakes Entertainment. Silton also created and hosts the parenting and child development podcast, A Cup of Java with Dr. Nava. She has also created the following games: Bashert (to help adults connect), The One of Kind Game (which teaches kindness and socio-emotional skills to children), Unbox Your Creativity (which teaches creativity and divergent thinking to kids), with Grit Lock (a game about Grit) and Executive Station (a game that teaches executive functioning) coming soon! Finally, Nava recently penned four feature screenplays, Pure, The Prof, Jackpot and Toycoon. All four screenplays have already achieved significant recognition (Finalist, Semifinalist and Quarterfinalist designations) in over twenty screenplay contests. Most recently, Silton was identified as one of the Top 50 screenwriters on the ISA Fellowship slate. Silton is married to Dr. Ariel Brandwein and has seven children; three boys and four girls.