MEET OUR STAFF!

Debbie Yunker Kail (She/Her)
Executive Director

Debbie has proudly served Jewish college students at Hillel for 20 years, including the past 12 years as Executive Director of Hillel at ASU. She has had the honor of bringing the values of pluralism, innovation, collaboration, and leadership development to Jewish Sun Devils across ASU’s four campuses.

A Pomegranate Prize winner, Debbie has been a leader in the Hillel movement, serving as chair of the Hillel Directors’ Cabinet and spending four years on the Hillel International Board of Directors. In December 2020, she was recognized with Hillel International’s highest honor, the Richard M. Joel Exemplar of Excellence.

Locally, Debbie serves on the board of FruitfulAZ , is a graduate of the ADL Glass Leadership Institute, and has served as a mentor in the Women’s Leadership Institute. She holds a B.A. in psychology from Emory University and an M.A. in Higher Education Administration from New York University. In her spare time, she loves exploring nature in and around Phoenix with her husband, Ben, and their two children.

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Presentations
Anti-Semitism at ASU? Being Jewish on Campus | FEB 16 2021
ADL's Never Is Now 2021 | Confronting Antisemitism on Campus: A How-To Guide

Taylor M Silverman (She/Her)
​Associate Director

Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, Taylor is a proud California native. For her undergraduate studies, Taylor attended Sonoma State University where she received a B.A. in Psychology and held numerous leadership roles in residential and campus life, as well as Sonoma State Hillel. Upon graduation, Taylor decided to take her passion for student life full-time and served as the Director of Engagement at Santa Barbara Hillel. Building meaningful micro communities for a diverse student population, Taylor strived to bring intention to all of her engagement efforts.

After three years in sunny Santa Barbara, Taylor decided to trade in her beach bag for a backpack as she pursued a dual-degree master’s program in Los Angeles. She received a Master of Social Work from USC and a Master of Jewish Nonprofit Management from Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion. During her time in graduate school, Taylor focused her research efforts on stress and wellness management, studying best practices in mitigating burnout and integrating effective wellness initiatives into the workplace. 

Taylor is a recipient of The Rosalind Ellenson Prize for Commitment to Social Concerns at HUC and The Order of Arete at USC for her leadership efforts on and off campus. Taylor was recently awarded the Richard M. Joel Exemplar of Excellence Award in December of 2023 for her commitment to Hillel's mission and her direct impact on future Jewish leaders.

When Taylor is not at Hillel, she is most likely exploring a new coffee shop, hiking one of Arizona’s trails, or perusing the local farmer’s market with her husband, Zach. While Taylor will always be a beach bum at heart, she is so excited to be exploring all of the beauty the desert has to offer! Forks Up (and Fight On!) ​

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Devin Davidson (She/Her)
Community Engagement Specialist: Birthright (IACT) & Greek Life

​Devin was born and raised in Highland Park, IL, about 25 minutes from downtown Chicago. She graduated from Michigan State University (go Green!) in May of 2022, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Media and Information with a concentration in film production and a minor in Religious Studies. Whether she was active within her sorority, Sigma Delta Tau, or busy studying at Hillel, she was very involved at MSU.

Devin held numerous positions in Sigma Delta Tau including internal and external social chair, PR chair, and standards board representative. Aside from her time spent within the Greek community, she was very active in Hillel. Within MSU Hillel, she held multiple roles including Birthright intern, Multimedia intern, a member of the Jewish Student Union, and more. Since Hillel was such a pivotal part of her college career, she wanted to continue on by working professionally for another one!

If you are interested in going on Birthright, learning more about Jewish Greek life on campus, or just want to hang out and chat, her door is always open! Devin is looking forward to meeting you all this upcoming school year! 

​[email protected]

Shira Khotim (She/Her)
Community Engagement Specialist: Multi-Campus & Student leadership 

Shira is a Phoenix native who studied Rehabilitative Services and Special Education at the University of Arizona where she graduated in Spring 2021. At UA, Shira worked as a resident assistant, volunteered with Project Sunshine (a global organization that works with children's hospitals), and interned with adults who have intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. 
 
Post graduation she moved to Netanya, Israel for a year to help teach English in an elementary school to third through sixth graders. During the second half of her year in Israel, Shira participated in a Masa - Hillel Fellowship where she realized that she wanted to pursue career opportunities with Hillel upon completion of the program. 
 
Shira is passionate about the Jewish community as she grew up going to Camp Stein in Prescott, AZ. During her free time, you can find her hiking, learning more about photography and traveling. As a Community Engagement Specialist, Shira focuses on first year engagement, leadership opportunities and developing Jewish life on the ASU downtown campus. 

​​[email protected]

Vita Krivyakova​ (She/Her)
Jewish Agency Israel Fellow

Vita was born and raised in Siberia, which is in central Russia. At the age of 13, she became aware of her Jewish identity, which was unknown to her, due to the long history of antisemitism in Russia. Since then, she has actively participated in Jewish Agency overnight camps, and in 2009, she became a consistent counselor and project leader with the Jewish Agency. Vita has worked in Jewish overnight camps and other projects across Russia, Ukraine, Israel, and the United States.

In 2017, Vita made Aliyah to Israel through the Masa program “Special Project,” where she studied special education at Gordon College in Haifa. She learned Hebrew from scratch, which enables her to assist those who wish to learn the language.

Vita holds a bachelor's degree in Math and Economics but has been passionate about nonprofit work and informal education for many years. She worked as a teenage coordinator in a youth village in northern Israel for four years, leading a group of teenagers who made Aliyah without their families and supported them throughout their high school years.

Vita enjoys baking bread from her own sourdough starter, growing her own vegetables, and living a Kibbutz life surrounded by a warm community. She is married to her husband Yogev and plans to study Psychology at Haifa University after her shlihut at ASU Hillel.

She is excited to meet as many students as possible, learn their stories, and provide support in any way needed. Vita enjoys respectful conversations, exploring and delving into different subjects, embracing challenges, and truly believes in the coexistence of humankind.

She is also happy to have fun, listen to good music, travel, hike, and learn new things about the world we live in.

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Aaron goldschmidt (He/Him)
Development Specialist

Aaron, a native of the Phoenix area, graduated from Arizona State University in the spring of 2023 with dual degrees in Supply Chain Management and Business Sustainability, along with a certification in Applied Business Data Analytics. During his time at ASU, he was actively involved with ASU Hillel as a Development Intern and a member of the student board.

Following graduation, Aaron relocated to Rishon Lezion, Israel, to teach English through the Masa Fellowship Program. His experiences in Israel, particularly during a period of conflict, inspired him to return and contribute to an organization that has been a cornerstone of his Jewish journey.

In his free time, Aaron loves being outdoors, cooking, and all things football. He cherishes his summers spent at Camp Stein in Prescott and remains deeply connected to his local Jewish community.
​
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Arielle Schwartz (She/Her)
​Campus Marketing/Development Manager

Arielle is a native New Orleanian and passionate member of the Jewish community. She graduated from Tulane in 2012 with a B.S. in Psychology with a French minor, and has since worked in the non-profit world including the Creative Alliance of New Orleans, National WWII Museum, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and Tulane Hillel.

Arielle's background is in fundraising, marketing, design, and brand management. Now, she is excited to bring her experience to and be a part of Hillel at ASU’s community to help tell our Hillel story to incredible supporters, families, and alumni.​ Outside of work, Arielle loves spending time with her family and friends while taking in the sights, sounds, and tastes of New Orleans!

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Barton Lee, Rabbi Emeritus Z"L

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Rabbi Barton Lee came to Hillel at ASU in 1972 and served as Executive Director for 42 years. He studied at Stanford, Hebrew University, and the Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati where he earned a doctorate. A native of Texas who celebrated Texas Independence day with students, he loved the desert, the Grand Canyon, ASU students, classical concerts, Israel, politics and sports. But most of all, Rabbi Lee loved ASU students, schmoozing with them, helping with problems, or studying Torah as it relates to our lives.

Rabbi Lee ​impacted countless students in his 42 years at ASU Hillel. We miss him greatly. If you would like to submit a tribute to be shared with his family, please click here to do so.