Staff

JPS Staff

  • Dr. Elias Sacks

    Director
    esacks@jps.org

    Dr. Elias Sacks is the Director of JPS. He is responsible for all acquisitions, content development, and major fundraising, and reports to the Board of Trustees. From 2012-2022, he was an Assistant Professor and then Associate Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he also served as Director of the Program in Jewish Studies. Before joining the University of Colorado Boulder faculty, he earned a Ph.D. in Religion from Princeton University, an M.A. in Religion from Columbia University, and an A.B. from Harvard University. He was also a recipient of a Wexner Graduate Fellowship and studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

    Sacks has published widely on modern Jewish thought, including the 2017 book Moses Mendelssohn’s Living Script (Indiana University Press). He has also played leadership roles in a wide range of efforts to elevate the voices of emerging scholars and promote conversations between academia and the broader public, including spearheading partnerships with civic, philanthropic, and Jewish institutions. Prior to pursuing graduate studies, he worked at a consulting firm in the area of nonprofit fundraising and marketing.

  • Joy Weinberg

    Managing Editor
    jweinberg@jps.org

    Joy negotiates author contracts and other agreements, edits all JPS manuscripts and prepares them for copyediting. She is the liaison with JPS’s partner press on licenses, rights, and related business matters, oversees the JPS archives, and exhibits JPS books at national conferences.

    Joy was managing editor of Reform Judaism, the world’s largest circulated Jewish magazine, for 30 years. She also served various book publishers as a freelance editor, image collector, and photographer. A songwriter, her compositions for Jewish holiday and lifecycle events have premiered at synagogues.

  • Deena Schoenfeld

    Director of Communications and Marketing
    dschoenfeld@jps.org

    Deena manages JPS communications and marketing strategy, including the JPS website, newsletter, social media, and outreach initiatives. Together with JPS publishing partners, she designs and coordinates national digital and print marketing campaigns reaching diverse audiences, and she provides promotional support, guidance, and resources for JPS authors.

    Prior to joining JPS in 2023, Deena served as a Jewish communal professional, with over 18 years of experience developing a rich tapestry of cultural and educational programs at JCCs, cultivating organizational partnerships, and managing congregational communications and engagement. Deena is also an artist and freelance graphic designer, and in her spare time, she enjoys nature, travel with her family, creative and culinary pursuits, and immersing in a good book.

  • Rachna Khanna

    Accounting Manager
    rkhanna@jps.org
    Rachna manages the daily operations of the JPS office including budgeting, financial reporting and answering general inquiries. She has over 25 years of experience in financial reporting and has worked in financial services, publishing, and the non-profit sector. Rachna has an MBA from New York Institute of Technology. She joined JPS in 2018.
  • Rabbi Barry L. Schwartz

    Director Emeritus
    bschwartz@jps.org

    Rabbi Barry L. Schwartz is the director emeritus of JPS and the spiritual leader of Congregation Adas Emuno in Leonia, New Jersey. He is also a prolific writer- the author of ten books for adults, teens and children, a prize-winning short story, and articles that have appeared in the Journal of Reform Judaism, American Jewish History, and the Hebrew Union College Annual.

    Rabbi Schwartz' textbook, Jewish Heroes, Jewish Values (1996) has been used in over 300 religious schools nationwide. Judaism's Great Debates (JPS, 2012) is available in both adult and youth editions. His other works include Path of the Prophets: The Ethics-Driven Life (JPS, 2018) and Adam's Animals (2017), a PJ Library book selection. Most recently he is the author of Open Judaism: A Guide for Believers, Atheists, and Agnostics (JPS, 2023). Rabbi Schwartz's blog exploring Open Judaism can be found here.

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