Meet the Staff
Josh Levine
Josh Levine, Executive Director of Santa Barbara Hillel, has extensive experience managing across the nonprofit, legal, and education sectors. He most recently served as Executive Director of Herzl Camp, a pluralistic Jewish overnight camp based in Minnesota. Previously, he was Vice President for the Brandeis-Bardin Campus of American Jewish University and Executive Director of Camp Alonim in Southern California. Josh was selected for the first class of the Wexner Foundation’s Field Fellowship, is a graduate of the Foundation for Jewish Camp’s Executive Leadership Institute, and has received training in creating meaningful and memorable Jewish experiences from the JCC Association and M2: The Institute for Experiential Jewish Education.
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Josh received his A.B. from Brown University, where he was commencement speaker, and his J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law, where he was Articles Editor of the law review. He was a Coro Fellow in Public Affairs, worked as an attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, and served as a federal law clerk at the trial and appellate levels. Josh enjoys the Dodgers, mockumentaries, design, and exploring new neighborhoods and trails.
Rabbi Madeline Anderson
Rabbi Maddy Anderson is in her second year at Santa Barbara Hillel and serves as the Assistant Director and Senior Jewish Educator. Rabbi Maddy combines administrative skills with a focus on community-building and experiential learning opportunities. She also implements pastoral care into her work, offers support for students during exams, breakups, grieving, and more.
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Rabbi Maddy was ordained in 2022 at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in Cincinnati, Ohio. She attended the University of Indianapolis, where she received a BS in Global Leadership. Before rabbinical school, Rabbi Maddy served as an AmeriCorps member for one year, building homes in Indianapolis with Habitat for Humanity. She then worked in various nonprofit administration roles at Habitat for Humanity and Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation. As a rabbinical student, she served the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) as a fellow and then as the Interim Assistant Director. Rabbi Maddy also worked in two midwestern student pulpits in Petoskey, MI, and Kokomo, IN. She taught in multiple religious schools and served as a hospital chaplain in Cincinnati. In her free time, she likes to read, hike, kickbox, listen to podcasts, and spend time with her dog Malka.
Amaranta Jimenez
Amaranta Jimenez is Santa Barbara Hillel's Operations Manager. She was born and raised in Venezuela, then lived in France for part of her childhood before completing her undergraduate degree in Hospitality & Tourism Planning in her native country. Then, she earned her Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) in the U.S while living with a Jewish family and having the opportunity to explore Jewish culture. Amaranta has worked in the nonprofit sector (at a Women’s Reproductive Health Clinic), in the public sector (for the Government Tourism Department), and in the private sector (in managerial positions in luxury hotels and retail).
After watching the Venezuelan economic and political situation continue to decline, Amaranta made the decision to leave, and she and her daughter were able to emigrate to the U.S. They love Santa Barbara and she appreciates the warm welcome that Hillel offered her. Amaranta enjoys to travel, listen to music, dance and watch good movies.
REBEKAH COLEMAN
Rebekah is Santa Barbara Hillel's Development Associate. She graduated from UCSB this past year with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Psychological and Brain Sciences. During her four years at UCSB, Rebekah spent a semester in Madrid at Complutense University and a summer working in Tel Aviv at an Israeli tech company.
Rebekah is from the Bay Area and was very involved in the Jewish community there through participation in organizations such as NFTY, her temple youth group student board, b'nei mitzvah tutoring, trips to Israel, and more. She served on Hillel's student board for three years and was one of the the Co-Presidents of Keshet, the LGBTQ+ Jewish club on campus. At Hillel, she is working in development to support Hillel initiatives and community events.
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