OUR
TEAM
Dr. Bradley Caro Cook
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & CO-FOUNDER
Bradley Caro Cook Ed.D. is the executive director of Career Up Now. He is a seasoned social entrepreneur and Jewish educator living in Los Angeles. Dr. Cook has extensive experience in running meaningful immersive experiences and educational programs for millennials. He is an Upstart Alumnus, a member of the Schusterman ROI Community, a Birthright Israel Fellow, an Eli Talk Fellow, Co-Founder of the City of Beverly Hills’ Entrepreneurship Incubator, and a regular contributor to eJewish Philanthropy.
Tanya Freeman
MANAGER AND COMMUNITY COACH
Tanya Freeman serves as the Career Up Now community manager and coach. She has extensive experience in organizational management, administration, and financial operations. She has spent the past five years as a collaborative and strategic consultant with expertise in team dynamics, team building, facilitation, organizational culture, project management, mediation, and conflict resolution.
She specializes in emotional intelligence, problem-solving, and relationship building. An experienced educator, Tanya served on the adjunct faculty with the Mailman School of Public Health, at Columbia University. In recent years, Tanya worked with the Center for Conflict Resolution as a court-appointed mediator for the LA Superior Small Claims court. She is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives Healthcare Executives, has a Masters in Health Administration from Columbia University and a Masters in Dispute Resolution from Pepperdine Law School. She earned the distinction of board certification in healthcare management as a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE) which signifies one’s expertise, experience, and commitment to continuing education and professional development. Tanya is also an informal Jewish educator having taken extensive courses at Spertus Institute and in her local community where she teaches weekly.
Aaron Feigelman
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Since graduating from engineering school at UCLA in 2019, Aaron has been focusing his efforts on mitigating climate change by preventing food waste.
Currently, he is building out The Kawa Project, a business focused on recycling agricultural waste into chemicals for personal care products and food.
During college, Aaron worked on business and engineering topics at Tesla in the energy storage division. He enjoys spending his time learning about renewable energy technologies and backpacking in the Sierra Nevadas.
Rachel Alexander
PODCAST HOST
Rachel Alexander is a rising sophomore at UCLA from Cambridge, Massachusetts. She is creating her own major that’s a combination of Political Science, Sociology, and Visual Art. She joined the CareerUp Now community in Spring of 2020, and is currently one of the hosts for a podcast series.
At UCLA, she is Vice President of Communications of Hillel’s Student Board, Marketing Committee Member of Challah for Hunger at UCLA, and Public Relations Director for UC Womxn’s Leadership Council.
When she’s not hosting podcasts, you’ll find her baking challah, making art, or watching SNL clips (her goal is to watch them all).
Sophia Felson
PODCAST HOST
Sophia Felson is deeply passionate about and engaged in the Jewish community. She attended Jewish day school from kindergarten through twelfth grade and volunteered regularly at her synagogue, including singing sacred music with the cantor at high holiday services. Sophia has been seeped in philanthropy since birth. Her immediate and extended family are respected philanthropists whose foundations are integral to the future of Jewish life in North America, Australia, and Israel. In addition to her philanthropic work related to women’s issues as a member of the Jewish Teen Foundation Board, Sophia also served as recruitment chair for B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (BBYO), where she honed her public speaking skills and organized recruitment and outreach activities.
As a Diller Fellow, Sophia traveled the world collaborating with other teens from a variety of backgrounds and cultures with the mission of building and empowering the next generation of young Jewish leaders. She also served as a writer and contributor to the Diller Teen Fellow Blog and played an integral role in communicating and leading local community service projects through Diller Teen Fellows in Israel. As a young entrepreneur interested in nonprofit organizations and global consciousness, Sophia worked at Camp Inc., where she created a marketing and comprehensive business plan for a Sports Apparel line with a socially conscious mission with their profit splitting.
Currently a junior at New York University, Sophia is majoring in psychology with a minor in gender and sexuality studies. She is interested in social media and marketing and has used her creativity and unique vision to create lookbooks and content calendars in her role as a social media and marketing intern. Sophia shares a close connection with the arts; in addition to playing piano since she was six, she is also a gifted soprano singer and has starred in numerous school plays, including a lead role in Pippin. Sophia is a certified yoga instructor, who also enjoys tennis, meditation and mindfulness, and travel. Sophia lives with her parents and two siblings in San Francisco and Hawaii.
Jonathan Hoffman
PODCAST HOST
Jonathan is a student at the University of Redlands majoring in Political Science and Creative Writing. He serves as one of the hosts on the Career Up Now podcast.
While in school, Jonathan spends time as a member of his college’s radio station where he runs their social media accounts and hosts podcasts.
When he isn’t working, you can find Jonathan baking, designing graphics and photos, and blogging about sports or other topics.
Rachel Garner
PODCAST HOST
Rachel Garner is a recent graduate from the University of Maryland, College Park. Rachel received her BA in Communication, with a focus in public relations, and double-minored in Technology Entrepreneurship and Leadership Studies.
She has an extensive background in marketing, event planning and television production. Rachel’s goal is to get into entertainment media, specifically marketing or ad sales for television and/or film.
Rachel is an alumna of Camp Echo, BBYO and Phi Sigma Sigma Sorority, where she served in many leadership positions. She has loved traveling ever since she studied abroad in Florence, Italy. In her free time,
Rachel can be found spending time with friends, at Orangetheory Fitness, cheering on the Maryland basketball team, or binge-watching true crime television.
Libby Walker
SOCIAL MEDIA
Libby is a recent graduate from University at Buffalo who studied acting where she is known for her TikTok now as Sheryl Cohen.
An aspiring actress and well known Jewish comedian on Tik Tok, Libby uses her creativity to humor and bring laughter into the lives of thousands.
She also likes pasta, people, and long walks in Central Park. You can catch her during the quarantine interning at a talent management company as well as a casting office- and she still posts everyday!
Floyd Teper
LITERARY EDITOR
Floyd Teper is a native of Los Angeles and a graduate of Bridges Academy High School.
During their time in school, they were heavily involved with the drama department and also wrote several of their own scripts.
In their free time they enjoy reading, writing, and theatre.
Suzanne Felson
FOUNDING BOARD MEMBER AND
DEVELOPMENT CO-CHAIR
Suzanne is the founder of The Jewish Skinny, a weekly e-newsletter that explores ancient and trending Jew(ish) issues, including History, Books, Holidays, Hebrew, Torah, Pop Culture, Influencers, and DIYs... It's everything you need to-know to be in-the-know. Our goal is to enrich, intrigue, humor, and inspire Jews, non-Jews, Jews-by-choice, wanna-be Jews, and people who just like Jews.
Suzanne also founded RESO, a leading online booking platform for kids’ classes, camps, and activities and served as CEO until Wheelhouse acquired RESO in 2017.
Logan Green
FINANCE CHAIR
As a Chief Financial Officer in JUDY, Jordan manages the financial actions of JUDY. His duties include tracking cash flow and financial planning as well as analyzing the JUDY's financial strengths and weaknesses and proposing corrective actions.
Logan is excited to share that, after an incredibly rewarding experience at Inspire, he joined the growing team at JUDY to support the company in its mission to equip and empower families across the country to prepare for and stay safe during natural disasters caused by the worsening climate crisis.
Brittany Erdan
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
Brittany Erdan is the VP of Client Relations for SHIPSI, a technology start-up based in Silicon Beach that allows retailers to offer same-day delivery by using an aggregate network of drivers including companies like Postmates and Doordash.
Brittany attended Indiana University where she studied communications and business and learned that in the midwest, 60 degrees is shorts weather and not parka weather like it is in LA.
She has always called Los Angeles home with the exception of spending half a year in Australia both studying and volunteering for Australia Fashion Week and spent another half year interning and volunteering in Israel.
Brittany has a passion for philanthropy and giving back and is involved in the Community Leadership Institute at the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles. Her five-year plan is to make it back to Portugal to find the tiny bakery that was the home to some of the best pastries she’s ever had.
Glenn Teuber
AUDIT COMMITTEE CHAIR
Glenn is the Operations Manager for Project Fi and the Finance Operations Manager for Global Procure-to-Pay Help Desk at Google.
Glenn experienced operations professional with experience in developing/leading teams, setting product strategy, and successfully growing a profitable business.
He is also experienced in finance and financial operations, process design/optimization, spend governance, strategic procurement, supplier development, change and quality management. Extensive skills in strategy development, structured problem solving, analytics, and communications.
Laurel Hunt
SECRETARY
(FORMER BOARD CHAIR)
Director of Sustainability at Morgner Construction Management Corp.
Laurel is an urban planner in Los Angeles with a decade of experience working closely with businesses, governments and nongovernmental organizations on resilience and sustainability strategies. She was previously the Executive Director of the Los Angeles Regional Collaborative for Climate Action and Sustainability (LARC), which is housed at the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. LARC is a network of key decision-makers ensuring a sustainable region and state prepared for the impacts of climate change. Laurel is a technical expert and consultant for plans, policies and events related to climate change, sustainability, land use and transportation.
Some highlights of Laurel's work as a planner include: directing of one of California’s climate collaboratives; coordinating with the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research; leading an international climate network of over 100 participants; speaking and organizing events at the annual United Nations “COP” climate negotiations; organizing a conference in partnership with the Greek European Union Presidency; leading stakeholder engagement for Los Angeles’s first-ever Sustainability Plan; being the keynote speaker at a Fulbright Seminar; and writing part of Mayor Eric Garcetti’s “Resilient Los Angeles” plan.
Laurel has worked directly on hazard mitigation plans, general plan updates, urban greening plans and more. She has also coordinated with state agencies to modify the frameworks for creating these plans in order to improve their effectiveness. As an urban planner, she has learned valuable lessons about project management, employee supervision, financing, participatory planning and media interaction.
UCLA recruited Laurel to attend graduate school on a full merit-based scholarship. She holds a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning with a focus on land use, infrastructure solutions, climate adaptation and environmental justice.
Melissa Harari
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
Melissa Harari is an Associate at EY-Parthenon, Ernst & Young’s strategy consulting group with 2 years of post-undergraduate experience in Private Equity and growth strategy. She graduated from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School with a degree in Business Administration concentrating in Organizational Management and Strategy in May 2019.
At EY-Parthenon, Melissa has performed primary and secondary research on the competitive landscape, market growth and expansion opportunities for clients in the consumer/retail, technology, industrial products and services, healthcare, non-profit, and financial services sectors.
Prior to entering the workforce full-time, she held roles in business development for an Israeli cybersecurity start-up, consumer and retail corporate banking for Wells Fargo, and in international client services at a global food exporter. Melissa’s professional goals include bringing her passion for international business strategy together with her interest in the consumer and retail industry.
Outside of her professional life, Melissa continues to be active in the Atlanta Jewish community as the Alums for Campus Fairness Emory Chapter President, and as a Steering Committee member of the American Jewish Committee’s (AJC) ACCESS group. In these roles, she pursues her passion for Jewish and pro-Israel advocacy along with diplomacy.
As a Brazilian-American Sephardic Jew with Middle Eastern roots, she is committed to bringing different communities together to create meaningful relationships through understanding.
Liat Portal
YOUNG DEVELOPMENT TEAM
Liat is a business development consultant in the Israeli and US markets. Her expertise is working with startups developing disruptive technology that wants to penetrate the US market to gain first customers and design partners.
Liat worked with dozens of businesses in traditional and high-tech industries and learned the importance of agility, lean practices, and what it takes to build a sustainable business. She mentors entrepreneurs and examines their work throughout the development of ventures out of a burning passion for growing companies.
Liat holds B.Sc. in Industrial Engineering and Management from Technion - Israel Institute of Technology and an MBA from Tel Aviv University, including a practicum in global management consulting to create an impact investment market.
Sheila Wagner
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
Sheila Wagner is an artist, filmmaker, athlete, and aspiring music producer. By day, she works for record label and management firm Blacksmith (under Capitol and Motown Records), continuing her decade’s worth of experience in music management and event programming.
The roster she now works with includes Dave Chappelle, recording artists Vince Staples and Benn Good, and nine other acts. After graduating UC Berkeley with a degree in Film and Media Studies, she produced and directed the marketing for From Incarceration to Education, an award-winning documentary film on formerly incarcerated students and their paths to higher education (the film still plays at various institutions and prisons across the country).
Outside of the world of entertainment, she specializes in writing content for columnists, companies, and creatives, focusing on business, marketing, and leadership works.
Sheila's mission is to uplift, fascinate, and improve the world entire through purposeful work in the arts. You can find her running around Los Angeles or practicing Muay Thai Kickboxing and Judo at her favorite martial arts gym.
Kimberly Carlisle
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
Kimberly Carlisle graduated with distinction from the University of Virginia, where she earned a B.A. in English and an M.T. in elementary education. Upon graduating, Kimberly returned home to the Bay Area where she has taught first and second grade for five years.
While teaching, Kimberly has enjoyed volunteering as a coach for “Girls on the Run,” a non profit organization that builds girls’ confidence and teaches life skills through running. She also volunteers as the Academic Decathlon literature coach at her school.
Outside of teaching, Kimberly enjoys playing tennis, skiing, running, reading, and writing. Kimberly has published a children’s book that she enjoys reading to her students.
After college, Kimberly attended a Birthright trip where she made many life-long Israeli and American friends. She feels blessed to be a part of Career Up Now, an organization that celebrates Jewish heritage and fosters Jewish values.
David Guccione
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
What drives me? 2,000 characters may not be enough!Bold believer in honesty, mindfulness, integrity, balance, and the power of positivity.
An eternal optimist at heart, who builds community via deep, meaningful human connection and empathy. I manifest positive change through an approach of radical transparency while acknowledging the unique traits in others via positive affirmation (compliments). I love assembling seemingly unrelated ideas and weaving them into coherent initiatives.
My culture and values are my foundation - I am the only Sicilian Native/Colonial American Jew in my family who also speaks both English and Hebrew. It has helped establish an undying focus on family, a deep connection to nature and the universe, a relentless pursuit of solutions (not creating more problems), and a desire to collect people as opposed to things.Email: david.guccione@gmail.comPhone: 818-730-1678
Randall Shapiro
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
Randall Shapiro is the Co-Founder & CEO of Miravel - empowering people everywhere to lead healthy and sustainable lives by making it easier to grow fresh food in their everyday environment. Randall has 5+ years of experience building brands, managing product development, and creating meaningful customer relationships. His work has been recognized in forums such as Entrepreneur Magazine, Medium, The "All-In Podcast" with Nate Peo, Paradigm, The Nomadic, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Pepperdine University's Highly Promising Company List, Quake Capital's West Coast Challenge, UCLA Anderson's Impactathon, Start U, Bruin Tank, and more.Randall earned a B.S.B from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business where he was awarded the 2018 Kelley Coin. He also studied abroad at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology’s Business School. He thrives while working with high functioning partners and strives to be a fun, and loyal team member and is extremely passionate about giving back to his community through social impact within his ventures.Randall is a strong believer that a diverse range of experiences will create a more informed perspective on the world that we live in. He loves working with people who are bright, determined and are crazy enough to think they can change the world. They are the ones who usually do.
Lauren Hayat
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
Lauren Hayat is a Senior at UCLA, double majoring in Psychology and Communications. She is passionate about using leadership and Judaism to enact change.
Last year, she served as the President of Hillel at UCLA, a vibrant Jewish community of 1,200+ students. There, she oversaw a board of ten student leaders and executed a year-long strategy to engage students in Jewish learning, professional development, and community service opportunities.
She has also leveraged her academic background while interning for Gilead Sciences as an HR Business Partner and HR Program Manager. Lauren loves to bring solutions to large, ambiguous problems that companies face, all while furthering their unique mission.
More recently, Lauren launched Eager Leaders, a program that aims to empower children to realize their leadership potential and impact their communities from an early start.
She has reached over 150 children so far and believes that early leadership education is the answer to building a strong future generation capable of Tikkun Olam, or repairing the world.
Besides her passion for leadership coaching, you can often find Lauren cooking up fun vegetarian recipes, listening to podcasts (How I Built This, WorkLife, The Knowledge Project), or tap dancing!
Matthew Prater
YOUNG PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY BOARD
Matthew is a Sales Development Representative at Checkmarx.
He is thrilled to announce this latest role. Before the pandemic, he had no intentions of coming into the world of sales, but with "unprecedented" times come unprecedented changes.
He was also the past Membership Development Associate at Digital 50.
Kathy Guccione
FOUNDING BOARD MEMBER AND
DEVELOPMENT CO-CHAIR
Kathy was the owner of Pinot's Palette, an entertainment media encouraging collaboration, creativity and communication between customer's corporate team. She helped in hosting an exclusive paint and sip event in studio to make lasting memories, private events that were perfect for a girl’s night out, birthdays, bachelorette parties and bridal showers.
Kathy was also Women's Philanthropy Co-Chair and Board Member of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, a non-profit organization which offers qualified individuals a remarkable opportunity, the chance to bring Jewish values to life through a meaningful career at a cutting-edge non-profit. Their organization has had a profound impact on the well-being of Jews in Los Angeles, Israel and beyond for over 100 years– and it takes a diverse group of talented and passionate professionals to make that happen every day.