Educational Director – Julie Weiss
Julie has been involved in education for almost all of her adult life. She currently holds a Masters of Sciences degree in Jewish Education from the Azrieli School of Education of Yeshiva University. She is also a Doctorate Candidate in Jewish Education from the Azrieli School of Education. Julie also served as a Teacher’s Assistant in the Masters program, specializing in the field of Curriculum Development and Methodology.
From 1982 until 1999, she was the Educational and Administrative Director of Gan Miriam, an early childhood day care center located in Riverdale, NY. Her responsibilities there ranged from teacher recruiting, hiring and training to the intricacies of budget planning, curriculum and methodology development and their application in the classroom setting.
For 10 years she taught Holocaust studies at Westchester Day School in Mamaroneck, NY. There she also served as the Early Childhood Director from 1997 through 1998. Julie has the benefit of a broad background in various fields. From August 1973 until January 1975 she was Secretary to the Treasurer of the NY Branch of Israeli Aircraft Industries. Before that, she was the Director of the Statistics Laboratory at Bar-Ilan University, in Israel. In 2004, Julie together with her son Josh founded Matmonim, in the hopes that the next generation would benefit from learning ancient history in an atmosphere enjoyed by young adults.
Executive Director: Joshua Weiss
Besides the conception of Matmonim, Joshua Weiss is the Founder and former CEO of a national roadside assistance firm which serviced the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Josh invented Pre-Paid Roadside Assistance Cards, a patented product that was sold in over 7,000 retail locations including Rite Aid, Staples, Advance Auto Parts and many others. Josh also secured contracts with CNN and Wal-Mart. Josh is currently the CEO of several tech startups and a partner in Kosher Food International.
Josh lives in Linden, NJ with his wife Eliana and two children Daniella and Moshe Eliyahu. Josh is currently the Executive Vice President of the Orthodox synagogue Congregation Anshe Chesed, located in in Linden, NJ.
Josh’s true passions lie buried with the secrets and treasures of ancient history. Josh periodically goes on privately funded archaeological digs and treasure hunting adventures. Josh founded Matmonim to help Jewish teens connect ancient Jewish history to our modern State of Israel. The camp itinerary and activities are used as a tool to help strengthen campers’ Jewish identity and bond with Israel. The Matmonim camp directors are members of the Archaeological Institute of America and subscribe to Archaeology which is its official publication. Campers receive a free one year subscription to the magazine.
All our counselors have been personally interviewed and we believe they will function well as counselors. Like the administration, our counselors employ an appropriate mixture of safety and adventure and dedication to make Matmonim a rewarding and fulfilling experience. Campers are divided into groups of 8, and each one is assigned a counselor to make sure they have fun and stay safe.
In Turkey, Matmonim utilizes the tour expertise of Turkish Travel, a member of ASTA, which is the American Society of Travel Agents. Their Turkish Republic Ministry of Tourism License number is A-3885. They are a member of TURSAB, which is the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies. They are also a member of TURLINK, which is the Turkish Travel Agencies Network.