We are pleased to announce that Mr. Brett Kugler will be joining our team as our Middle School Dean of Students this summer. Mr. Kugler, a Berman Hebrew Academy graduate, will work with the Middle School leadership team to ensure that every student receives individualized attention to maximize their learning, as well as their personal growth. As Dean of Students, he will play a critical and personal role in every Berman student’s journey. We are looking forward to welcoming Mr. Kugler to our professional team this summer!
Mr. Brett Kugler was born and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland, and is a graduate of the Berman Hebrew Academy. He studied at Yeshiva Gedolah of Greater Washington before getting his BA in Studio Art from the University of Maryland and an MS in Special Education from Johns Hopkins University.
After working with Sulam, he has worked for the last 16 years at the Charles E Smith Jewish Day School as a learning specialist. In his time at CESJDS, he ran the Middle School Mechitza Ashkenazi Minyan for over 10 years and was the Z’man Kodesh Coordinator of the High School minyan program for the past 2 years. He also coached the girls middle school basketball team to 5 championships, winning 3 in his 6 years as coach.
He has mentored new teachers, served on an Association of Independent Maryland Schools (AIMS) accreditation committee, and has been published in both Prizmah and Lookstein’s educational journals in the past 3 years. He was selected as an honoree by the Jewish Education Innovation Challenge (JEIC) as a teacher who weaves positive thinking and a growth mindset into skill-building and reflection with students. In his spare time, he enjoys maintaining a travel blog, sports, and volunteering with the NCSY’s Senator Ben Cardin Jewish Scholars program, where he has been a mentor for the past 10 years. He is currently finishing up a one-year program as a fellow with the Teacher Institute for the Arts and has worked as the Youth Director at Young Israel Shomrai Emunah for 7 years. He also worked at Kol Shalom both as a teacher and as the Director of Experiential Jewish Education. He lives with his wife (who also teaches at Berman) and his 3 children (all Berman students) in Kemp Mill.
