Leadership

Pessy Alvayor

Public Funds Administrator

Pessy began working for REACH in January 2013 as the public funds administrator, helping students and schools access Title 1 funds for professional development, academic coaching, and school counseling through Chicago Public Schools, as well as funds for IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). She also manages and communicates with independent contractors and practitioners providing these services. Starting in 2016, Pessy was appointed to manage the REACH diagnostic psycho-educational testing program and now manages receiving referrals, connecting them to Jewish Child & Family Services of Chicago and ensuring program completion.

Arielle Blivaiss

Administrative Assistant

Arielle supports the leadership team and entire REACH staff by ensuring daily operations are efficient and well-organized. She provides logistical support for events, meetings, and professional development programs, assists with data and evaluation collection and entry, and communicates regularly with our partner schools to maintain internal records. Arielle has a marketing and psychology degree from the University of Maryland and over a decade of corporate marketing experience.

Aviva Needle

Operations Manager

Aviva oversees the overall operations of REACH, from data management and evaluation planning to marketing and communications. Before joining the REACH team in 2020, Aviva worked in higher education administration for over 15 years, at Washington University in St. Louis in both public health and performing arts, and at Stern College for Women as the Academic Assistant to the Dean. Aviva has experience in event planning, writing, editing, and project management. She monitors the plans and goals of the program via streamlining projects, data organization, grant management, and evaluation of performance measurements to strengthen operational efficiencies. She has a degree in journalism and music from Yeshiva University.

Sabrina Schapira

Human Resources Director

Sabrina joined the REACH and ATT team in 2023 after serving as Manager, People and Development at MedPoint Digital, where she was a liaison between senior management and employees to maintain and improve company-employee relations, ensured compliance with company directives, regulatory concerns, and health and safety protocols, and analyzed employment trends. Sabrina works with our leadership team to manage recruitment, onboarding and other human resources functions, and to maintain, create, and implement policies, procedures, tools and systems for the organization. Before moving to her career in HR, Sabrina worked in real estate and is still a licensed real estate broker in the state of Illinois. She received her BA in History at Northeastern Illinois University.

Tamar Shames, M.Ed.

Director of Professional Development

Tamar works with the Chicago day school system to meet the educational and social/emotional needs of all students. Tamar develops and facilitates professional development sessions that build the internal capacity of hundreds of teachers and administrators. Tamar has expertise related to Collaborative Problem Solving, and is a certified trainer in the model. Prior to joining REACH in 2015, Tamar served as the Learning Center Director at Ramaz Middle School where she facilitated academic accommodations and curricular modifications for students and supervised and mentored fellow teachers. Tamar graduated from Barnard College with a B.A. in Psychology and Education and continued on to Bank Street College of Education where she earned her Masters of Education in Special Education.

Bryna Towb, M.Ed.

Assistant Director

Bryna has over 40 years of experience in the field of education and special education. Bryna provides consultation and coaching to school administrators, resource room directors, classroom teachers and academic coaches. She conducts classroom observations and provides direct support to students. Bryna is knowledgeable in a wide variety of professional development topics, including: strategies for providing support to students with learning disabilities, techniques for addressing behavioral concerns in the classroom, executive functioning skills, and deciphering psycho-educational evaluations. She is trained in Social Thinking at a masters level, Orton-Gillingham (a teaching approach specifically designed to help struggling readers), Kriah Connection, and is a certified practitioner in Collaborative Problem Solving.

Bryna holds a B.S. in elementary and special education from Bradley University and a M.Ed. in supervision and leadership from National Louis University. She has also completed graduate coursework in special education from Governors State University.

Rusi Sukenik, M.Ed.

Director of Student Services

Ruth (Rusi) supervises special education teachers who provide individualized education programs to students within the Jewish day schools. Rusi mentors staff, collaborates with school administration, and helps schools and teachers develop plans to better service students who struggle both academically and behaviorally. Rusi is committed to evidence-based programs and making data-driven decisions so that the school staff at the Jewish day schools can reach all their students. 

Rusi has a B.A. in Jewish studies and special education from Hebrew Theological College and a M.Ed. in administration and supervision from Loyola University. In addition to her two Illinois State Licensures in special education and administration, she has an endorsement in middle school math, extensive training as a teacher coach, and is a certified practitioner in Collaborative Problem Solving.