Emily Bengels is our music director. Emily is a teacher and active musician in Central New Jersey.
Emily teaches Reading Intervention in the Readington school district. She has also taught Gifted Education, Drama, Spanish, French and ESL.
She has conducted the Somerset Valley Orchestra and the Congregation Kehilat Shalom choir, and she has music directed shows at Playhouse 22, Villagers, Somerset Valley Playhouse and more. Most recently, she directs shows with Trilogy Repertory in Basking Ridge, Chatham Playhouse, and the North Brunswick Drama Club.
She has been honored by the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education with the Hela Young Award for outstanding humanitarian work in the community and is devoted to multicultural connections through music and education.
Emily completed her Ph.D. in Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Gratz College, where she focused on rescue efforts for children, past and present. In her spare time she enjoys writing poetry, traveling, composing, and fostering connections with international communities.