Upper School Welcomes New Faculty, New Methods

By Shaya Zorel ‘26
Golda Och Academy’s Upper School is excited to introduce four new faculty members for the 2022-2023 school year in the science, physical education and Spanish departments, all of whom are bringing a new and meaningful approach to education. Mr. Ruhl’s goal is to transfer his love for physics to high schoolers; Mrs. Barbach hopes to help her students enjoy the learning process; Coach Joe enjoys teaching and learning as a way to give back to his community, and Sra. Gardener aims to show how she can keep learning fun and exciting.

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New Physics teacher Mr. Ruhl received his bachelor’s and engineering degrees at Dartmouth, and went back to school to earn an MBA at NYU Stern. Throughout his life, Mr. Ruhl has always known he wanted to become a teacher. 
“I take great joy and satisfaction in being able to help others gain capabilities and knowledge,” Mr. Ruhl remarked. 
When first interviewing at GOA, Mr. Ruhl discussed the school’s values with the administrators, and when they described the culture of kavod and tikkun olam, it resonated with him.
“Throughout my lifetime, I have tried to establish a culture of respect,” said Mr. Ruhl.
Mr. Ruhl teaches high school physics with a mindset focused on how “inquiry and investigative learning directly link physics to the real world,” with high schoolers being his favorite to teach, noting they “are open to new experiences and have the curiosity and playfulness of young adults.”
Mr. Ruhl described his time so far at GOA as “extremely validating in terms of taking new risks, and [being] much more rewarding than my time spent in corporate America.” 
As a child, science teacher Mrs. Barbach struggled with learning, requiring special support in school and making it her goal from a very early age to make learning easy for other kids with the same problems as herself. Today, she “enjoys the process of teaching, [being] around kids and counselors, enjoys the learning process and want[s] to make that possible for kids.”
Mrs. Barbach earned her bachelors at the University of Boston, her first masters degree at Kent State and her second at the University of Brandeis. She always knew she was going to be a scientist; Mrs. Barbach’s father was a college professor in science and the subject was a critical part of her upbringing.
Before coming to Golda Och, she taught at Gerrard Berman Day School in Oakland, New Jersey, along with other high schools and community colleges. Mrs. Barbach wants her students to be able to ask questions, elaborating that “science is a process and not just facts.”
Coach Joe’s roots at Jewish schools go back to high school, where he attended Heschel in New York City. He then graduated from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor of Science, followed by the University of Boston with a Masters of Public Health.  
Always having loved working with kids, Coach Joe found the ability to “give back to [his] community” as a teacher very fulfilling. He started to grow his love of teaching during the pandemic and recalls that it was the “best experience I have ever had.” 
Señora Gardener began learning Spanish in seventh grade, which she continued throughout her high school career. Afterwards, she attended Boston University, earning a Masters of the Arts in Teaching, Union College, where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and economics and Grats College for her Masters of Education. 
In 2006, she began teaching, continuing to work as a teacher in Massachusetts and New Jersey for 10 more years. Eventually, Señora Gardener fell into a long term substitute job for a Spanish class, but knew she wanted to be “in the Jewish World.”
Today she is teaching the 8th, 10th and 11th grades in Spanish. “I want to introduce collaborative projects such as escape rooms,” Señora Gardener said, explaining that “teaching makes you comprehend languages better.”
Golda Och Academy is continually blessed, especially this year, to attract faculty with such a love of not only teaching, but of learning and the many ways they can promote it among the students.
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