Nina (Auster ’00) Cusner: Returning to the Other Side of the Desk

“I wanted to be a teacher since High School,” remembers Mrs. Nina (Auster) Cusner ’00. “I wanted to be a religious role model for my students—I want them to love Judaism!”

Mrs. Cusner pursued that dream and fulfilled it, teaching at Striar Hebrew Academy in Sharon, MA, for ten years following her graduation from Brandeis University with a Master of Arts in teaching with a concentration in Jewish day school education, and both a Master and Bachelor of Arts in Near Eastern Judaic studies. While at Brandeis, Mrs. Cusner earned a DeLet fellowship, a prestigious internship that prepares Jewish day school teachers through rigorous study and mentoring -- a program she later returned to as a mentor in her own right.

Today, Nina is back home at BT, bringing that love of teaching and Judaism to our students by teaching in the Lower School and Middle School, and serving as a seventh grade advisor. She aspires to follow in the footsteps of the memorable Judaics teachers she had as a BT student, many of whom she still has relationships with today.

That kind of connection to Judaism and lifelong inspiration doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when a teacher makes it his or her mission to demonstrate that Torah is real – it’s everyday life. And that is what Mrs. Cusner aims to do.

“I enjoy teaching parsha (the weekly Torah portion) because I like making the subject matter relatable to the kids’ lives,” explains Mrs. Cusner. “The weekly divrei torah my students create connect to something relevant. It allows them to recognize that the Torah is cool and relates to their lives,” helping students realize that Judaism goes beyond the text.

Mrs. Cusner is also thrilled to return to BT in another new role – School parent! She says of her five daughters, ranging from PreSchool to Lower School ages, “I’m excited for my kids to grow up and love Beth Tfiloh like I did." Lucky for them, they'll have many outstanding teachers...including their mother!
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Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School

Learning together. For life.
Baltimore’s only Jewish independent preparatory school serving PreSchool through Grade 12.