Board of Directors

Jonathan Afilalo, Herzliah graduating class of 1997, is a cardiologist at the Jewish General Hospital and founding director of the geriatric cardiology training program at McGill University. He completed his fellowship in advanced cardiovascular imaging at Harvard University. He leads an active clinical research laboratory specializing in artificial intelligence that has spawned innovative technologies to advance the care of older adults with heart disease. 

In his spare time, Jonathan is a DJ and avid basketball player, and was named “Coach of the Year” for his contributions to the Herzliah basketball team in 2001. 

Jonathan and his wife Alexia are proud parents to Sasha (age 3), Zoë (age 8), Olivia (age 13), and Nathaniel (age 15) - the latter two being current students at Herzliah High School.

Paul Amsellem is the father of three children, his son is currently in high school in Herzliah (secondary 3), another of his children is a graduate and his last child will be entering high school in a year's time. He has served on several boards (MMA, IAB). Currently a member of Technion's Board of Directors, Paul is passionate about passing on our principles and values. He brings an interesting vision of education based on his experiences in France and Israel. As an entrepreneur, he has had the opportunity to lead numerous teams and deal with many crisis situations. He is keen to contribute his vision and experience as a well-traveled entrepreneur and as a member of several boards.

Saguy Barchichat is a father of three children; one is currently attending UTT elementary (grade 2) and the two younger ones will eventually join the UTT family. Saguy has extensive board experience; he served on the Boards of Centre Hillel and Hillel House for many years as well as numerous committees at the CSUQ and the Federation. He is an immigration lawyer. He lived in Israel for 4 years after completing his law degree and held the position of Program Manager for a new project run jointly between Birthright Israel and the Center for Leadership Initiatives called ROI 120. This program gathered young Jewish leaders from around the world for conferences in Israel to tackle major issues facing the Jewish World. He also served as a consultant for the Montreal-Beer Sheva Partnership with the task of training the Beer Sheva youth delegations prior to their missions to Montreal. These roles and experiences coupled with his legal expertise will be very valuable for the board; Saguy will bring a different perspective.

Fanny Caron is a parent of both schools, with a child in grade 4 and grade 10. She is also the parent of an alum that is currently finishing Marianopolis College. Fanny brings an extensive marketing background to the table. She has served as senior marketing advisor at Desjardins since 2019. Prior to that, she served as the marketing director at Banque Nationale and was heavily involved in the banks decision to invest in the CSUQ. Fanny is eager to join the board and bring her marketing experience to bear in order to properly convey the schools values and bring a differentiating angle to the other Jewish schools by developing a distinctive offer for our target clientele.

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Danielle and her husband Gilad have 3 children Rafaella, Nessa and Shaya, who are enrolled in Talmud Torah.

Danielle is a General Contractor with experience in construction and interior renovations. She works for her family’s construction company that specializes in high end residential projects and real estate development . She is very involved in the community and considers being on the board an amazing way to give back to the school she loves.

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Elisa Gross thrives on giving back to the Montreal Jewish community in which she was raised. Elisa grew up in Montreal and went on to study at UBC in Vancouver.  After her studies, she moved to Los Angeles and for many years ran a successful catering service for the Stars, ultimately returning to Montreal to be with her family.  Once back, she dove into the world of community service.

Elisa has worked and continues to work as Program and Volunteer Coordinator for MADA Community Center’s Shabbat To Share program, and concurrently since July, 2022, has been working at Hebrew Free Loan Association.  Her time working within Jewish Community non-profit organizations has taught Elisa the importance of supporting our collective goals as a community to ensure we continue to evolve as such.

Her family has been very involved with the Montreal Jewish Community and Jewish education as a whole.  Their contribution to the evolution of Jewish education by supporting bright minds is their wholehearted purpose, and Elisa hopes to do the same for our community and Jewish education.

We could not be more delighted to have Elisa join us as Special Advisor to our President, Ouriel Soudry, to focus on the many needs of our school.  Elisa is excited in taking on this position to gain experience, as this is part of a collective; decision making and troubleshooting in order to better the future of our Jewish community through education and socialization for future generations. In Elisa’s words…”I think it is important to have a Jewish education in order to preserve traditions, community and Jewish Identity.''

Audrey Hadida Wald is the Vice-President, Finance and Administration at the Jewish General Hospital Foundation. Bringing over 20 years of experience in both the private and non-profit sectors. She began her career at PSP Boisjoli in Audit & Assurance. In 2013, she joined Federation CJA, as Senior Advisor, Planning and Allocation and Director of Finance before taking on her current role at the Jewish General Hospital Foundation. 

Audrey has also volunteered for multiple community organizations, demonstrating a strong commitment to giving back.

Audrey and her husband, Danny, have a son in Secondary 1 at Herzliah.

Mathieu was born and raised in Montreal and is the product of two different cultures, Sephardic and Italian.

Mathieu is an entrepreneur who has had vast experiences in retail, design, real estate, and construction. Mathieu founded Madev construction which specializes in major commercial industrial, institutional, and medical renovations for over 15 years.

Mathieu and his wife, Laura, have 3 children, Emma, Joseph, and Lea that are all part of the TT-Herzliah family.

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Jason, a lawyer by profession and a member of the Barreau du Québec since 2012, has been deeply involved in the real estate industry from the outset of his career. In 2017, he founded Ziemia Capital, a real estate investment and development firm in Montreal that specializes in multi-residential properties.

Jason considers community and volunteer work to be integral to his identity. He has held numerous leadership positions with local charitable organizations. He recently concluded his tenure as Chair of the GenMTL Philanthropy Campaign for Federation CJA. In 2024, he was appointed its first President.

Jason and his wife, Sabrina, have two young children who are currently enrolled at Talmud Torah.

Stephane was born and raised in Montreal and is a proud Talmud Torah (’90) and Herzliah (’95) alumni.

He graduated from McGill University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Math and Computer science.

Professionally, Stephane has spent the past two decades honing his skills as a technology leader and entrepreneur. His experience has equipped him with a strategic mindset, strong leadership abilities, and a deep understanding of the role of evolving technology in everyday life and specifically in children’s education.

Stephane and his wife, Lindsay, are current proud parents of two boys enrolled in the school (Talmud Torah and Herzliah) and one more boy incoming in 1 year.

Didier Serero is a Herzliah alumnus. He went to Marianopolis College in health sciences and was then accepted into the Pre-med program at the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University. He is now a full time ER physician at the JGH Emergency Department, team worker with a constant effort and commitment to provide the best and most compassionate care to all his patients. Aside from academics, growing up he was an elite soccer and hockey player. Sports reinforced the importance of hard work and working to be the best you can be individually and within a team. He was in the provincial and national program in soccer, and was captain of the U-18 AAA Laval soccer team that won the provincials and represented Quebec at the Nationals in 1990.  When he was accepted to the Pre-Med program, he had also received an invitation to try-out for a professional soccer team in Italy. The following year, he ended up being asked to join the McGill Redmen soccer team. He was a starter and won the Academic All Canadian award during medical school (1993-97).

Didier and his wife, Stacey, who is also a Herzliah alumni and lawyer, have three children – two of them are current Herzliah students and one has recently graduated from Herzliah.

Axel Tosikyan was born in Istanbul and immigrated to Canada with his family in 1981, at the age of six. He completed his secondary education in the French system at Collège Notre-Dame, followed by John Abbott College. He then pursued medical studies at McGill University, specializing in hematology and medical oncology. In 2004, Dr. Tosikyan earned a Master’s degree in Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health.

Since 2006, Dr. Tosikyan has been practicing at the Hôpital du Sacré-Cœur de Montréal, where he serves as a clinician and associate professor. He is also the principal investigator for several oncology research protocols. At the hospital, he is a member of the pharmacology and clinical research committees. Additionally, he actively contributes to continuing education in his department by organizing scientific meetings.

On a personal note, he is a proud father to Sasha, a sixth-grade student at UTT, and Leah, a secondary 2 student at Herzliah.