NEXUS Class of 2023
Federation’s Next Gen is pleased to introduce the NEXUS class of 2023! This year’s dynamic and diverse class of professionals will come together for an eight-session program to enrich their leadership abilities. Each session will feature distinguished community leaders, define the skills and tools leaders require, and inspire our participants to put their enhanced leadership into action to benefit the Greater Washington Jewish community. Join us in congratulating the next generation of future leaders and changemakers!
Program Participants
Emily Africk
Emily is from Florida and went to the University of Michigan. She graduated in 2020 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Statistics and now works in consulting. Emily enjoys trying new restaurants and exploring Washington, DC.
Jordan Bobb
Jordan is currently an Asset Manager for Foundation Housing, a multifamily housing firm that specializes in upgrading and maintaining assisted and affordable housing solutions throughout the United States. He’s been fortunate to call the DC-Metro area home for the greater part of 24 years where he developed relationships with an eclectic group of people. Through these relationships, he had the opportunity to learn about the importance of philanthropy, especially throughout the Jewish community, in addition to participating in vital philanthropic events, such as the Dinner of Champions. Through the NEXUS platform, he’s excited to bring his professional and philanthropic background to the table to collaborate with like-minded individuals to continue to grow the strong foundation of The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington.
Alejandro Bolivar-Cervoni
Alejandro is an analytics manager at a tech company. He has been in Washington DC since 2018. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking, improv comedy, and serving on the board of Nice Jewish B DC, an LGBTQ+ Jewish organization.
Daniel Bornstein
Daniel leads the planned giving program at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, working with donors on charitable estate planning. He has worked with several environmental advocacy groups and published Op-Eds on global food security. A relative newcomer to the Greater Washington area, Daniel has been involved with Jewish organizations for many years and looks forward to engaging further with The Jewish Federation.
Danielle Borovsky
Danielle is originally from the tight knit Jewish community of Metro Detroit but moved around quite a bit until she planted roots in the Greater Washington area. The NEXUS program came at the perfect time as she has been asked to step into a leadership role in workplace employee network group, Cvent Chutzpah, and has simultaneously been promoted to lead six team members. She looks forward to furthering her leadership skills and imprint on the DC Jewish community.
Briana Felsen
Briana is the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Greater Washington Director. Briana has been with AIPAC for over six years. Prior to being back in the area, she was working for AIPAC in Florida on the Broward County and the Naples/Fort Myers teams. Briana is from Potomac, Maryland and is a graduate of the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School. She graduated from Indiana University where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, minors in Hebrew, Arabic, and legal studies, and a certificate in Judaic studies. Briana also holds a graduate certificate in Israel Education from the George Washington University. In her free time, Briana loves reading the news, watching bad reality TV, empowering women to be involved in politics, and cheering on her Indiana Hoosiers. Briana, her husband Jerry, and their dog Skipper live in Silver Spring, MD.
Michaela Friedman
Michaela grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. She moved to DC in 2016 after completing a Bachelors of Social Work at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and Master of Social Work at University of Maryland School of Social Work. Michaela’s experience in social work and her Jewish values inform her passion for social justice and community organizing. She has been actively involved in DC Jewish life for five years and currently leads two intentional and inclusive Jewish women’s community spaces. As a volunteer with Jews United for Justice and Ward 6 Mutual Aid, she is working to make DC a more just and equitable city. You can find Michaela volunteering, cooking, and attending shabbat services at Sixth & I. Michaela is excited to be joining the NEXUS 2023 program to develop the skills necessary to support a meaningful, exciting, and sustainable Jewish community.
Jason Gerson
ason lives in NE DC with his wife and is a data privacy and security lawyer. Jason has been involved with Jews United for Justice and the Eckington Civic Association where he serves as President. In his spare time, Jason takes Chinese language classes and focuses on perfecting his go-to Tatte order.
Hadar Kochavi
Born and raised in Israel, Hadar has traveled to 15 countries and islands, explored the US, and traveled to 17 states in 6.5 years! While doing this, she graduated with BA in behavioral science from Peres Academic Center and an MA in second language education from Middlebury College. Today, she is a Hebrew and Judaic studies educator in Washington DC, an activist fighting antisemitism, and supporter of Israel.
Jacob Miller
Jacob grew up in the thriving Jewish suburbs of northern New Jersey. From K-12, he was a proud Jewish Day School student. During most summers, he was a camper — and eventually a counselor — at Camp Regesh, which serves Jewish children in the New York City area. In high school he could regularly be seen at NCSY Onegs. Jacob graduated from Rutgers in 2020, where he was an active participant in Chabad, Hillel, Meor, and other elements of Jewish life on campus. While studying abroad at The Hebrew University in Jerusalem he participated in the program “Thrive,” which aids Jewish students in their exploration of Jewish identity while in Israel. Jacob currently works at the Department of State and spends much of his free time engaging in whatever the DC Jewish community has to offer; from experiential Jewish hikes to Moishe House events to Shabbat meals.
Rachel Miller
Rachel is a program specialist at the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD). She provides technical assistance to Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) and Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics (DBP) programs. She has also worked at Disability Rights Wisconsin, Exploryst, and BBYO. Rachel graduated from George Washington University in December 2021 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Public Health. She is passionate about disability rights, organ donation advocacy, reproductive justice, and health equity. In her free time, she enjoys travel, cooking, embroidery, and thrifting.
Ido Naaman
Ido was born in Ramat Magshimim, a small moshav (cooperative settlement) in the Golan Heights. Before his army service, Ido took a gap year and volunteered as a counsellor in a youth village in the Galilee. Ido then served in the Israeli Defense Forces as a tank gunner and an intelligence Sargent. During the last year, Ido worked on kibbutz Nir David, located at the Biet Shean Valley, as the main counsellor at the informal education system for the youth group (7th grade to 12th grade) and for the “Kids House” (3rd and 4th grades) where he led numerous educational programs. Ido enjoys playing guitar, piano, and drums as well as cooking and hiking. He is very excited to be the shaliach at Bnai Tzedek and connect people to Israel.
Francis Noon
Born and raised in New York, Francis moved to DC in 2021 after living in Atlanta and Philadelphia. He currently works for the National Geographic Society, where he supports advancement operations. Francis has a BA in History from the University at Albany, an MA in Diplomacy and International Relations from Seton Hall University, and an MA in Heritage Preservation from Georgia State University. He was previously an Open Doors Fellow with GatherDC, where he sought to create Jewish community. When not working, Francis attends services, explores museums, and catches up with his favorite podcasts and YouTubers. He is excited to join the NEXUS cohort and is committed to creating a more inclusive Jewish community in Greater Washington.
Stephen Reitz
Stephen is originally from Colorado. One of the main reasons why he moved to DC was to be able to create good for the world. Every step in his career, he’s taken with thought of how he can best volunteer for the better. He’s happy to learn how to further pursue Tikkun Olam and practice with fellow Jewish young leaders.
Alina Rosenthal
Alina was raised in Atlanta, Georgia, and in 2012, she relocated to the Washington, DC area to pursue her undergraduate studies at the University of Maryland. After earning her BS in international business, she spent over four years working at Hilton headquarters in McLean, Virginia, where she specialized in acquisition and retention strategies for various verticals within the Hilton Honors loyalty program. Recently, Alina completed her MBA at the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. She currently works in product marketing at Microsoft, where she focuses on Defender, their consumer cyber security application. During her free time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her husband, Sam, and their dog, Frida. She is excited to get more involved with the DC Jewish community through NEXUS.
Rachel Salle
Rachel has been with AIPAC for seven years as a government affairs professional. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a BA in American Culture and a minor in museum studies. Her free time is spent going on walks, trying out new recipes, and watching Michigan football and basketball games.
Rut Shtikan
Rut is from Givatayim. She was born to a family that made Aliyah from Russia back in the 1990s. She began her social activity as a guide and youth coordinator at Bnei Akiva Youth movement. Later, she did her National Service at a youth village for at risk children and, afterwards, went straight to study Behavioral Science at Ariel University. During the last year, Rut worked as HR at Beit Ekstein, the leading organization in Israel for people with special needs. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, going out with friends, having family time, and meeting new people from different cultures.
Sophie Sibel
Sophie is a Manager of Event Education Design at The Endocrine Society and has over five years’ experience in strategic partnerships, operations, and events management. Born and raised in Baltimore, Sophie moved to DC after graduating from Franklin and Marshall College with a degree in History. In her spare time, she enjoys trying new restaurants, and exploring museums.
Zachary Steinberg
Zachary is from Rockville, Maryland and has been living in Washington DC since 2022. He graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a BS in Systems Engineering in 2020. He is currently a software engineer for Capital One where he helped build data pipelines and manage business critical APIs. He is also a part time graduate student at University of Maryland pursuing a M.Eng. In his free time, he enjoys rock climbing, running, watching DC United and Tottenham, and exploring new restaurants in DC. Zachary is very excited to be a part of the NEXUS program and can’t wait to get started!
Abby Steinberger
Abby grew up in Madison, Wisconsin. She graduated from the University of Maryland in 2021, where she studied Public Relations and minored in Business. After graduating, she moved to DC. Abby loves spending time with friends, traveling, and trying new restaurants.
Aaron Traub
Aaron was born and raised in Hollywood, Florida and moved to Washington, DC in 2016 to pursue a bachelor’s degree in public relations from American University. After earning his degree, Aaron stayed in DC and currently works at CURA Strategies, a communications agency focused on transforming health care through strategic communications and public affairs. Aaron also serves as the Communications Chair for the Nice Jewish Boys (NJB) of Washington, DC, a local organization that brings together Jews in the LGBTQ+ community through social and volunteer events. As Communications Chair, Aaron is in charge of leading social media and media relations for events. In his free time, Aaron loves doing yoga, spinning, hiking, baking, going to musicals, and exploring new places in DC. He is very excited to join the NEXUS program and get involved in the local Jewish community.