JCLP Alumni
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Class of 2022
Ezra Brown
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2022
Ezra is a Development Associate at Resources for the Future, an environmental think-tank organization, in Washington D.C. Ezra graduated with a Master of Social Work and JCLP certificate with a concentration in Management and Leadership in May 2022. He greatly enjoyed his experience in JCLP and also appreciated working at the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor for his field placement.Originally from Evanston, Illinois, Ezra also graduated with a bachelor's from the University of Michigan in May 2020 with a major in Political Science and minors in Music and Judaic Studies. During his undergraduate experience, Ezra was a Lewis Summer Intern at the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago (JUF) where he worked with JUF's Leadership Development Department. In 2019, Ezra interned at the University of Michigan's Taubman School of Architecture as a Development Summer Intern, which led to him to develop a passion for development work and to look for additional educational opportunities at U-M's School of Social Work and through JCLP. Ezra was also a four-year member of the Michigan Marching Band and served as Trombone Section Leader his senior year.
Miriam Chesterman
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2022
Miriam currently lives in Chicago and works for the New Israel Fund, where she is excited to continue fostering her Jewish community! Originally from Huntington Woods, Michigan, Miriam Chesterman came to JCLP from a year of direct service work in New York City through Avodah: The Jewish Service Corps. Before and during graduate school, Miriam worked at Neighbors Together, a small nonprofit organization in Brooklyn that serves as both a soup kitchen and a social services organization, at which Miriam's role was to help low-income New Yorkers navigate the housing market, as well as other general social services. During her time in JCLP, she did her field placement at Detroit Jews for Justice and completed her degree in the Community Change track.
Moss Herberholz
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2022
Moss Herberholz works as a psychedelic integration therapist at the Radical Well-Being Center in Southfield, MI. In addition, he co-facilitates dismantling oppression workshops for Priceless Development Consulting. After graduating from JCLP in May of 2022, Moss Herberholz spent the summer working as an adventure therapist for BaMidbar - the first Jewish adventure therapy program in the country. During his time in JCLP he engaged in field placement experiences at both Healthy Choice Community Counseling Services and Jewish Family Services of Metro Detroit. He also served as the president of the Student Association for Psychedelic Studies (SAPS). Moss holds a B.A. in psychology and a B.A. in theater arts from the University of California, Santa Cruz. In his free time Moss loves to dance, sing, slackline, and spin fire.
Rachel Levy
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2022
Rachel Levy (she/her), LLMSW works as a psychotherapist at a private practice in Ferndale, MI. She hails from Tucson, Arizona and has lived in Southeast Michigan since 2016. Rachel graduated from the School of Social Work in 2022 with a concentration in Interpersonal Practice and a certificate in Jewish Communal Leadership after completing her undergraduate studies at U-M in 2020, with a BA in Sociology of Health and Medicine and a minor in Judaic Studies. During her Masters, she served on the Interprofessional Health Student Organization (IHSO) board as the Social Work representative, worked as a Graduate Student Instructor in the Department of Sociology, participated in Out of Blue, a choir that works with incarcerated individuals to utilize creative expression for healing, and studied Yiddish. Outside of work, Rachel is based in the West Village of Detroit and enjoys exploring all of the food and music that Detroit has to offer, learning to throw at Sugar Hill Clay, climbing at Dyno, vintage shopping, and participating in East Side justice efforts. She is still figuring out how to integrate the lessons from JCLP into her professional and personal life, and would love to have you over for Shabbat if you are ever in the area!
Class of 2021
Courtney Bushnell
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2021
Courtney Bushnell's MSW concentrations were Management of Human Services and Community and Social Systems, and she completed field work at the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor and the Emergence Collective. She graduated from Brigham Young University with her bachelors in Sociology in June 2018, where her capstone research was on the development of religion into culture. During her undergraduate years she had the opportunity to study abroad in Jerusalem, which amongst other formative experiences led her to JCLP. Prior to attending graduate school, Courtney worked with the anti-human trafficking organization Operation Underground Railroad as the Team Lead for the volunteers in the Denver Metro Area. Additionally, she served as a leader in a faith-based organization for girls.
Hilary Forrest
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2021
Hilary Forrest is currently a Synagogue Partnership Outreach Social Worker at DOROT in New York City. While in JCLP, she pursued an MSW concentration in Interpersonal Practice and completed field work at Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County and OneTable. Originally from Albany, NY, Hilary previously worked for ExecOnline, an EdTech startup which partners with top global business schools to deliver online leadership development programs. She graduated in 2016 from UM’s Ford School of Public Policy and worked at the Jewish Federations of North America and the International Institute of Education at the United Nations before teaching English in Israel through the Masa Teaching Fellows program.
Kayla Kapen
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2021
Kayla Kapen (she/her) is the Senior Development and Event Associate at the Bender JCC of Greater Washington in Rockville, MD. Before working at the Bender JCC, Kayla worked at Hillel Day School of Metropolitan Detroit as their Advancement Associate. She graduated in May 2019 from Ohio University (OU) with a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in Music and Psychology. Prior to JCLP, she worked at OU Hillel as an engagement intern, planning and leading student activities that promoted Jewish life on campus. Throughout her time in JCLP, she completed her field work at The Well and Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor. A highlight from her time in JCLP was visiting New Orleans and learning about the impact that the Jewish organizations there made after Hurricane Katrina. She is thankful for the meaningful and challenging discussions that she engaged in during her time in JCLP. Outside of work, she enjoys playing the cello, being involved in Jewish communal life, and spending time with her family, especially her niece Sydney.
Meredith Berlin
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2021
Meredith Berlin is currently a School Social Worker with Troy School District, serving students in Kindergarten through Fifth Grade. Meredith did her field placements at Jewish Family Service of Metropolitan Detroit and Burton Elementary in Huntington Woods. She studied Interpersonal Practice with a focus in Community and Social Systems and the School Social Work Specialization. She is originally from Huntington Woods, Michigan and graduated from Western Michigan University in April 2019 with a Bachelors of Science in Interdisciplinary Health Services with minors in gerontology and human resource management. During her undergraduate years, she held many leadership positions on campus with being an administrative resident assistant for two years and serving on Hillel @ WMU’s board all four years of her undergrad. Meredith’s formative Jewish experiences stem from an extensive background as a camper, counselor, supervisor, and social worker at Tamarack Camps in Ortonville, MI. Meredith is passionate about leadership, Jewish identity, and education.
Rebecca Belkin
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2021
Rebecca Belkin is the New York Program Director at Avodah, where she previously served as an Avodah Justice Fellow in 2018-19. During her MSW program she completed her field work at Detroit Jews for Justice. Becca is originally from Providence, RI, graduated from New York University in 2014 with a BSW and a minor in Studio Art. She completed her undergraduate field placement at an agency that provides social, academic, and mental health support to high school students at risk of dropping out. Following graduation, Rebecca worked as a preschool teacher, where she emphasized fostering an inclusive classroom community that instilled a sense of wonder in her young students, supporting their natural curiosity, and encouraging a love of learning.
Simi Adler
Jewish Communal Leadership Program Class of 2021
Simi Adler, originally from Boulder, CO, is currently a school-based clinician at a high school in Denver, CO. During his MSW program he concentrated in Interpersonal Practice with a minor in Management of Human Services and completed field work as a Management Intern at Jewish Family Services of Metro Detroit where he worked on program development, evaluation, and assessment projects as well as non-profit strategic operations. After graduating from the University of Colorado in 2009 with a BA in Psychology, he held many positions working with youth and young adults including as a Mental Health Worker at a residential treatment center, a Youth Director at a Synagogue, the Assistant Director the Maurice B. Shwayder Camp and most recently as the Director of Student Life at the University of Denver Hillel. Simi has also had the opportunity to pursue his passions of youth development and social justice when he spent a year abroad studying and volunteering in a social justice and coexistence program in Jaffa, Israel. As an avid lover of the outdoors Simi has worked as an adaptive ski/sports instructor with the National Sports Center for the Disabled in Winter Park, CO.