“It has been an immense honor to learn with an amazing group of peers, a phenomenal group of teachers, and to continually be challenged and inspired.”
Leadership Initiatives For
PROFESSIONALS
Training emerging and current professionals to exercise leadership in North American Jewish communities.
Wexner Graduate Fellowship / Davidson Scholars Program
WEXNER GRADUATE FELLOWSHIP / DAVIDSON SCHOLARS PROGRAM
For outstanding rabbinical students and graduate students in Jewish education and Jewish communal service programs.
Perfect For:
Graduate Students
Wexner Field Fellowship
WEXNER FIELD FELLOWSHIP
For promising Jewish communal professionals who plan to continue their careers as leaders in the North American Jewish community.
Perfect For:
Jewish Professionals
Leadership Initiatives For
VOLUNTEERS
Educating and inspiring exceptional volunteer leaders in North American Jewish Communities.
Wexner Heritage Program
WEXNER HERITAGE PROGRAM
For providing up-and-coming North American Jewish volunteer leaders with an intensive Jewish learning program, deepening their understanding of Jewish history, values and texts and enriching their leadership skills.
Perfect For:
Jewish Volunteer Leaders
Wexner Service Corps
WEXNER SERVICE CORPS
The Service Corps is open to high school juniors and seniors in Columbus, OH, to participate in a year of monthly volunteering and Jewish learning followed by a week-long service trip. A select group of Corps members can return for a second year to join the Senior Leadership Cohort (SLC).
Perfect For:
Teenagers in Columbus, Ohio
Leadership Initiatives For
ISRAELIS
Developing outstanding leaders for public service in Israel.
Wexner Israel Fellowship
WEXNER ISRAEL FELLOWSHIP
Up to 10 outstanding mid-career Israeli public officials are selected annually to study for a Masters degree in the mid-career program of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. The goal of the fellowship is to provide Israel’s next generation of public leaders with advanced leadership and public management training.
Perfect For:
Mid-level Israeli Public Officials
Wexner Senior Leaders
WEXNER SENIOR LEADERS
An executive model leadership initiative, which aims to strengthen skills and design strategies for leading transformative change, acquiring new tools for better decision-making, and developing strategies to be employed by some of Israel’s most promising and influential senior leaders in the public sector.
Perfect For:
Senior-level Israeli Public Officials
WEXNER ALUMNI SUMMITS
Bringing together alumni of our network focused on solving critical problems though collaborative leading.
Wexner Summits provide a platform for alumni across all five of our adult programs to work together to confront major challenges facing the Jewish world. Alumni coalesce around projects and emerge with new allies, inspiration and skill sets to move the dial on urgent issues.
Wexner Network in action
Spotlighting the ways our Alumni, Fellows and Members are leading their communities.
Articulating Jewish Visions
The Jewels of Elul is a collection of short, inspirational insights for the High Holy Days from personalities who influence our global community, including many who have participated in one of our leadership initiatives. This year’s compilation features WGF/DS Alumni Aaron Dorfman (Class 14) and Rachel Timoner (Class 17). Whether in song, video or written word, Jewels provide a moment of reflection.
WHP Alumni Geoffrey Lewis (Boston 2) and Lindy Miller (Atlanta 18) have been working with The Abraham Initiatives on creating a society in Israel where all citizens are provided full and equal citizenship. “Arabic as a Culture Bridge,” a course designed to help break down barriers, is their latest project.
The Jews of Color Initiative (JoCI) recently released its second commissioned study with a conversation including panelists WHP Alum Ginna Green (East Bay 10), WFF Analucía Lopezrevoredo (Class 5) and WFF Janu Mendel (Class 4).
ShalomLearning’s Co-founder, incoming Board Chair, and WHP alum Devin Schain (Washington DC 13), is seeing his vision become a reality as Jewish education continues to thrive. The program’s technology and teacher training and support are helping to make Jewish education more meaningful and accessible.
Through her role with MyJewishLearning.com, WGF/DS Alum Sharon Weiss-Greenberg (Class 20) has been bringing together online learning across the world through The Hub, in addition to providing thousands of subscribers with adult online Jewish education and events. Now The Hub is focusing on bringing on new synagogues and nonprofits as partners. Learn more.
A Life-changing Program in Every Sense of the Word
“A wonderful opportunity to take a step back and work on myself, create a better sense of my goals and aspirations and strengthen my leadership and management skills. Joining an active community of senior, interdisciplinary professionals of the highest standards has been critical to my ongoing professional development.
WIF Alum Nicole Hod Stroh (Class 30), Executive Director, Merage Foundation Israel
Articulating Jewish Visions
“The chavruta methodology is fundamentally empowering,” said Rabba Yaffa Epstein, Director of the Wexner Heritage Program. “You can—you should—read the text for yourself and form your own understanding. Every text is multi-vocal. When you read it in partnership, with multiple voices, you are discovering the richness of the text, and it comes alive as a result.” Read more from The Covenant Foundation.
WHP Alum Dr. Andrew Mandel (New York 16) has developed the Tzedek Box app, a way to stay connected and accountable to the Jewish call for justice. Visit tzedekbox.org to make your own box and join in on the observance of Yom HaTzedek on April 25.
Being an ally to ensure equity among all genders in the Jewish community requires action and strength. WFF Pilot and WGF/DS Alum Tilly Shemer (Class 28) and WGF/DS Rabbi Dan Ross (Class 27) along with many others, are leading the charge for equity as they invite others to Live the Pledge.
Receiving the first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines in Israel were Wexner Senior Leaders: Dr. Osnat Luxenburg (2015) Dep. Dir. Gen. and head of Medical Technologies, Professor Chezi Levy (2015), Dir. Gen. of the Health Ministry and Avi Ben Zaken (2020) Dep. Dir. Gen. for Infrastructure Planning and Dev.
WHP Alum Julie Platt (LA/Bear Sterns) is on the Advisory Board of the Jewish Future Pledge, a movement working to ensure that vibrant Jewish life continues by calling on Jews to pledge that half or more of the charitable giving in their Will support the Jewish people and/or the State of Israel.
A Life-changing Program in Every Sense of the Word
“A wonderful opportunity to take a step back and work on myself, create a better sense of my goals and aspirations and strengthen my leadership and management skills. Joining an active community of senior, interdisciplinary professionals of the highest standards has been critical to my ongoing professional development.
WIF Alum Nicole Hod Stroh (Class 30), Executive Director, Merage Foundation Israel
MORE ABOUT US
We’ve been focused on developing leaders since 1985. Learn more about us.
History
Founded in 1980’s, The Wexner Foundation has been a pioneer in the field of Jewish private philanthropy, a field that has grown to include dozens of foundations that devote themselves on a national and international scale to the needs of the Jewish people.
Program By The Numbers
Focused on leadership since 1985, we have supported the training of 3,000 Wexner Fellows and Members in North America and Israel through our leadership initiatives.
Alumni
At the core of our work is an expansive and diverse Alumni network exercising transformative leadership locally and globally.
Our Team
Driven by professionalism, Jewish values and a commitment to excellence, our Wexner Foundation team supports all current and past Fellows and Members as they put their leadership skills to use within their own Jewish communities.
Our Funders
Motivated by a passion for the North American Jewish community and the State of Israel, Les and Abigail Wexner, pioneers in Jewish private philanthropy, are steadfast in their belief that a diverse cadre of connected leaders, educated in Jewish life and in the art of leadership, are essential for the enduring strength of our People.
The Latest from The Foundation ›
Dispatches from the network and updates from the Foundation.
Are the woke accusations found on the internet the best methodology to make the race, diversity, equity and inclusion corrections that are so badly needed? Can the methodology even be questioned without leading to cancellation?Cancel Culture is not the creative, excellent way of thinking we were challenged to learn in Wexner. We Jews are a creative people. Cancel Culture is neither. It’s more like revenge. We weren’t taught that.
Even if some of the stats above aren’t consistent with our personal opinions, we knew that we could hold multiple truths, as could those in our community, so we entered into a chevruta (learning partnership), to name explicitly which profound truths we were each holding and which we agreed on. While we discovered that we were not that far apart from each other, it was important to continue to engage on this topic in an era of disturbing polarization, one that is characterized by a lack of nuanced dialogue, where saying the “wrong” thing can you get “cancelled,” instead of giving you an opportunity to learn.
America, it seems, is rediscovering the Bible’s approach to idolatry – but it is the Rabbinic approach that is most desperately needed in our time. We simply cannot afford to see our diverse society with its very significant political and ideological differences in biblical terms.
The process of re-entry into the real world as we slowly emerge from the surreal experience of a global pandemic is strange and fraught. Many times over the last few months, I’ve felt uncomfortable or unsure of how to act in social, professional, or communal settings. I have to re-learn how to behave in “polite society,” and maybe that’s not such a bad thing. I hope that in this process, I am brave enough to move beyond where I left off when we collectively retreated from the world in March of 2020.
Wexner Learning Library ›
Stay up-to-date with the latest recordings and teachings from members of our dynamic staff, faculty and network.
The Latest from The Foundation ›
Dispatches from the network and updates from the Foundation.
Cancel Culture Does Not Reflect the Excellence of our Wexner Training
Are the woke accusations found on the internet the best methodology to make the race, diversity, equity and inclusion corrections that are so badly needed? Can the methodology even be questioned without leading to cancellation?Cancel Culture is not the creative, excellent way of thinking we were challenged to learn in Wexner. We Jews are a creative people. Cancel Culture is neither. It’s more like revenge. We weren’t taught that.
Nuance is a Fading Art
Even if some of the stats above aren’t consistent with our personal opinions, we knew that we could hold multiple truths, as could those in our community, so we entered into a chevruta (learning partnership), to name explicitly which profound truths we were each holding and which we agreed on. While we discovered that we were not that far apart from each other, it was important to continue to engage on this topic in an era of disturbing polarization, one that is characterized by a lack of nuanced dialogue, where saying the “wrong” thing can you get “cancelled,” instead of giving you an opportunity to learn.
Creating a Shared Public Square of Civil Disagreement: Looking to the Rabbis
America, it seems, is rediscovering the Bible’s approach to idolatry – but it is the Rabbinic approach that is most desperately needed in our time. We simply cannot afford to see our diverse society with its very significant political and ideological differences in biblical terms.
Loose Lips Sink Ships
The process of re-entry into the real world as we slowly emerge from the surreal experience of a global pandemic is strange and fraught. Many times over the last few months, I’ve felt uncomfortable or unsure of how to act in social, professional, or communal settings. I have to re-learn how to behave in “polite society,” and maybe that’s not such a bad thing. I hope that in this process, I am brave enough to move beyond where I left off when we collectively retreated from the world in March of 2020.
Wexner Learning Library ›
Stay up-to-date with the latest recordings and teachings from members of our dynamic staff, faculty and network.
