AJC SAN DIEGO BOARD MEMBERS
ALAN VITERBI
SARA E. BROWN, PHD
WELCOME
AJC SAN DIEGO BOARD MEMBERS
Alan Viterbi Board President
Mitch Siegler Immediate Past Board President
David Bark Kira Finkenberg Eileen Glasser Wesley Naomi Harris Wayne Harris Joanna Herman Rabbi David Kornberg Raquel Kramer Robin Layton David Michan Tad Parzen Marie Raftery Sharon Rosen Lieb Stacy Rosenberg Jeff Schindler Jerry Turk
AJC San Diego was reborn in recognition that the San Diego Jewish community needed an advocate. Long before Oct. 7, 2023, community leaders saw disturbing growth in antisemitism and anti-Israel activity, alongside its previously unthinkable legitimization. Under the leadership of Mitch Siegler, we re-established the San Diego office in 2023 with a focus on three critical areas: K-12 education, elected officials, and intergroup and interrelligious allyship. Thanks to your investment, AJC San Diego is now the address for advocacy assistance, especially when combatting antisemitism across institutions and communities.
From its inception, AJC San Diego incorporated the experience and expertise of AJC’ s dozens of U. S. and overseas offices to build an effective approach to the challenges and opportunities we face. We build relationships with decision makers well before challenges arise, educate them about our community, about Israel, and show how we can partner with them on positive initiatives. And when challenges arise, we respond through a combination of direct engagement, public education, and advocacy. We call out antisemitism no matter its source, and partner with organizations and institutions across the community to ensure our efforts are coordinated, magnified, and impactful.
This year, our Government Relations Committee met with over 28 elected officials across the county at every level of government. We played a key role with the many elected officials who declined to participate in this year’ s Pride Festival when a renowned anti-Israel musician was selected as the event’ s headliner.
This year, we brought key elected officials and Jewish community leaders on an AJC Project Interchange trip to Israel, adding to the thousands of elected officials and thought leaders Project Interchange has taken to Israel to learn about the country, its accomplishments, its peoples, and its challenges. Delegates returned with a deeper understanding of Israel and tools to pierce the shallow slogans and disinformation about the Jewish state.
We are a trusted partner for educational institutions, working to combat antisemitism and anti-Zionism both on campus and in curricular content. We held professional development workshops for educators and administrators, supported campus Jewish student clubs, and celebrated Jewish pride and identity. Our Leaders For Tomorrow program, now in its second year, trains Jewish student leaders and provides them with tools, a community of peers, and guidance they need to face today’ s and tomorrow’ s challenges.
In partnership with the Jewish Federation, we expanded our annual“ Standing Together: A Community Response to Antisemitism” to include a Teen Track and workshops for interfaith allies. Over 400 community leaders joined a momentous day of learning and engagement.
We deepened our intergroup allyships, from our Latino Jewish Coalition to celebrating the 60th anniversary of Nostra Aetate alongside the Catholic Diocese and University of San Diego.
As we close out our third year, AJC San Diego continues to stand up for Israel’ s right to exist, confront antisemitism no matter the source, and uphold the democratic values during this momentous shift in the history of the Jewish people. Our achievements are the direct result of your generosity and activism. Thank you for investing your time and resources to advocate for the Jewish community!
ALAN VITERBI
Board President
SARA E. BROWN, PHD
AJC San Diego Regional Director