Leah Palestrant (she/her) is thrilled to be joining the Springboard Fellowship team at Hillel International after serving as a learning and development professional for education non-profits for the past decade. As the Director, Springboard Fellowship at Hillel’s Schusterman International Center, Leah is passionate about engaging students and providing powerful leadership development experiences for young professionals. Before joining Hillel, she oversaw training and Alumni strategy at both City Year Jacksonville and Teach For America and was also a former high school Biology teacher. When she’s not strategizing about what’s next for Jewish early career professionals, Leah spends her time volunteering for local organizations -coaching basketball with Special Olympics and rescuing manatees with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. As an involved member in her local community of Jacksonville, Florida, Leah belongs to Congregation Ahavath Chesed, participates in a local chapter of the Daughters of Abraham book club, and serves on the Board for the Interfaith Center of Northeast Florida. Leah is a graduate of The Ohio State University where she studied Zoology and Psychology.
Hillel International launched the Springboard Fellowship in 2016 to train cohorts of young Jewish professionals in highly-valued skillsets and place them at local Hillel campuses for two years. The Springboard Fellowship is a reimagining of the Steinhardt Jewish Campus Service Corps Fellowship, a Hillel program that ran from 1994 to 2008 and trained a generation of emerging Jewish communal leaders through their roles in Jewish student engagement.
In addition to compelling work and professional development training, Springboard Fellows receive a minimum base salary of $40,000 as well as full benefits, jointly funded by Hillel International and by the local Hillel campuses that they serve, as well as generous donations from the Beacon and Shapira Foundations, the Marcus Foundation, and Mosaic United.
For more information, and to apply for a future Springboard cohort, visit the Springboard Fellowship page.
