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Ken Bialkin Panel
August 25 @ 10:00 am
William C. Daroff, Susie Gelman, Stephen M. Greenberg, and Surprise Guest
Jewish Center of the Hamptons is proud to continue the tradition began over 15 years ago by our member, Ken Bialkin z”l, of hosting a panel discussion on Israel and the Middle East.
Our panel of experts from varying fields will be moderated by Rabbi Josh Franklin. Each year our guests share insights that elucidate our understanding of Israeli politics, antisemitism, and Jewish identity.
Jewish Center of the Hamptons gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Bialkin Family Foundation.
William C. Daroff
As the Chief Executive Officer of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, William Daroff is the senior professional guiding the Conference’s agenda on behalf of the 50 national member organizations that represent the wide mosaic of American Jewish life. More >
For nearly 15 years he served as Senior Vice President for Public Policy and Director of the Washington Office of The Jewish Federations of North America, where he was the chief lobbyist and principal spokesperson on public policy and international affairs for 146 Jewish Federations and more than 300 independent communities.
Named by The Jerusalem Post as being among the fifty most influential Jews worldwide, and by The Forward newspaper as one of the fifty most influential Jews in America, Daroff steadfastly guides the leadership of American Jewry through its thorniest issues. He builds consensus among the Conference’s diverse membership to craft cohesive foreign policy goals for the American Jewish community. He advocates for a secure Israel, for strengthening the US-Israel relationship, and the protection and security of Jews worldwide. Daroff is an international leader fighting antisemitism in all its forms, both in America and abroad.
As CEO of the Conference, Daroff is in continual dialogue with key policymakers, members of Congress, and the White House. He regularly engages with the diplomatic corps in Washington and at the UN on a range of issues that are of interest to the American Jewish community. He is frequently invited to give testimony before committees of the US Senate, US House of Representatives, European Parliament, and Knesset. Daroff also travels extensively to meet with governmental and Jewish communal leaders from across the globe, including the top leadership of the Israeli government.
Daroff received his Bachelor’s Degree (summa cum laude) in Political Science & History, Master’s Degree in Political Science, and Juris Doctorate from Case Western Reserve University in his hometown of Cleveland, OH. He is an adjunct Professor at George Washington University and a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
He met his wife, Heidi Krizer Daroff, in Krakow, Poland in 1995, while studying at Jagiellonian University, from which they both received certificates in the history of Eastern European Jewry and the Holocaust.
You can find him on the platform formerly known as Twitter at @Daroff. < Less
Susie Gelman
Susie Gelman, a graduate of Harvard University and Georgetown University Law Center, served as board chair of Israel Policy Forum from 2016 to 2023 and remains an active member of its board. More >
She previously served for three terms as president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, one term as Federation’s campaign co-chair, and is a lifetime member of the Federation’s Board of Directors. She previously co-chaired the Israel Religious Expressions Platform (iRep) of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), an initiative that focused on pluralism through freedom of choice of marriage in Israel. Susie was the inaugural chair of the Birthright Israel Foundation and served for many years as a member of its board as well as the Taglit-Birthright Israel Planning Committee. She served as co-chair of UJC (now JFNA) Israel and co-chaired JFNA’s General Assembly in Jerusalem in both 2003 and 2013. Susie is an honorary fellow and a member of the Board of Governors of The Hebrew University, an honorary fellow of Brandeis University, and is past president of the Georgetown Day School Board of Trustees, where she served on the board for twelve years. She is the past president of the Goldman Environmental Foundation, where she continues to serve on the board. She was appointed by President Joe Biden to be a Commissioner of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, where she presently serves. Susie and her husband, Michael, have three adult children, three sons-in-law, and four precious grandchildren. < Less
Stephen M. Greenberg
Stephen M. Greenberg served as the 29th Chairman of the Conference of Presidents from June 2015 through May 2018. More >
Prior to his tenure at the Conference, he was the Chairman of the National Coalition for Eurasian Jewry (NCSEJ). He also served as Chairman of the National Young Leadership Cabinet of UJA; Co-chair of the First Moriah Conference; a founding member of The North American Jewish Forum; member of the executive committee and Treasurer of the Tel Aviv-Yafo Foundation; Past President of the American Friends of Beit Hatfutsot and current member of its International Board; past National Vice President of the UJA and also a National Vice Chairman and Chair of the Development Committee of Hillel International.
Mr. Greenberg has been honored by American Friends of Yeshivot Bnei Akiva; American Friends of Beit Hatfutsot and Israel Bonds. He was a recipient of an award for Outstanding Professional Achievement from the New Jersey State Bar Association.
Mr. Greenberg received a J.D. with honors from The George Washington University Law Center in 1968. He served as Executive Assistant to the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey and was a founding partner of the firm of Robinson, Wayne and Greenberg. He later served as Chairman and CEO of NET2Phone, Inc. and IDT Spectrum.
Additionally, he is past Chair of the Federal Judicial Selection Committee for New Jersey; a past member of the Public Broadcasting Authority of New Jersey and was a member of the state’s New Jersey-Israel Commission by Gubernatorial appointment.
He is currently a managing member of the Pilgrim Mediation Group, and lives with his wife in New York. < Less
Surprise Guest