Sephardic Leaders Fellowship

With the support of the San Francisco Jewish Community Federation, in January 2021 JIMENA: Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa piloted the first cohort of the Sephardic Leaders Fellowship in the San Francisco Bay Area. Now under the leadership of the Sephardic Leadership Institute, this six-month learning program is designed for Sephardic and Mizrahi Jewish communal professionals, lay leaders, and allies, to gain classical and contemporary Sephardic knowledge from leaders in the field, build a community of practice and friendship, and gain new approaches to Jewish leadership. Each fellow participates in bimonthly learning and engagement sessions facilitated by top Mizrahi and Sephardic thought-leaders, scholars, activists, and rabbis from around the world. Participants are tasked with bringing their new-found knowledge and skills back to their Jewish institutions in an effort to help their community become more diverse, inclusive, and better representative of Sephardic and Mizrahi heritage.