Founded in 1977 in Jerusalem, JCC Global is a network of more than 1,000 Jewish Community Centers (JCCs) serving several million Jews in North America, Israel, Europe, Latin America, Former Soviet Union, Australia, and the Far East.
Our Vision: JCC Global envisions a world where Jewish communities thrive locally and connect globally in order to foster a sense of belonging among a diverse and intertwined tapestry of people.
Our Mission: JCC Global creates a network of interwoven communities that strengthens Jewish Peoplehood by training local leaders to think and connect globally and by cultivating meaningful partnerships around the world.
THANK YOU JCC GLOBAL SPONSORS
JCC Global is supported by all the regional networks of JCCs and by major Jewish organizations involved in the field of Jewish Community Centers. In addition, personal contributions from board members and friends are essential in sustaining the organization.
AFFILIATE ORGANIZATIONS
JCC GLOBAL LEADERSHIP
Gary E. Jacobs
President
Gary brings decades of leadership, philanthropy, and deep commitment to Jewish communal life. As Founder and Managing Director of Jacobs Investment Company LLC, and a long-standing leader within the JCC movement, Gary has consistently demonstrated vision, responsibility, and a strong sense of global Jewish peoplehood.
A member of the JCC Association Board since 2004 and its immediate past Chair, Gary has played a central role in shaping strategic direction, governance, and resource development across the field. His leadership extends into education, innovation, and Jewish-Arab partnership initiatives in Israel and beyond.
For over a decade, Gary has also been a dedicated member of the JCC Global Board, stepping forward time and again to support communities in moments of crisis and growth.
We look forward to his leadership in the years ahead.
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Monica Kibrit
Board Chair
Monica Kibrit is a Certified Public Accountant and founder of Kilbrit Snaiderman SC, a firm she has led for more than 25 years, providing accounting and legal representation for international companies that have representation in Mexico. Monica serves on the Executive Board of the Jewish Community Center in Mexico City, where she was the first woman to serve in 68 years.
Smadar Bar-Akiva
Executive Director
Smadar has been serving as Executive Director of JCC Global since 2002. Prior to that she worked for JCC Association of North America, served as community shlicha (emissary) in Columbus, Ohio and summer camp shlicha around the world. From the earliest days of her nearly four decades of professional life, she has devoted herself to direct service on behalf of Jewish people and building a thriving network of Jewish communities all over the world.
Noa Tal
Program Director
Noa joined JCC Global as Program Director in 2017, after serving as JDC’s 2016 Ralph I. Goldman Fellow in Global Jewish Leadership, JDC’s premier leadership opportunity awarded to one person per year. Prior to that, Noa served as Project Director for the Council for Higher Education in Israel. She holds two Master’s degrees with honors, in Neurobiology and Public Policy and Government, from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Shanie Barenboim
Program Coordinator
Shanie Barenboim was born in Israel in a family that made Aliyah from the USSR in the 90's. Since she was a teenager, Shanie worked as a journalist, starting with being a youth reporter, moved to the IDF Radio Station (GLZ) as a soldier and recently finished her job as an anchor for Channel 12. She holds a master's degree in childhood and youth culture and likes reading Isaac Asimov's stories.