AFTER STEWARDING THE ORGANIZATION THROUGH CHALLENGES AND TRIUMPHS, PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER DR. MISHA GALPERIN PLANS TO STEP DOWN IN 2024, SEARCH FOR SUCCESSOR BEGINS TO ASSURE SEAMLESS TRANSITION

PHILADELPHIA, PA (November 13, 2023) – Dr. Misha Galperin, president and chief executive officer of the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History (The Weitzman), announced today that he will be stepping down in 2024. Galperin and the Weitzman’s Board of Trustees, along with a recently formed search committee, will work in close coordination to find his successor, ensuring a seamless leadership transition sometime next year.

Galperin has led The Weitzman since the summer of 2019, growing its reputation as the leading U.S. public institution teaching, interpreting, and preserving the joyful and powerful stories of American Jewish life.

“Our work is absolutely critical in educating diverse audiences about the true stories of Jewish life in America and significant Jewish contributions to our nation in order to counter antisemitism,” said Galperin. “The Jewish hate I am seeing in this moment is unlike anything I have experienced since coming here as a refugee as a teenager when my family fled antisemitic persecution in Ukraine, which was then still a part of the Soviet Union. We must do what we can to preserve the sanctity of America as a haven and keep it a safe home for Jewish people and other minorities. The Weitzman is a powerful educational tool to help us do that work.”

Galperin first worked with The Weitzman during the spring of 2019 as a consultant, evaluating the Museum’s strengths and proposing a going-forward operational strategy as it entered a strategic planning process. He stayed on as an interim CEO, later becoming its president and chief executive officer. During his time at the helm of The Weitzman, Dr. Galperin led noteworthy efforts that bolstered the Museum’s reputation nationally and solidified the important role of the institution as the leading educator on Jewish identity in America, as a center for Jewish life and culture, and a national convener for thought leadership on critical issues American Jews face. Chief among them: online exhibitions and programs that exposed over 4 million people to the Museum’s treasures and education about American Jewish heritage; exponential growth of Jewish American Heritage Month—led by The Weitzman each May—that saw media impressions exceeding 3 billion; presentation of the annual Philadelphia Jewish Film and Media festival; and, most recently, convening the Jewish Priorities Conference in October 2023 that brought together national and global leaders across the Jewish spectrum and launched an ongoing conversation on the complex issues facing the future of the Jewish People.

“We will miss Misha and are grateful for his leadership these past almost five years,” said Sharon Tobin Kestenbaum, co-chair of the Board of Trustees. “From instituting a digital strategy, to leading us through financial challenges and the pandemic, to scenario planning for our future, and stewarding both a transformative naming gift from Stuart Weitzman and his family and an extraordinary act of generosity by Mitchell Morgan and his family, Misha closes the book on a monumental chapter in the Museum’s story as we work to find the successor who will lead us into our next exciting chapter.”

A seasoned fundraiser, under Galperin’s leadership, the Museum was able to raise more than $60 million in contributions, another $4.2 million in earned revenue, $2.3 million in government grants, and create a solid eight-figure foundation for an endowment.

In looking back on his tenure, Galperin notes that “today’s Weitzman Museum is a vibrant, strong, and growing national educational institution, the only one in the country telling the entire story of the Jewish People’s journeys to and throughout America. We have made clear the Jewish community’s gratitude for the opportunities to enjoy and partake in the freedoms this country has to offer, and to be involved in building a ‘more perfect union’. With the help of our dedicated staff, volunteers and leaders, the Museum has also emerged as the leading source of materials and education about American Jewish heritage.”

Galperin led major Jewish organizations for nearly four decades before beginning his nonprofit and philanthropic consulting practice, ZANDAFI, named for his children, not expecting to return to organizational life. He put much of his practice on hold as he came on board at The Weitzman. He looks forward to returning to his consulting work in earnest once his official tenure with The Weitzman concludes and has agreed to continue to support the transition as a consultant once his successor has been found.

He counts his time with The Weitzman among the most rewarding in his professional career. “I am so very proud of our work here at The Weitzman and of this team. I will always treasure my time here. I look forward to staying connected as a visitor, a program attendee, a member, and a Museum Store shopper!” Galperin shared. “As the Museum continues to grow and prosper, the time is right for a new professional leader who will see The Weitzman into its new era.”

ABOUT THE WEITZMAN NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN JEWISH HISTORY

Established in 1976, and situated on Philadelphia’s Independence Mall, the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History is the only museum in the nation dedicated to exploring and teaching the American Jewish experience from the dawn of our nation to the present day. The Weitzman advances civil discourse through education, teaching the true and powerful stories of Jews in America as an antidote to antisemitism. Standing as a joyful bulwark against antisemitism, bigotry, and hate, The Weitzman serves to connect Jews more closely to their heritage and to inspire in people of all backgrounds a greater appreciation for the diversity of the American Jewish experience and the freedoms to which Americans aspire. https://theweitzman.org/

Seach inquiries can be addressed to CEOSearch@TheWeitzman.org

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