"The World is Changing " speakers
Jonathan Epstein – The Media is Changing – Thursday, 4/1/21, 8 p.m.
Jonathan D. Epstein is a 
He and a colleague broke the story surrounding the federal investigation of mortgage fraud alleged to have occurred at Rochester-based Morgan Management and Morgan Communities, involving commercial real estate throughout a 14-state business empire. Their reports over several weeks, detailing what was being investigated, eventually culminated in coverage of the indictments of four individuals amid the ongoing probe.
He was also one of two reporters who worked on the paper’s nationally award-winning four-part series, “The High Cost of Being Poor,” and has received statewide awards for other stories.
Prior to joining the News in January 2004, Jon spent six and a half years covering banking, credit cards and insurance for The News Journal in Wilmington, Del., a 150,000-circulation Gannett Co. daily newspaper. He also covered small business lending. He began his career as a Community Banking reporter and deputy Community Banking section editor for The American Banker, a daily financial services newspaper owned by Thomson Corp., from July 1994 to August 1997.
A native of Schenectady, N.Y., Jon earned his bachelor's degree in history and political science from University of Rochester in 1993 and his master's in print journalism from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in 1994. He was also a journalism fellow at the Stonier Graduate School of Banking program at University of Delaware in 1997.
Jon is immediate past-president of Kadimah Academy, and board secretary of Temple Beth Tzedek in Amherst. He is also president of the TBT Men’s Club. He is married to Judith, a University of Rochester alumna. They have a daughter and a son, and reside in Amherst, N.Y.
Mark Waldman and Danny Kochavi - Israel's Neighborhood is Changing - Thursday, 4/ 15/21, 8 p.m.
Mark Waldman has many roots in Buffalo. A native of Rochester, he earned  a Bachelor's in Political Science from UB and was an aide for several local politicians, during which time he was USY advisor for Temple Beth El. He became Executive Director of the Empire Region of USCJ, then Executive Director of the Seaboard Region of USCJ, and Director of Synagogue Outreach for AIPAC before his current position as National Director of Outreach for AIPAC. He holds an MBA and a Masters in Non-Profit Management from the University of Maryland. |
Danny Kochavi joined AIPAC two years ago as the Northeast Region Deputy Synagogue Initiative Director. In his current role, Danny works to create and foster relationships with rabbis and synagogue lay leaders across the Northeast region to increase the number of pro-Israel activists in the American Jewish community. Prior to this, Danny spent 20 years in Jewish Education, having earned his Master's degree at The Jewish Theological Seminary and has had extensive experience creating and implementing programs with clergy and educators across the denominational spectrum. Danny is also an avid sports fan, a volunteer EMT, and coaches his kids' softball and baseball teams. He lives in Riverdale, New York, with his wife Danielle, his son Netanel, and daughter Atara. |
Nancy Boxer - The Climate is Changing - Sunday, 5/ 2/21, 10 a.m.
Nancy has bachelor's and master's degrees from Harvard University 
in economics and regional planning. She taught economics at Harvard College, served as a state regulator, worked for a major oil company and as an independent financial consultant before retraining in medicine and psychotherapy. She is the founder of the Association for Climate Health. A long-time hiker and environmentalist, her aim is to stabilize the earth's climate so we can create a more sustainable world for our children and our children's children.
Matthew Boxer - Jewish Communities are Changing - Thursday, 5/20/21, 8 p.m.
Matthew Boxer is a graduate of Kadimah and Buffalo's Hebrew High, and past Religious Education VP
for both Temple Beth El USY and the Tzafon Region. He is an assistant research professor at the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies, the Steinhardt Social Research Institute, and the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program, all at Brandeis University. He earned a Master of Arts in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis and an MS and PhD in sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where his doctoral dissertation focused on the effects of Jewish community size on Jewish identity. His research varies widely and includes socio-demographic research on the US Jewish community, social psychological processes of Jewish identity development, Jewish young adults' volunteer habits and preferences, Israel studies on North American college campuses, antisemitism, and the impact of formal and informal Jewish educational experiences on Jewish identity. He currently serves as the treasurer of the Association for the Social Scientific Study of Jewry and is a member of the National Advisory Board of the Center for Small Town Jewish Life at Colby College. Matthew was the principal investigator for the 2013 study of the Buffalo Jewish community.
