JFS is excited to announce to the community that Adam Smith will be joining the Executive team as Senior Director of Innovation and Community Engagement. In this position, Mr. Smith will accelerate JFS’ effort in strategy implementation specifically focusing on innovation and engaging community in JFS’ social impact work including fighting hate/antisemitism and new social impact work.
Prior to joining the team at JFS, Mr. Smith most recently worked at the Diller Family Foundation, overseeing their global teen fellowship. Before that, Mr. Smith served as the Associate Vice President for Cohort Engagement at Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Boston.
He is an innovative thought-leader in relational engagement and system development, having served as the founding Director of the Jewish Teen Initiative, Boston (a Jim Joseph Foundation pilot). Mr. Smith led the initiative through its start-up phase while establishing a replicable model for use in other cities and launched a national Peer Leaders Fellowship program, which is currently being adapted around the country.
Mr. Smith has spent the last 20 years working with community members, seeking out new and different ways to meet them where they are, connecting them to Jewish tradition, the community and each other. He earned a BA degree in psychology from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and later continued studying Jewish educational theory at both Hebrew College and Brandeis University. Mr. Smith and his wife, Rabbi Jodi Seewald Smith, currently live in Needham, MA with their two children. In his free time, Mr. Smith enjoys playing volleyball, tennis and rock climbing with his family.
“I’m very excited to have Adam join our JFS team,” said Lino Covarrubias, Chief Executive Officer. “We pride ourselves on being nimble and constantly adapting to changing social environments. Adam’s background and experience are perfect for what we want to accomplish strategically in the future, specifically engaging the community, government, faith organizations, family/corporate foundations, and our faithful donors in our work in helping the most vulnerable in our community.”
“I am inspired by the vision, connections, and transformative power of Jewish Family Service of Metrowest,” said Mr. Smith. “From the values-based impact work helping thousands of people, to the mobilization of community leaders and resources … I’m humbled and excited to join this incredible organization, and to explore how I can contribute to such a dynamic and dedicated team.”