The National Council of Jewish Women of Australia (NCJWA) elects a new Board along with a new National President, Melinda Jones at its AGM on Wednesday 15th July.
The new Board is the culmination of a concerted effort to modernise the organisation and to achieve a much-needed “passing of the baton” to a younger generation.
At the helm of the new Board is Melinda Jones, a scholar, feminist, human rights lawyer, disability advocate and Jewish educator who identifies as Modern Orthodox Jew. In her acceptance speech, Melinda commented
So the task for the new Board is set. The responsibility of NCJWA is to inform the community about what is happening to women and by women; to advocate for women within and outside the Jewish community and to be a voice against injustice. The National Board will work to empower Jewish women and to help, in particular, to strengthen the smaller communities around Australia where NCJWA has a presence.
Melinda is joined on the new Board by women from New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia.
Rebecca Burrows is a highly experienced senior executive with Marketing, General Management, Commercial and Operations expertise. Rebecca lives in Melbourne, where she has held Board positions with a number of Jewish and non-Jewish organisations. Mel Drinkwater is a GP and Bioethicist in Sydney. Mel has held a number of leadership roles both within and outside the Jewish Community, including Co-Chair of Limmud Oz in 2013. Daniella Gozlan has over 20 years’ experience in both corporate and chartered accounting, including a number of large organisations. She lives in Melbourne where she is currently Special Projects and Grants Manager for Zionism Victoria. Alla Melman is a physiotherapist from Sydney who is closely associated with Limmud Oz, the Sydney Friendship Circle and Australian Breastfeeding Association. Janet Merkur is currently a Co-President of NCJWA NSW, Sydney. Sheis an educational advisor working mainly with students with disabilities. She is a published author, has a passion for giving every child and adult the opportunity to attain functional literacy and numeracy skills. She is also practising yoga instructor. Iara Morris lives in Perth, is a Governance, Risk and Compliance Director in a professional services firm and has lived and worked in 3 countries. While working in the US she was on the Board of NCJW San Francisco Section and throughout her career in both Australia and the US has supported the NFP sector. Karen Prior is from Brisbane and is an employment lawyer. She is also a Member of the Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies and an active member in the Brisbane Jewish Community Cultural Group. The Treasurer role on the Board has been taken by Jo Silver from Melbourne. Jo is a strategic planning consultant and comes with a wealth of NFP experience, including past CEO of Stand Up, and currently a Director for the Online Hate Prevention Institute.
The outgoing President, Negba Weiss-Dolev congratulated Melinda and her vibrant new Board and wished them well for the future. She expressed gratitude that the Board was now filled with so many young, fresh faces, and excitement for what lies in store for NCJWA. Negba also paid tribute to her outgoing Board, stating “All the Board worked hard and went above and beyond, but I want to especially thank my Vice-Presidents Shirley Glance OAM and Di Hirsh OAM.” Negba also acknowledged the difficulties that COVID-19 has inflicted on the organisation and its sections in the last six months, which contrasted with the upbeat mood and work that was achieved in NCJWA in the first half of this financial year, namely the successful National Conference which was a resounding success and attracted a younger audience.
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