JCUA Staff

Jane Ramsey- Executive Director
Under Jane Ramsey's leadership as executive director for more than 30 years, JCUA has become one of Chicago’s most active and important social justice organizations. Jane is a principal organizer of coalitions that bring together diverse groups to address common concerns, including homelessness and community displacement, immigration reform, community reinvestment, police conduct, unemployment, racism and anti-Semitism. Her pursuit of a better Chicago, her extraordinary commitment to social change, and the visionary steps she has taken to promote the intersection of Judaic principles and justice in action have enabled JCUA to become a powerful leader in our community.

Jane is a longtime community activist with a strong commitment to social and economic justice and has been at the forefront of many critical issues affecting the city. In addition, she has inspired others as a lecturer and field instructor for the University of Chicago, School of Social Service Administration, where she taught “Organizing Communities and Coalitions for Social Change.”

In 2009, Jane was named to the prestigious "Forward 50" list by The Forward, a national Jewish newspaper and Web site. That same year, JCUA was named one of the nation's 50 most innovative Jewish nonprofits by Slingshot, a resource guide for Jewish innovation. Under Jane's leadership, said the Slingshot guide, "JCUA’s partnership approach to combating social inequality has placed it in the forefront of the social justice movement in Chicago."

Among her many honors, Jane received the Eugene V. Debs-Norman Thomas-Michael Harrington award in 2009 for "a life in pursuit of social justice."

JCUA is not the only beneficiary of Jane’s passion for social and economic justice. In 1986, she took a leave of absence from JCUA when Mayor Harold Washington appointed her his director of community relations. In that capacity she advised on a range of issues affecting Chicago’s diverse neighborhoods. Jane is also co-chair of the Justice Coalition of Greater Chicago, and has served on numerous boards and commissions such as the Chicago Coalition to Protect Public Housing, Chicago Rehab Network, Public Welfare Coalition, the Commission on Social Action of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (now the Union for Reform Judaism) and Women in Charge.

Asaf Bar-Tura - Jewish-Muslim Community-Building Initiative Coordinator
After backpacking in South America for six months, Asaf completed his undergraduate studies in Philosophy and Political Science at Ben-Gurion University in Israel in 2006. He then worked as the director of an educational program serving 300 children in the underserved Bedford Park community of the north Bronx in New York City. Moving to Chicago in 2007, Asaf directed JCUA’s Or Tzedek teen program for two years. He now coordinates the Jewish-Muslim Community Building Initiative (JMCBI), and is guiding Or Tzedek, JCUA's teen social justice institute. Asaf is working on his Ph.D. in political philosophy at Loyola University Chicago. He lives in the city with his wife and son.

Brian Gladstein - Program Director
Reporting to the Executive Director, Brian serves as the manager and spokesperson for all the programs of the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs. He is accountable for all programming activities, operations and staffing. Brian provides oversight to JCUA’s outreach, community and advocacy programs and assists with financial management, fundraising activities and internal and external communications. Prior to Brian’s appointment as program director, he was director of community programs. Before joining JCUA, Brian was the Housing Director at the Edgewater Community Council and statewide organizer for the Illinois State Council of Senior Citizens. Brian holds a Bachelors of Science degree from Indiana University in Public and Environmental Affairs and a Masters in Urban Planning and Policy from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Verna Jaunes - Administrative and Financial Coordinator
Verna Jaunes plays a key role at JCUA providing administrative support to staff, managing JCUA's payroll, accounts receivable and payable and ensuring that all office equipment is working. Working at JCUA for 11 years, she is a seasoned JCUA veteran.

Tarik Vincent Kemper - Action Reconciliation Service for Peace Fellow
Tarik is originally from Berlin, Germany. ARSP (Action Reconcilliation Service for Peace) is a volunteer exchange program and has had a relationship with JCUA for 25 years. Founded in the aftermath of World War II, ARSP tries to improve relations with countries that suffered under the regime of Nazi Germany. Tarik assists the Coordinator of the Jewish - Muslim Community Building Initiative (JMCBI) and supports the program's goals. He also works in the Marketing and Communications department on numerous projects, specializing in audio-visual materials and social media. In Berlin Tarik was involved in projects fighting racism. He appreciates the opportunity to volunteer for the JCUA in Chicago for a year.

Jonathan Lehrer - Director of Marketing and Communications
Following graduation from Northwestern University's School of Communications, Jonathan Lehrer was a journalist at several Chicago and suburban radio stations, covering local government and politics. He then served 18 years as vice president, public affairs, for the AAA-Chicago Motor Club, working on such issues as traffic safety, teen driving, highway congestion, fuel prices and the environment. He was editor of the club's membership magazine and was a frequent interview subject on Chicago radio and TV stations. Since leaving AAA, Lehrer served as a communications consultant, with special expertise in online communications, for various healthcare, small business and economic development clients. He was a consultant for the Illinois Department of Transportation's Dan Ryan Expressway Reconstruction Project and the Illinois Tollway's Congestion Relief Program.

Judy Levey - Community Development Manager
Judy Levey has an extensive background in the arena of low-income housing programs. Judy previously worked as the executive director of the Homeless and Housing Coalition of Kentucky, where in 2006 she led a successful campaign to establish dedicated funding for Kentucky’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund. More recently, Judy was the Director of Community Outreach for the Urban Land Institute Chicago District Council, where she coordinated The Preservation Compact, a MacArthur-funded initiative to preserve existing affordable multifamily rental housing in Cook County.

Michaela Purdue - Director, Community Programs
Prior to her work with JCUA, Michaela was a field organizer for Amnesty International, USA, where she mobilized activists and communities on local and global human-rights issues. Through the project United to End Racism (UER) she was a delegate to the national White Privilege Conference for three consecutive years, and led the UER delegation to this conference in 2006. Also through UER she was a delegate to the United Nation's World Conference against Racism, held in Durban, South Africa in August 2001 and has since participated on several delegations to various countries in Africa, training community members in peer counseling and leadership development. Currently she is an executive board member for Beyondmedia Education, a media arts and advocacy organization that collaborates with underserved and underrepresented women, youth and communities to organize for social justice through the creation and distribution of alternative media and arts. She received a bachelor's degree in psychological services and human development and a certificate in learning and organizational change from Northwestern University in 1999.

Leah Roth-Howe - Coordinator of Teen Programs
A graduate of Macalester College, Leah studied Urban Social Geography and American Studies. Leah has been a staff member of Or Tzedek since its inception and continues to pursue social justice initiatives on local and international scales. In 2008, Leah lived in Cambodia and led participatory educational and art workshops with survivors of the Khmer Rouge genocide and their descendants through the “100 Projects for Peace” grant. In collaboration with local communities, the workshops explored issues of peace building, youth leadership, healing, and intergenerational dialogue. Leah’s experiences in Cambodia influenced her desire to explore her own family’s Holocaust history, prompting a series of speaking engagements and intergenerational memorialization projects with teens and adults throughout Germany. Leah is thrilled to continue her work with Or Tzedek, and is looking forward spending many more summers exploring the social fabric of Chicago with active, curious and engaged teens.

Irene Lehrer Sandalow - Director of Strategy and Jewish Affairs
Irene is a strong believer that the Jewish community can and should a play major role in fighting the social ills of our society. Irene manages the Outreach and Education Department, which educates, engages and mobilizes the Jewish community in the social justice work of JCUA. Previously, Irene worked at the UJA-Federation of New York and the Museum of Jewish Heritage-A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. She is passionate about Jewish text study, including Bible, Talmud, Jewish Philosophy and Jewish Law. Irene grew up in Belgium and speaks French, Dutch and Hebrew. Irene holds a master's degree in nonprofit management from Milano The New School for Management and Urban Policy and a bachelor's in International Relations and French Literature from Brandeis University.

Crystal Smith - Financial/Administrative Coordinator

Tom Walsh - Director, Advocacy and Public Policy
A veteran of organizing, advocacy and research initiatives related to community development and affordable housing issues, Tom has forged strong relationships with Chicago’s elected officials, union and civic leaders, and media and foundation professionals. He recently worked with JCUA to organize the successful November 2007 DGAP accountability conference. Since then, he has worked on the organizing campaign around the Cook County Bureau of Health budget. Tom is a graduate of Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa.

Win Villamora - IT Systems Administrator
Win was graduated with a BA in Economics from Ateneo de Manila University, a Jesuit academic institution in his native Philippines. He began his professional career at Procter & Gamble Philippines in market research and with AMA, Inc. in advertising. Win transitioned to the non-profit world as a Project Officer for PBSP, a socio-economic development foundation. He worked with farmers' cooperatives, credit unions, small-scale marketing cooperatives and a university lab for disseminating farming technology to rural areas. Escaping from the tyranny of the Marcos martial-law dictatorship, Win and his wife Grace made their way to Chicago. Prior to joining JCUA, Win worked with the IT Resource Center/Lumity and provided consulting assistance to 18 Chicago non-profits. Win is Microsoft-certified as a server and desktop-support consultant and Microsoft Office user specialist (Master level). He also holds Cisco and SAP R/3 certifications. Win and his wife Grace have two grown daughters, Nicole and Genevieve.

Pamela Klier-Weidner - Director of Development
A Chicago native, Pam has 20 years of experience in events management and promotion, including international marketing and public speaking assignments for the world's top firms. She served as director of corporate sales and special events at Drury Lane Theatre Water Tower Place. Her career includes work in development for the Italian-American Human Relations Foundation and the James Jordan Foundation. At JCUA, she manages fund-raising strategy, donor engagement and major gifts. She is well regarded for her creative approach in matching passionate donors with just causes. She lives with her husband, Douglas, and daughters, Juliette and Charlotte.

Interns

JCUA offers an education and inspiring program for college interns. Students taking part in this hands-on social justice experience during summer 2010 included those listed here (indicating the JCUA department assignment and their school):

• Steven Blumenthal, Communications, University of Illinois
• Robbie Dembo, Outreach/Or Tzedek, University of Michigan
• Kathryn Evans, DGAP, Macalaster College
• Katharine Nasielski, Outreach/JMCBI, Northwestern University
• Tali Segev, Advocacy, University of Illinois
• Rachael Soren, Archiving, Foundations, Michigan State University
• Julia Vanghiluwe, Housing, Ferris State University
• Jennifer Waldman, Archiving