The JoCI is honored to work with a wonderful community of esteemed leaders on our Board of Directors. Representing key areas of expertise, such as education, mixed-methods research, DEI, community impact, civil rights law, and more, the leaders on our Board make our communal impact possible.
We are honored to elevate and celebrate the leadership two exceptional existing Board members to their new roles on our Board:
Christina Jefferson, Board Chair
Christina (she/her) is the first ever Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) at the San Francisco Forty Niners, where she leads inclusion and diversity efforts across the organization and the teams internships, fellowships and holistic training strategy. Prior to joining the 49ers, Jefferson spent six years with Sephora leading their diversity and inclusion efforts company-wide, including facilitation, the creation of diversity trainings, and providing oversight to all cultural programming.
Jefferson earned her B.S. from the University of Southern Indiana and her Masters in Human Resource Management from Golden Gate University. She is a member of several boards, including the Jewish Community Relations Council of San Francisco, Congregation Sherith Israel, and Better For You Wellness.
Dr. Valerie Feldman, Vice Chair
Valerie (she/her) is a second-generation Chinese Jewish immigrant who is deeply committed to the values of equity, justice, and Tikkun Olam. Originally trained as a mixed-methods sociologist, she has served as a consultant and in-house evaluator and strategist for mission driven organizations in and outside the Jewish community. She is currently the Senior Director of Strategic Learning & Impact at GLIDE, a multi-service, advocacy, and spiritual center that is dedicated to fighting systemic injustice and disrupting cycles of poverty among historically oppressed communities in San Francisco. Here, she drives strategic planning and implementation and leads the Center for Applied Learning and Impact to facilitate evidence-based decision-making and programmatic improvement.
Valerie earned her PhD and MA in Sociology with a designated emphasis in Feminist Theory & Research from the University of California, Davis. Beyond her current role, she has served as a research advisor and consultant for several racial justice and equity initiatives. Currently, she is a Community Consulting Group Advisor on harm reduction-related community studies for the Center on Substance Use and Health, a division of the San Francisco Department of Public Health.
Additionally, we are excited to welcome two brand new Board members as well!
Dr. Buffie Longmire-Avital
Buffie Longmire-Avital (she/her), PhD, is a diversity, inclusion, and racial equity (D.I.R.E ©) scholar-educator. She recently became the first Black-identified faculty promoted to the rank of professor in the College of Arts & Sciences at Elon University. Dr. Longmire-Avital is a member of the Psychology Department, the founding director of the Black Lumen Project, an equity initiative, and is currently serving as the Faculty Administrative Fellow for Mentoring in Meaningful Relationships. She previously served as the coordinator of the African and African American Studies interdisciplinary minor program. Longmire-Avital received her PhD in Applied Developmental Psychology from New York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. For nearly two decades her research has focused on how systemic injustices in combination with various psychosocial factors contribute to health inequities that impact racial and sexual minorities. Longmire-Avital’s secondary research explores virtual interventions tailored for Black American women living with chronic health conditions to prioritize well-being and increase self-care and self-compassion. In 2023 she was one of 11 scholars awarded a fellowship through the Race, Religion, and American Judaism Project. Dr. Longmire-Avital has published numerous articles and served on the editorial boards of multiple academic journals. As the Center for Engaged Learning (CEL) Scholar, she contributed thought leadership on how to generate and sustain critically conscious, equitable approaches that support underserved and invisiblized students’ engagement through reparative mentorship. Longmire-Avital has received numerous awards in recognition of her excellence in mentorship as well as leadership service. She is also a recipient of the prestigious National Institutes of Health, Loan Repayment Program for Health Disparities and National Research Service Award.
Evan Traylor
Evan Traylor (he/him) is a rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, and a Jewish community builder, educator, activist, and writer. He serves as the rabbinic intern at Congregation Beth Elohim in Brooklyn, and he previously served as the rabbinic intern at the 92nd Street Y. Evan is a Wexner Graduate Fellow, a Tisch Fellow, and a Ko’ach Fellow, and currently serves on the boards of Encounter and JOIN For Justice, and on the Leadership Team of the HUC-JIR Soup Kitchen. Prior to rabbinical school, he worked at the Union for Reform Judaism for several years creating new initiatives in college and young adult engagement.
Originally from Oklahoma City, Evan graduated from the University of Kansas studying political science, Jewish studies, and leadership studies. He is an alum of URJ Greene Family Camp and URJ Kutz Camp and served as the North American President of NFTY, the Reform Jewish youth movement. Evan lives in Brooklyn with his wife Lindsey and their tiny dog, Ruby Nakia.