Please join us in welcoming three wonderful new members of our Board of Directors! Dr. Dietra Reiser, Mendel Davis, and Valerie Feldman bring expertise and experience in the areas of education and DEI, finance and business, and strategy and evaluation. As the Jews of Color Initiative continues to expand in capacity and vision, we are thrilled to welcome these esteemed professionals to our Board. We invite you to get to know them by reading their bios below.
Deitra Reiser
Deitra Reiser, PhD (she/her) is the founder of Transform for Equity, an antiracist repair group that supports organizations and leaders in building the capacity for diversity, racial equity, belonging and justice within the organization. Dr. Reiser fosters greater antiracist understanding among individuals and within institutions, and supports their continued growth through thoughts and actions.
Dr. Reiser holds a doctorate in Educational Psychology from The University of Wisconsin-Madison. In her free time, you can find her laughing and chatting with the people she loves, hiking, being active, binging shows, or reading a book with coffee in hand.
Mendel Davis
Menachem Mendel Davis is a financial executive at The Einstein Group, specializing in Financial Planning and Alternative Risk Management. Raised in Baltimore, MD, he grew up in a divorced household born to an African American father who converted to Judaism and being raised by an Egyptian mother while attending the Talmudical Academy. Menachem’s achievements include serving as a counselor at the Hebrew Academy of Special Children, authoring a Passover Haggadah, and overcoming addiction to become the best version of himself. He is passionate about delivering professional financial services, particularly to professional athletes and business clients. With a Master’s in Business Administration from The University of Maryland Global Campus, Menachem also has experience as an Assistant Vice President at JPMorgan Chase and a Wealth Advisor for Raymond James. In his free time, he enjoys motorcycle rides, playing the saxophone, and watching YouTube, while also being a dedicated father to his daughters.
Valerie Feldman
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.
See our full list of Board members on our website.