President & CEO Search

Jewish Federation of St. Louis Names Brian Herstig President & CEO


After a nationwide search, the Jewish Federation of St. Louis has selected Brian Herstig as its next President and CEO. Herstig succeeds Andrew Rehfeld, who left Federation in April to become President of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.

Herstig, currently residing in Minneapolis, has an impressive and varied background working in the nonprofit sector, including a total of 15 years at the Jewish Federations of Minneapolis and Pittsburgh. Most recently, Herstig has been the Director of Operations and Administration at Twin Cities R!SE, which assists individuals in generational poverty on the path to long-term and stable employment. He holds two master’s degrees – one in Non-Profit Management, and the other in Jewish Communal Service – both from Brandeis University, and graduated from The Ohio State University, magna cum laude, with a degree in Social Work.

Herstig is expected to begin his new role in the second week of January.

“Brian immediately rose to the top of our candidates for his keen attributes, especially with implementation and vision around strategic planning and our new community investment model,” said Greg Yawitz, Board Chair of Federation and Co-Chair of the Search Committee.

Gerry Greiman, immediate past Federation Board Chair and Co-Chair of the Search Committee, added, “Brian impressed us as having the ability to connect with and inspire all segments of our Jewish community, and to lead Federation in implementing our strategic plan and vision.”

The search process for a new President and CEO began in earnest in April of this year and involved an intensive, nationwide search and a review of many qualified candidates.

To learn more about the entire process and other members of the Search Committee, please scroll down to the section titled “The Search.”

Don Hannon, Federation’s Chief Operating Officer and acting CEO, said of Herstig, “Brian’s record as an innovative leader with a proven record in many areas of the work we do at Federation will be a wonderful asset to the organization. Speaking for the senior management team and staff, we all look forward to a successful working relationship for years to come.”

Herstig is married to Barbara (Barb) Herstig and has three children. He and his family look forward to moving to St. Louis and beginning his journey at the Jewish Federation of St. Louis.

“I stepped away after 15 years of working within Federation purposely to experience different ways to address community needs in a changing environment. I’ve spent the last 10 years learning and implementing different approaches, and now it’s time to come back to the Jewish world with a new strength of purpose and conviction to work with the Federation community in St. Louis.”

Herstig said he was impressed with Federation’s implementation of its Strategic Plan, Core Commitments, and Priorities.

He also shared his belief that an organization is fundamentally about people – the people who work there, the people who support it, and the people who lead it from a volunteer perspective.

“My background in social work taught me to ‘meet people where they are,’ which means to listen more than you speak, look for commonalities among a diverse group, and design solutions that work for as many people as possible,” he said. “I have tried to do that in my career and it will be my honor to work with the St. Louis Jewish community to do so.”

 

The Search


Jewish Federation of St. Louis has formed a Search Committee and engaged Storbeck/Pimentel and Howe-Lewis to find candidates to fill the President & CEO position. On this page you can find the following information:

Nominations and Applications

Please send any applications to Shelly Weiss Storbeck, Managing Partner Lisa Solinsky, Associate Storbeck/Pimentel & Associates, LP, and Esther Rosenberg, Co-Managing Director, Howe-Lewis International, at JFedSTLPresident@StorbeckSearch.com.

 

News and Updates

 

President & CEO Search Committee Members

Gerald P. Greiman, Co-Chair, Search Committee – Chair, Federation Board of Directors; Partner at Spencer Fane LLP, focusing on business litigation; member of Central Reform Congregation; Past President of the Jewish Community Relations Council of St. Louis

Greg Yawitz, Co-Chair, Search Committee – Owner, Keat Properties LLC; Vice Chair of Federation’s Planning & Allocations (Transition) Committee; Past President, Congregation Shaare Emeth; Board Member, Chair of Autism Speaks St. Louis

Patricia Croughan – Psychotherapist, MSW, LCSW; Past Chair, Federation Board of Directors; Co-Chair, L’Chaim 2019; Past President of Congregation Shaare Emeth

Dan Friedman – Assistant Vice President with Enterprise Rent-A-Car; member of Federation’s Planning & Allocations (Transition) Committee; past member, Jewish Federation of North America’s National Young Leadership Cabinet; and member, Congregation Shaare Emeth

Susan Goldberg – Community Volunteer; member, Federation Board of Directors; member, Board of Barnes-Jewish Hospital; Past President, Ready Readers; past member, Temple Israel Board; member, Temple Israel; marketing career included Ralston Purina, the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, and Holiday Inn Worldwide

Abby Goldstein – Member, PJ Library Advisory Committee, currently a PJ Library Parent Ambassador; active member, Federation’s Women’s Philanthropy; member, Kol Rinah

Emily Stein MacDonald – Funeral Director at Berger Memorial Chapel; Vice Chair At-Large, Secretary of Federation Board of Directors; Chair, Federation Marketing Committee; member, The Rubin Israel Experience Committee; member, The J Associates Board; member, Central Reform Congregation

Heschel RaskasPh.D. – President Emeritus, Raskas Foods; former Professor of Pathology and Microbiology, Washington University of St. Louis School of Medicine; Past Chair, St. Louis Jewish Federation Board of Directors, Past Treasurer, Jewish Federations of North America, member Board of Governors, the Jewish Agency for Israel; member, Young Israel

David Roberts – Founding Board member, MO WINS; Board Chair Emeritus, Reconstructing Judaism and Reconstructionist Rabbinical College; Chair, Reconstructing Judaism Nominating and Leadership Development Committee; Co-Founder, Past President, and current member Shir Hadash Reconstructionist Community; former Jewish Federation Executive in Boston and Portland, Oregon; non-profit consultant work includes Saul Mirowitz Community Day School; past member, Federation Executive Committee

Rabbi Brigitte Rosenberg – Senior Rabbi at United Hebrew Congregation; member, Federation Board of Directors; Chair, Jewish Fund for Human Needs; past Board member, Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), chaired 2015 convention, and Past Chair Annual Giving Campaign

Jonathan Spetner – President of Spetner Associates, Inc.; member, Board of Torah Prep; member, Board of Missouri Torah Institute; member, Agudas Israel

Harvey Wallace – Co-founder & former Managing Partner, Brown Smith Wallace; Immediate Past Chair, Federation Board of Directors; Chair of Federation Nominating and Board Development Committee; member, United Way Board; member, Shaare Emeth

Hank Webber – Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Administrative Officer at Washington University in St. Louis; member, Federation Board of Directors; Chairman of Cortex; member of the Boards of Directors of Forest Park Forever, Downtown Partnership, Provident, and RISE; member, Central Reform Congregation

The search committee will be staffed by Emily Bornstein, Federation’s Manager of Impact and Evaluation.