Executive Leadership Institute

Through the program, participants will:

• Develop a stronger identity as visionary Jewish leaders.
• Sharpen their executive leadership skills in strategic planning, financial stewardship, governance, fundraising, organizational direction, and crisis management.
• Learn to lead effectively through change, innovation, and emerging challenges.
• Engage deeply with contemporary Jewish thought and explore how Jewish ideas inform executive camp leadership.
• Apply their learning through executive coaching and a capstone project that creates meaningful organizational and field-wide impact.
• Build lasting relationships with a trusted cohort of senior camp leaders.
• Join a lifelong alumni network of leaders committed to strengthening Jewish camp and the broader Jewish community, with ongoing support from Foundation for Jewish Camp.

Seminar Learning and Executive Certification

The fellowship includes five immersive seminars focused on executive education, visionary leadership, Jewish thought, and peer learning. Led by the Fellowship Director, faculty, executive advisors, and guest experts, the seminars combine leadership theory with practical application while providing dedicated time for reflection, collaboration, and strategic thinking.

For the first time, ELI Fellows will complete 30–40 hours of asynchronous learning and earn an executive leadership certificate from Cornell University.

Executive Coaching

Each Fellow is paired with an executive coach who provides individualized guidance throughout the fellowship. Coaches help Fellows interpret leadership assessments, navigate complex professional challenges, refine leadership goals, and develop their capstone projects.

Capstone Project

Each Fellow develops and implements a capstone project focused on a significant strategic opportunity within their camp. Designed with support from an executive coach and a $10,000 implementation grant, the project allows Fellows to apply their learning while creating meaningful organizational impact.

Lifelong Cohort and Alumni Network

The fellowship extends well beyond graduation. Fellows become part of a lifelong community of Jewish camp executives who continue supporting one another and advancing the field through ongoing networking, professional development, and collaborative leadership opportunities.

Between 2026 and 2030, alumni of the Executive Leadership Institute will be eligible for exclusive grant opportunities to advance the business of camp.

Leadership Assessment and 360-Degree Feedback

Each Fellow will complete a customized 360-degree leadership assessment aligned with the ELI leadership competencies. The assessment establishes a baseline for growth, informs individual leadership goals, and creates opportunities for reflection throughout the fellowship.

Executive Coaches

Rachel Wallins, M.A.

ELI Cohort V Executive Coach | Founder, Accelerate Talent Management

As founder of Accelerate Talent Management, Rachel Wallins brings more than 35 years of experience coaching executives and building high-performing teams, grounded in a simple premise: real business problems deserve straight talk and measurable results, not feel-good frameworks that fade once the work ends.

Over the past seven years, Rachel has partnered closely with the Jewish communal world, coaching and training leaders at UJA-Federation of New York, Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, JFLA, Commonpoint Queens, and 7 Faces Media. Within that work, she has coached and trained Jewish camp executives on how to build stronger, more engaging environments for their teams and has helped camp leaders translate mission into day-to-day practices that retain and energize staff.

Rachel believes trust is the foundation of every high-performing team and individual. She builds that trust by being transparent about her approach from day one, giving clients a real voice in the process, and treating the work as a partnership, not a prescription. That does not mean she goes easy—Rachel asks the tough questions that spark genuine insight because comfortable conversations rarely produce visible results.

Before launching Accelerate Talent Management, Rachel held senior coaching, learning, and team-effectiveness roles at Ketchum PR, MTV Networks, Ross Stores, The Children’s Place, and Deloitte, serving as both an internal executive coach and a C-suite leader of Learning and Development.

Her client roster spans for-profit and nonprofit organizations alike, including Ascension Healthcare, ResMed, Pie Insurance, Fitch Ratings, the Harlem Globetrotters, and Dick’s Sporting Goods—giving her a wide-ranging view of how leaders navigate growth, change, and complexity across very different missions and cultures.

Rachel holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon, a master’s degree from The Ohio State University, and a Post-Master’s Certification in Organizational Development from The New School. She is a certified Executive Coach through the NeuroLeadership Institute in New York City, a certified Resilience Coach, and a member of the Forbes Coaching Council. She is certified in eight psychometric leadership assessments—including the Hogan Leadership Assessment, MBTI, DiSC, StrengthsFinder, Honey and Mumford Learning Styles, EQ-i, FIRO-B, and the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument. She also facilitates The Five Dysfunctions of a Team with intact groups looking to diagnose what is holding them back and build something stronger.

Whether she is working with a Jewish federation navigating generational change, a camp executive building a stronger staff culture, or a corporate leader stepping into a bigger role, Rachel brings the same commitment: clear thinking, honest conversation, and a genuine investment in developing the next generation of Jewish leadership.

Marissa Lifshen Steinberger

ELI Cohort V Executive Coach | Founder, One Eleven Leadership

Marissa Lifshen Steinberger (she/her) is the founder of One Eleven Leadership. As a certified coach and engaging team facilitator, she helps turn overwhelm into alignment for good humans doing meaningful work. With more than 20 years of experience across the education, nonprofit, and Jewish sectors, Marissa brings deep empathy and a values-driven approach to her work, creating space for honest reflection, authentic connection, and sustainable growth.

Marissa began her career at Northwestern University Hillel, supporting Jewish student engagement, and later helped build the college counseling program at what is now Rochelle Zell Jewish High School in Chicago. After earning her graduate degree, she served as a school counselor and college advisor in New York City and Atlanta public high schools, guiding students from diverse backgrounds as they explored postsecondary pathways. From 2010-2021, she worked at the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, a national scholarship organization, where she managed programs advancing the education of exceptionally promising students from low-income families and led initiatives to support their persistence through college and into meaningful careers.

Marissa believes that transformation can only come from within, which is why she helps individuals and teams articulate goals that are personal, challenging, and motivating while also providing tools, resources, and encouragement at every step of the way. In addition to one-on-one coaching and team facilitation, Marissa enjoys cultivating individual growth in the context of community by running women’s leadership and wellness retreats and a group coaching cohort-based program she designed called LEAD. She is certified in facilitating BOLD, Inclusive Conversations®, trained in the Immunity to Change framework, and inspired by the Dare to Lead™ approach, all of which she enjoys weaving into her work with individuals and teams.

Marissa holds an Ed.M. in Counseling Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University, and an A.B. in Psychology from Brown University. She earned the designation of Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through the International Coaching Federation and is a graduate of Georgetown University’s signature programs in Leadership Coaching and Facilitation, rigorous training that reflects her belief in continuous learning, intentional practice, and a growth mindset.

As a proud alum of Camp Chai in Dallas, Texas, and JCC Ranch Camp in Elbert, Colorado, Marissa knows how meaningful Jewish summer camp can be to personal growth and identity development. Her two boys attend Capital Camps in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, and are carrying on her passion for gaga and Maccabiah.

Stefan Teodosic

ELI Cohort V Executive Coach | Founder and Principal, Maverick Soul Consulting

Stefan Teodosic is the founder and principal of Maverick Soul Consulting. He has worked for almost 30 years building teams, designing and implementing visions and strategies, managing cultural change, training and facilitating groups of professionals and lay leaders, and coaching.

He spent almost two decades in the Jewish camp space as Executive Director of Beber Camp, Perlman Camp, and the Perlman Retreat Center, and as Camp Director of both Beber Camp and Camp Young Judaea Midwest. Before his Jewish communal work, he worked for American Express in strategic planning. At Maverick Soul, Stefan has worked with numerous organizations across a variety of sectors in the Jewish community, as well as in the secular not-for-profit and corporate sectors.

Stefan has served on several boards and currently serves as Board Chair of UpStart and as a member of the Mem Global Chairs Council. He is completing his final term on the board of his camp alma mater, Tamarack Camps. He is also a professor of management and Applied Jewish Wisdom for Leaders at Spertus and The Zelikow School at Hebrew Union College. He lives in Evanston, Illinois, with his wife, Cortney; his daughter, Micah; his son, Levi; and their dogs, Mazie and Asher.

Participants are expected to attend and actively participate in all required fellowship activities, including:

• Five in-person seminars in North America.
• Small-group summer site visits to exemplary camps in the FJC network during summer 2028.
• Regular work with an assigned executive coach.
• Completion of a customized 360-degree leadership assessment.
• Development and implementation of a capstone project.
• Active participation in cohort learning and peer consultation, including 30–40 hours of asynchronous Cornell coursework.

Selected ELI Cohort V Fellows will also be required to attend Leaders Assembly, FJC’s biennial conference for the Jewish camp field.

Required Dates

• Leaders Assembly: January 11–13, 2027
• Seminar 1: March 15–18, 2027
• Seminar 2: October 26–28, 2027
• Seminar 3: January 11–13, 2028
• Seminar 4: April 4–6, 2028
• Seminar 5 and Graduation: October 25–26, 2028

Seminar locations will be announced with the cohort.

Camp Commitments

Participating camps must:

• Sponsor each Fellow’s participation in the Executive Leadership Institute with a $2,000 program fee. FJC will cover additional program expenses, including seminar travel.
• Support the Fellow’s attendance at all required fellowship activities and the implementation of the Fellow’s capstone project.
• Identify a lay leadership partner who will support the Fellow’s leadership development throughout the fellowship and attend Seminar 3.
• Purchase and administer the Camper Satisfaction Insight (CSI) and Staff Satisfaction Insight (SSI) surveys at camp during summers 2027 and 2028.

Eligible Candidates

At Foundation for Jewish Camp, we value diversity and equal opportunity. We are committed to building a cohort that represents a variety of backgrounds, experiences, perspectives, and leadership styles because our field is stronger when it reflects the richness of our community.

Applicants should:

• Serve in a senior executive leadership role, such as Executive Director or Camp Director, within an FJC-affiliated Jewish camp.
• Have at least 10 years of professional experience and a minimum of two summers in their current executive leadership position.
• Hold significant responsibility for organizational strategy, culture, operations, and performance.
• Work closely with a governing board or other lay leadership.
• Demonstrate strategic thinking, curiosity, and openness to continued personal and professional growth.
• Be committed to active participation in a cohort-based learning experience.
• Have the support of both their professional and lay leadership to participate fully and apply their learning.

Application Process

Executive Leadership Institute Cohort V will include up to 25 Fellows selected through a competitive application process that includes written applications and interviews with selected finalists.

Applications open September 22, 2026, and must be submitted by October 23, 2026.

Important Dates

• Optional Virtual Information Session: September 17, 2026, at 2 p.m. ET — Register here
• Applications Open: September 22, 2026
• Optional Virtual Information Session: September 29, 2026, at 1 p.m. ET — Register here
• Applications Close: October 23, 2026
• Interviews with Selected Applicants: November 2026
• Cohort Announced: December 2026

Cohorts V and VI of the Executive Leadership Institute are generously funded by the Marcus Foundation.