HARRISON
LEIBOW
Originally from
the suburbs
of Chicago,
Harrison
moved to the
Detroit area
during the summer of 2018
with his wife, Jillian. Shortly
after his move, he started
working at Hillel Day School as
the K-4 school social worker.
At Hillel, he is fortunate to
collaborate with staff and
families to best support the
students’ social and emotional
needs, especially in the school
setting.
Through coordinating outside
resources, installing in-class
supports, providing direct
services through classroom,
small group and individual
lessons, he positively impacts
students on a daily basis.
Focusing on social skills,
emotional regulation, and
executive functioning, Harrison
is able to help students build
the skillsets they need to be
contributing and impactful
members of our Detroit Jewish
community. By emphasizing
the importance of Hillel Day
School’s core values, Harrison
helps future Jewish leaders
continue to achieve greatness
through empathy, compassion,
self-advocacy and a sense of
unity.
He is looking forward to
being able to support more
of the Detroit Metro area
community, as he supplements
his work at HDS by pursuing
work in a private practice in
the near future. His passion
for helping others guides all he
does both in his work and in
his personal life.
After college, he worked for
the fraternity, Sigma Alpha Mu,
as a consultant. He traveled the
country and visited more than
35 college campuses over two
years.
He loves the Michigan fall
and enjoys going to apple
orchards with Jillian and their
two kids, Leni, 3, and Reggie, 1.
JACOB
GORDON
Jacob Gordon
lives in
Birmingham.
Jacob graduated
from James
Madison College at Michigan
State University with a major
in international relations and
minors in economics and
Jewish studies. Following
his graduation, Jacob took
a gap year during which
he worked for Backroads
Active Travel, leading trips
in Alaska and Croatia. Next,
he attended Washington
University School of Law in
St. Louis. He is currently an
associate at Honigman LLP
,
where he focuses his practice
on commercial real estate
transactions.
Throughout his time at MSU
and Wash U, Jacob always
made being an active member
in the Jewish communities
surrounding him a priority.
This passion has remained a
pillar in his life after returning
to Metro Detroit. He currently
sits on NEXTGen Detroit’s
Board where he plans events
such as the Nothing but Next
event this past November at
Little Caesars Arena. His time
as a board member is also
spent working on NEXTGen’s
Professional Development
Committee where he organizes
events aimed at providing
professional resources and
networking opportunities to
local young professionals.
Jacob is constantly seeking
new ways to get involved in the
Jewish community and to grow
and learn, both personally and
professionally. Most recently,
he traveled to Buenos Aires,
Argentina with a group of
Midwest young professionals
organized by JDC’s Entwine
program. In addition to being
a NEXTGen board member,
Jacob is also on the Send a Kid
to Tamarack committee for the
second year.
Jacob loves to explore
different art venues in Metro
Detroit, both big and small,
from the DIA, MOCAD
and Cranbrook to smaller
galleries such as Library Street
Collective and Louis Buhl &
Co. You may be surprised to
know that Jacob is an ordained
minister.
JAMIE
LEFKOWITZ
Jamie Lefkowitz
is the assistant
director and
camp director
at Temple Beth
El Preschool in
Bloomfield Hills.
Jamie was born and raised
in Metro Detroit and grew up
at Temple Beth El where she
now works. In 2009, Jamie
graduated from the University
of Wisconsin-Madison
with a bachelor’s degree in
human development family
studies with a focus on child
development. She went on to
receive her master’s degree
in early childhood special
and general education from
the Bank Street College of
Education in New York City.
For over 12 years, Jamie
taught at Jewish preschools
throughout NYC, where she
developed and implemented
child-centered curriculums
catering to their development
needs while incorporating
Jewish values and traditions. A
few months after the pandemic
started, Jamie made the
decision to move back home
to Michigan, where she started
teaching small pods.
After noticing many of her
friends with children were
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