ABOUT NANCY

Nancy Drapin, Kol Ami’s executive director, is a specialist in nonprofit management with more than 35 years experience in public education, arts and culture, and Jewish communal organizations.

After 10 years teaching art to students with learning disabilities in Cleveland and San Francisco, Nancy brought her creative and organizational abilities to the San Francisco Jewish Community Center, where her 18-year career included increasingly responsible jobs in adult programs, public relations marketing and development, eventually becoming executive director. In the mid 1990s, Nancy moved to Washington D.C., where she opened the District of Columbia JCC as associate director.

Returning to the Bay Area in the late 90s, Nancy headed up Community Impact, a nonprofit organization that developed community service projects for large corporations. But Jewish communal work called her back, and Nancy joined the staff at congregation Sherith Israel, a Reform congregation, serving as the Membership and Marketing director and as interim executive director. Lured back to the private sector in 1998, Nancy joined a software security company as their administrative director. In 2001, Nancy was asked to return to Congregation Sherith Israel, where she served as Executive Director for ten years. In 2011, Congregation Kol Shofar, a Conservative community, recruited Nancy to help build the congregation’s programs and infrastructure for five years while a rabbinic search was conducted, and as community partnerships were rebuilt as congregation moved into a newly renovated facility.

Always community focused, Nancy has been an active volunteer in national organizations. She served on the boards of the Western Regional Association of Jewish Communal Professionals and the Bay Area Substance Abuse Institute. Nancy’s other community involvements have included the Business and Professional Women’s Association, the program development committee of the UJA Federation of Greater Washington, Congregation Emanu-El’s community service board, the JFCS disabilities task force, and the community relations committee of the San Francisco YWCA. Nancy served as president of the Bay Area Temple Administrators association and also was actively involved with the Jewish Community Federation’s capacity building task forces for membership development.

Nancy has continued her dedication to the community in Scottsdale. She serves as co-chair of the Jewish Women’s Professional group, is a member of the Board of the Women’s Leadership Institute, and a member of the Jewish Advisory Board of the Phoenix Police Department. She has organized a regional group of synagogue executive directors in Arizona and New Mexico who meet weekly. She is also co-chair for local planning for the upcoming National Association of Temple Administrator’s (NATA) conference to be held in Scottsdale in November 2021.

Nancy, her husband, Stewart Reichlyn and their dog Lucy (a wildly-happy Woodle rescue) are looking forward to continue meeting new friends and enjoying unique adventures in the city and the Southwest.

Nancy’s door is always open and she invites everyone into her office for a piece of chocolate and discussion.