London – Wednesday, 11 March, 2020
Israel educational charity StandWithUs has announced it will be growing its presence across UK campuses and the wider community, under the leadership of their new UK Executive Director, Sara Sherrard, who will succeed Raphael Wein following the conclusion of his term this month.
Sara is not new to the movement, having worked closely with the board and staff in an advisory role on the 2017 and 2018 Gala dinners and is looking forward to working with friends and colleagues within StandWithUs and across the Jewish community. Sara has extensive experience in creating and managing events and projects within the commercial and charity sectors, and is a member of Mill Hill Synagogue. Sara's family has a long record of standing up for Israel and holds a firm belief in the importance of education to help stem the tide of antisemitism.
StandWithUs Co-Chairs, Loretta Cash and Ged Ornstein are delighted with the appointment of Sara, who has a passion for fighting antisemitism and supporting Israel. The Co-Chairs are confident Sara will lead the StandWithUs team to achieve further success. They are grateful to Raphael for his leadership of StandWithUs UK and wish him every success in his new pursuits.
Sara Sherrard commented: “As a parent, I appreciate the importance of supporting students facing anti-Israel hostility. I am also keenly aware of the need for educational outreach to build a community that can support Israel and enhance British-Israeli relations and helps combat antisemitism. I am thrilled to take on the challenge of leading the SWU dynamic staff to ensure that British Jewry identifies with and will be inspired by Israel and that StandWithUs continues forging links with people of all faiths across the UK.”
Associate Director of StandWithUs-Israel, Tamir Oren continued: “In addition to Sara’s appointment, we have big plans to expand our staff so that we can give further provisions to university students and all those who are working to combat antisemitism to ensure that there is a fair representation of Israel in Britain.”
StandWithUs UK plans to continue rapid growth of their campus activity: StandWithUs Emerson student Fellows are now located in over 20 campuses, over 160 StandWithUs campus events take place annually and the organisation provides free legal support for student who face antisemitism on their campus.
Thousands of students and 6th formers are educated each year, with program alumni going onto significant leadership positions: including being presidents of university societies, working in parliament, becoming political leaders, and leaders in all Jewish youth movements.
Executive Director of StandWithUs-Israel, Michael Dickson added: “Over the years, StandWithUs has made a real difference in the UK and we are proud of our pioneering team who lead a talented coalition of diverse students making Israel’s case and the case for a more peaceful future in the Middle East on multiple campuses and across the community. Our talented staff is passionate about Israel and determined to ensure that antisemitism in Britain is countered – and we are extremely excited to welcome Sara and to see this effort grow.”
