Dmitry (Dima) Shimelfarb
chief development officer
Since 2017, Dima has been serving as the executive director for the Israel Scholarship Education Foundation.
Previously he served Vice President of Israel and Global Philanthropy for the Jewish Agency for Israel. Over a decade of experience with Jewish communities around the world informs his work as an ambassador and advocate for Israel. After completing his service in the Israel Defense Forces, Dima served as a Jewish Agency emissary for informal Jewish education in Moscow, Russia. Upon his return to Israel, Dima was appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to serve as spokesman and press secretary for the Likud Party. As the first non-native Hebrew speaker to hold this position, Dima worked to break the glass ceiling on behalf of new immigrants to Israel.
Dima holds an M.B.A. in Public Policy Leadership from the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, Israel, and a Master’s in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution from Columbia University.
Dima lives in Montclair, NJ with his wife, Marianna, a family physician, and their two daughters – Batsheva and Aviva.