OneTable announced today the appointment of three new members to its national board of directors: Emeri Handler, Rena Kopelman, and Kylie Unell. Each will bring invaluable experience and perspective to the board as the organization continues its mission of connecting people to one another through peer-led Shabbat dinners throughout North America, decreasing loneliness, and increasing joyful Jewish communities through its high tech/high touch approach.

Emeri Handler is a parent education and mental health consultant, community volunteer, and philanthropist. In addition to a 30-year career focused on developmental and clinical psychology, she worked at the Anti-Defamation League and Stanford University. Emeri is also active on various boards and committees that educate and promote engagement with community and Jewish life, including having served as the past board chair of UpStart — a start up incubator for Jewish entrepreneurs. She is passionate about collective grant-making, having co-founded and managed a women’s philanthropy fund.

Handler has advised OneTable leadership since almost the founding of the organization. “It is a much-needed, brilliant pathway to connection and belonging,” she said.

Rena Kopelman is an advisor, strategist, and philanthropist in the non-profit community who serves on a number of boards related to education, healthcare, and Jewish identity-building. She co chairs Changemakers, a global young adult leadership initiative for Jewish Federations of North America. She practiced corporate law and has consulted for several non-profit women’s organizations, and created the Kopelman Foundation with her husband to fund early-stage, entrepreneurial social projects. She has been involved in several Israeli television and film productions, in hopes of using the power of storytelling to change perspectives.

“OneTable has brilliantly found a scalable way to elevate and amplify Shabbat from a moment to an experience,” said Kopelman. “I joined the OneTable board to be part of the incredible team facilitating this work.”

Kylie Unell is a writer and public thinker. She is currently a Dean’s Doctoral Fellow at New York University concentrating in Jewish philosophy. Her research focuses on questions of identity and integration in the philosophies of Moses Mendelssohn and Booker T. Washington. In 2021, Unell was named an “aspiring Jewish philosopher” by New York Jewish Week, has hosted two #1 Jewish podcasts with Tablet Studios, and a YouTube series with Unpacked on the history of the relationship between the Black and Jewish communities.

Unell is “passionate about the journey of Jewish self-discovery and exploration and the spaces like OneTable that support Jews in that process.”

In addition to the introduction of new members, OneTable’s board of directors will also see Rob Orley, Principal at O2 Investment Partners, LLC, assume the sole chair position while Julie Franklin, an education advocate and philanthropist, will serve as vice chair.

“OneTable is incredibly fortunate to gain the expertise of these three new board members, and the continued contributions of Rob Orley and Julie Franklin” noted Aliza Kline, founder and CEO of OneTable.

“We have been achieving unprecedented success at bringing Shabbat to young adults across the country with our peer-led community building model. So much so that in the past year we have expanded into Canada with the launch of OneTable Toronto, are bringing Shabbat to new generations through Together @OneTable, and are helping others experience the exponential growth of peer-to-peer engagement through Powered By OneTable. With such a range of diversity within our programs and communities, I am thrilled that Kylie, Emeri, and Rena will be bringing their own unique skill sets and experiences to help us on our course.”