Executive Director

The Cohen Camps

Executive Director

Boston, MA

About the Cohen Camps

Founded in 1935, the Eli and Bessie Cohen Camps are a family of three Jewish overnight summer camps. In Massachusetts, you’ll find Camp Pembroke for girls, while the co-ed Camp Tel Noar and Camp Tevya are in New Hampshire. Each cultivates a lifelong camp community full of fun, growth, and Jewish values capped by two teen programs: the Dor L’Dor Israel discovery experience and the Kadima Teen Leadership growth opportunity.

At every Cohen Camp, children ages 7-15 live all the magic of summer in a picturesque lakeside setting. Campers form deep friendships, explore the outdoors, get creative with arts & crafts, compete in sports and games, and so much more. What sets the Cohen Camps experience apart is how campers and staff connect with each other, exploring and celebrating shared values, traditions, and love of Israel. Cohen Camps are pluralist and inclusive.

For more information, visit https://www.cohencamps.org/ and learn about the scope of our organization’s work in our Impact Report at www.cohencamps.org/impact.

Our Mission

The Cohen Camps enrich children’s lives by encouraging Jewish youth to be comfortable and confident in themselves so they can connect positively with others and the world they live in.

Position Overview

Family-run since their founding, the Cohen Camps have made strategic shifts in recent years to ensure the strength of the organization without the Cohen family as the driving force. The Board of Directors has grown and diversified. Each camp has an energetic leadership team. The Executive Director will manage the operations of all three camps and the teen programs in collaboration with the President to support further strategic re-envisioning. It’s an exciting opportunity to work in a collaborative environment with opportunity for growth.

The Cohen Camps seek an Executive Director who is visionary, highly collaborative, and operationally minded, to provide oversight and responsibility for the Cohen Camps (Camps Pembroke, Tel Noar, and Tevya). Core responsibilities include operations, year-round and summer staff, shared programs (Dor L’Dor and Kadima), and execution of the organization’s mission.

With thorough knowledge of the Jewish camping field, core programs, operations, and business plans, the Executive Director will contribute to and advance the Cohen Camps’ strategic vision. The Cohen Camps aim to maintain their premier position in the field of Jewish camping and continue their impact on the future of the Jewish community. The Executive Director’s work will focus on organizational management, program development and enhancement, financial management, internal and external communications, and fundraising.

The Executive Director focuses primarily on summertime operations. The position often requires working seven days per week during the summer, balanced by good work-life balance the rest of the year. Non-summer domestic and international travel is occasionally required for fundraising, recruiting, and representing the organization at industry associations and professional meetings. This is a full-time, salaried, and permanent position located in the metrowest Boston area.

Responsibilities

Leadership and Management

• Provide effective and inspirational leadership, direction, and coaching to the senior leadership team, ensuring that the organization supports continuous staff development and success.
• Develop and oversee a performance management and employee review process.
• Build and maintain effective and trusting relationships with all staff. Inspire and empower staff to maximize productivity and professional excellence.
• Cultivate teamwork and collaboration across the Cohen Camps.
• Ensure ongoing programmatic excellence, thorough program evaluation, and consistent quality communications to all stakeholders (camp families, alumni/ae, donors and other funders.)
• Develop and maintain strategic, financial, facility, and administrative plans for the year-round and summer operations, including accountability for meeting critical milestones in preparation for the season.
• Work with the camps’ staff proactively to efficiently manage and allocate financial resources to support high quality programming.
• Create and implement strategies for revenue and expense management. Work with the President and Finance Committee of the board on strategic and capital investment planning.
• Actively engage and energize Cohen Camps’ volunteers, board members, alumni/ae, and donors.
• Support the President and Board of Directors. Serve on board committees for both ongoing short-term projects and long-term initiatives.
• Work collaboratively as a thought partner with the President particularly around strategic and long-term planning.
• Report on the status of camp plans and operations to Board of Directors.
• Effectively communicate organizational mission and strategy to the board, funders, and other stakeholders.
• Represent the organization in industry and membership organizations.

Overnight Camps and Programs

• Oversee camper recruitment and retention, staff recruitment and onboarding, program development, staff training, and supervision of site operations and food service.
• Support camp leadership teams in ongoing relations and communications with families, staff, towns, and funding organizations.
• Regularly evaluate programmatic components ensuring they fit with and advance the overall mission of the organization.
• Coach Camp Directors to develop staff, both year-round and seasonal.
• Monitor facilities to identify areas of need and improvement.
• Ensure non-US staff experience reflects the required cultural and other requirements of their visas.
• Work with Camp Directors and Development Director to plan and implement alumni(ae) and fundraising activities.
• Stay current with industry and camping trends, and competitors. Identify opportunities or threats which may impact the continuous improvement of the camps.

Communications and Fundraising

• Strengthen and enhance all aspects of communications – from online presence to external relations – to expand the Cohen Camps brand.
• Grow fundraising activities to support existing programs and capital projects, in conjunction with Development Director.
• Participate in year-round and summer fundraising event planning and execution.
• Foster external relationships with like-minded organizations to develop new opportunities.

What We’re Looking For

• Passion for Jewish camping, integrity, positive attitude, and adaptability.
• An inspirational people manager and culture builder, able to support effective communication and collaboration across teams.
• Success in building streamlined and effective operational functionalities for an organization in conjunction with a leadership team.
• Demonstrated track record in building a collaborative workplace, and the ability to coach, evaluate, manage, and develop effective teams.
• Results-oriented, responsive, and decisive. Able to listen to all sides and chart a clear course of action to achieve strategic objectives.
• A demonstrated commitment to leveraging best practices and implementing initiatives to support high quality programming.
• Past success working with a Board of Directors with the ability to cultivate existing board member relationships.
• Familiarity with marketing, public relations, and fundraising.
• Ability to engage a wide range of stakeholders and cultures.
• A commitment to inclusion and diversity.
• Skilled communicator with the ability to build strong, trusting, and transparent relationships with multiple stakeholders (families, staff, leadership, funders, board, etc.) and have difficult conversations.
• Demonstrated ability to manage and prioritize multiple projects and challenges simultaneously.

Position Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree. Related advanced degree preferred, with an emphasis on business or non-profit management.
• A minimum of 7 years previous year-round and/or seasonal senior management experience in a youth development organization or program. Some residential camping experience preferred.
• Must reside in the metropolitan Boston area. Will travel between camps in the summer.

Work Conditions

Activities occur both inside and outside an office and the employee is subject to environmental conditions; however, employee is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions.

This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. The Executive Director will also perform other reasonable related business duties as assigned by the President or Board of Directors, who reserves the right to revise or change the job duties and responsibilities as necessary. 

Eli and Bessie Cohen Camps are an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, age, disability, sexual orientation, military status, or national origin or any other characteristic protected under federal, state, or applicable local law.

Salary, Benefits, and Perks

• The salary for this position is $190,000 and Cohen Camps also offers competitive benefits and perks outlined below.
• Paid time off and paid holidays (Federal and Jewish)
• Casual Dress (especially in the summer!)
• Health Coverage:
  • Medical – BlueCross BlueShield PPO plan
  • Dental
• Life/AD&D/Short-Term & Long-Term Disability
• 403(b) plan
• Automobile
• Free childcare/camp tuition during the summer camp season
• Collaborative and collegial work environment
• Summers outdoors at our beautiful camp locations
• Continuous professional development and learning opportunities

Jessica Black, Senior Talent Consultant

[email protected]

Sterling Nelson, Talent Consultant

[email protected]

Merav Schwartz, Associate

[email protected]