Epstein and Weber Alum Fostering U.S.-Israeli Business Ties
/BY JACOB GINSBERG AND CALEB KOFFLER/ //SPECIAL FOR THE AJT//
We are the success stories of local day-school education.
Pre-school through eighth grade at The Epstein School was followed by high school at Weber, where the study of and love for Israel was ingrained in our hearts and minds.
We learned the critically important cultural, religious, and political history of the State of Israel. We discussed many of the obstacles the young nation faces and the daily struggles that exist for her citizens.
Our years of study culminated with our eighth and 12th grade trips with Epstein and Weber respectively. The relationship with Israel that was nurtured from K-12 has advanced beyond the cultural, religious and political connection to one that aligns with our professional aspirations in business.
While the discussion of obstacles and daily struggles continues, we now focus our energy on growth and innovation.
As a freshman at the University of Maryland, Caleb joined the TAMID Israel Investment Group.
TAMID connects business-minded students with the Israeli economy through education, hands-on consulting and investing, and an all-expense-paid summer fellowship in Tel Aviv.
Jake learned of TAMID through friends on other campuses and decided he wanted to bring it home to Emory University. The pitch was easy: Israel has emerged as an economic, technological, and start-up powerhouse.
The success stories of “the start-up nation” speak for themselves and students at top U.S. institutions are getting in on the action.
This semester, the Emory chapter plans to build off of the success it experienced upon its initial launch in the Fall of 2013. The speaker/education series included presentations from community members such as Barry Swartz of the American-Israel Chamber of Commerce and Matt Ficken of Lightapp, an Israel-based industrial energy management corporation, and how their respective careers have connected them and their companies to the Israeli economy.
Taking what they have learned thus far, Emory will be consulting for Sevenpop, a social jukebox sharing application, as well as Tapingo, a food ordering optimization service, and working a joint TAMID/AIPAC “iVest” project.
Further, the chapter will be managing a mock portfolio of American and Israeli stocks and securities along with working to fund-raise for the TAMID summer fellowship.
The 40-member Emory TAMID chapter will engage in practices such as market research, data analytics, social media optimization, pitching stocks, analyzing markets, and many others to provide students with the hands-on experience of real-world business practices while assisting start-ups in their initiatives.
With chapters on 15 campuses and over 600 active members nationwide, TAMID is engaging students in a relevant and constructive way; it is providing a path for students to bridge their commitment to Israel with their professional goals by expanding their knowledge base, building their networks, and providing real-life work experience.
We never would have imagined that seven years after our graduation from Epstein, and again four years later from Weber, we would be working closely as presidents of our respective TAMID chapters building our personal and professional relationship with Israel.
Jake is actively seeking community support to expand the TAMID speaker series and consulting opportunities. He can be reached at jacob.ginsberg@tamidgroup.org. Caleb can be reached at Caleb@tamidgroup.org.
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