After nearly a decade at the helm of Minneapolis Jewish Federation, CEO James Cohen announced Friday morning that he would not renew his contract when it expires in March 2027. The news went out in an email to the community, where Cohen called the decision “difficult.”
“For nearly ten years, it has been an honor and a privilege to come to work every day,” he said. “Having spent approximately one third of my working life at MJF, it will not be easy to say goodbye. We have achieved great things as a community, and I take great pride in all our collective accomplishments.
“We also have many exciting opportunities and challenges ahead of us, and I know the lay and professional teams in place are poised for success.”
Cohen’s tenure brought stability to the organization, which had weathered several leadership changes in the first half of the 2010s. He came to Minneapolis from Connecticut, where he had served as the CEO of the United Jewish Federation of Greater Stamford, New Canaan, and Darien.
Prior to his Federation career, he had worked at Yale University. He came to the Ivy League school from a decade as a career diplomat in the Foreign Service of the United States Department of State. He served as Deputy Political Counselor in Quito, Ecuador, as a member of the Secretary of State’s Executive Secretariat, as Political-Military Affairs Officer in Sarajevo, Bosnia, and as Staff Assistant to the Ambassador to Egypt.
Cohen’s email talked about some of the challenges the community has faced and the community’s response to them. Special fundraising efforts were launched as a response to COVID-19, Russia’s attack on Ukraine, and supporting Israel after Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
“I will be forever grateful for this community’s response to every adversity we have faced,” he said. “None of this would have been possible without the moral and financial support of thousands of folks who care deeply about our community and the larger Jewish world.”
Cohen said the exact timing of his departure is yet to be determined. Board President Debbie Stillman said that a search firm has been hired to help find Cohen’s successor, and that Mark Appelbaum and Jeremy Cohen would chair the search committee.
“Over the past decade, Jim has helped guide Federation and our community through extraordinary moments – from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine to October 7 and the war that followed,” Stillman wrote. “He has also helped lead successful initiatives, including the consolidation of the Barry Family Campus, the development of a meaningful partnership with Kibbutz Holit, and the revitalization of Federation’s Global Experiences program.
“Jim executed multiple strategic plans and launched two significant emergency campaigns, all of which have strengthened Federation and deepened its reach.”