Our Mission
The mission of the Brandeis-Genesis Institute (BGI) is to prepare Russian-speaking students from around the world to become effective community leaders fortified by Jewish knowledge, a systematic understanding of Russian Jewry, and a commitment to the future of the Jewish people.
Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program
Russian speaking Jewish leaders of the 21st century must be able to understand trends, frame issues, and apply professional skills in new and creative ways. To address these challenges, Hornstein offers students intensive professional training and carefully selected field experiences in three graduate-level dual-degree programs. Learn More.
Graduate Hornstein Fellows Bios
First Year Fellow
Ira Krakhman '13 (MA/MA)
Ira left balmy California where, for the past four years, she had been building a home in the Jewish community of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Her most recent role was as coordinator for a fundraising and development team at the Jewish Agency for Israel. Previously, she partnered with the Jewish Agency emissary to the Bay Area Russian Jews, laying foundations for communal engagement and stewardship among her Russian Jewish peers – a charismatic community known as Mishmash. For the past two years, as both professional and volunteer, she has taken great interest in the program's strategic development. Ira's vision is to see the Bay Area Russian Jewish community raise its unique presence through grass-roots innovation and creative engagement of local resources, including local funding sources.
Ira's Jewish quest began when she woke up one morning and found herself in Jerusalem where she spent 2006-2007 learning and volunteering. Formerly an English teacher, Ira holds a BA in English from Skidmore College and an MEd from Arcadia University. She immigrated from Odessa, Ukraine in 1990.
Second Year Fellows
Monica Pevzner '12 (MA/MPP)
Monica was born in California, after her parents emigrated from Moscow in 1981.
Monica graduated from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 2008 with a BA in Sociology. She has worked at the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies at Brandeis University where she studied Russian Jewish identity and the long-term impact of the Taglit-Birthright Israel program. In addition to her work at the Cohen Center, Monica continued her participation in the larger Jewish community by teaching 5th and 6th grade at the religious school of Boston's Temple Israel.
Monica was the first member of her family to have a Bat Mitzvah ceremony and stayed involved in the Jewish community throughout her high school years. Monica hopes to continue her work in the Jewish professional non-profit field in California after she completes her degrees at Brandeis.
Julia Smirnova '12 (MA/MBA)
Julia was born in Nizhne Novgorod in Russia and immigrated to New York in 1992 with her family.
Julia graduated from Brooklyn College, CUNY with a degree in Sociology. Julia most recently worked at Tanger Hillel House at Brooklyn College. In her role as Program Coordinator, Julia has participated in volunteer programs, community service missions and social events. She has also been working at Council of Jewish Emigre Community Organizations (COJECO) as a Jewish Educator in a Russian day care center. Julia has also interned with the Council of Jewish Organizations of Flatbush, where she dealt with immigration cases.
Julia wants to give back to her community by directing a camp for teenagers and young adults from a Russian Jewish background. Julia but hopes to return to Israel, where she spent five years as a teenager, and eventually and raise a family there.