About the Exhibit Team

Professor Jonathan Dekel-Chen is Rabbi Edward Sandrow Chair in Soviet & East European Jewry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he holds a dual appointment in the Department of Jewish History and in the Department of General History. He served from 2007-2019 as the Academic Chairman of the Leonid Nevzlin Research Center for Russian and East European Jewry. Dekel-Chen’s publications have appeared in prestigious scholarly presses. His current research and publications deal with transnational philanthropy and advocacy, non-state diplomacy, agrarian history and migration. In 2014 he co-founded the Bikurim Youth Village for the Performing Arts in Eshkol, which provides world-class artistic training for underserved high school students from throughout Israel.

Jackie Hankard is a 2020 graduate of The College of New Jersey where she received her bachelor’s degree in Communications and Mass Media with a minor in Political Science. While at TCNJ, she was a member of Lambda Pi Eta, The National Communication Studies Honor Society and Zeta Tau Alpha. She is currently a graduate student at Rutgers University studying Political Science in the United Nations and Global Policy Program. 

Following graduation, Ms. Hankard contributed to the development of Anne Frank LA as the lead communications contributor. AFLA aims to promote the legacy of Anne Frank through educational programs in schools, exhibits, cultural events and storytelling in Los Angeles and surrounding schools. Additionally, Ms. Hankard is currently a Political Affairs Intern at the United Nations in the Office of Rule of Law and Security Institutions.