Ken Weinberg

A native of New York City, Ken Weinberg’s impact in and on Jewish communal services in the Northwest and, in turn, the nation spans over three decades. In 1975, while working on his MSW at the U.W. School of Social Work, Ken joined JFS as an intern specializing in gerontology. His passion then, just as today, was social justice. “We must do the right thing with and for those who have less,” Weinberg explains. “All human beings are people in need. All are challenged by what life dishes out. No exemption, no free passes. What we Jews learned thousands of years ago is that we are each responsible for the other. This extends not only to our Jewish community, but to the world.”

Under his leadership and direction, Jewish Family Service, founded in 1892, has become a unique commitment to community that met the comprehensive social service needs of over 11,500 people last year alone. Appointed CEO in 1984, Ken has been the guiding force in evolving JFS into a nationally prominent organization that offers stability, provides security and creates solutions for those with needs locally – in the centuries old tradition of helping others help themselves.

Ken travels and lectures extensively in Seattle and nationally. He is a long-standing member and currently sits on the Board of the Association of Jewish Family and Children’s Agencies.

For more info, check out these community links relevant to Jewish Family Service’s work on poverty:

Curious about Ken’s thoughts on running JFS? Check out his blog:

kenweinberg.wordpress.com

Marcia Meyers

Professor of Social Work and Public Affairs, UW Evans School of Public Affairs; Director, West Coast Poverty Center

Marcia K. Meyers joined the Evans School faculty in 2001. Her research focuses on public policies and programs for vulnerable populations, with a particular focus on issues of poverty, inequality, and policy implementation.

Meyers holds a joint appointment with the University of Washington’s School of Social Work, and is the director and principal investigator of the West Coast Poverty Center at the Evans School. She is also an affiliate of the Social Indicators Survey Center at Columbia University.

Meyers’ current research projects examine the impact of U.S. state policy regimes on the labor force participation of mothers, on inequality in access to early childhood education and care, and on disposable family income. She is in collaboration with researchers at the Rockefeller Institute of Government studying the front-line delivery of welfare reforms in 11 sites around the country, and working with colleagues at the Social Indicators Survey Center to conduct a biannual survey monitoring the economic and social well-being of the residents of New York City.

Meyers previously served on the faculty of Columbia University from 1996-01, and the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University from 1993-96.

She has received funding for her work from: the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (OASPE and Child Care Bureau), the State of California (Department of Social Services), the MacArthur Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation, the Public Policy Institute of California, the Ford Foundation, the Foundation for Child Development, and other sources.

She is co-author of Families That Work: Policies for Reconciling Parenthood and Employment, and her papers have recently appeared in the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, the Journal of European Social Policy, the Social Service Review, the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Social Science Quarterly, and Demography.

Meyers holds a Ph.D. and Master’s of Social Work from the University of California at Berkley, a MPA from Harvard University, and a BA from Evergreen State College.

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