Episode 25: Abby Leibman, MAZON – January 8th, 2018

Abby J. Leibman is the President & CEO of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, a national advocacy organization working to end hunger among people of all faiths and backgrounds in the United States and Israel. Ms. Leibman brings to MAZON an extensive background in advocacy innonprofit and state government arenas and a distinguished record of leadership at prominent nonprofit organizations, including Jewish World Watch, Jewish Family Service, California Women Lawyers, American Jewish Congress, the West Hollywood Human Services Commission, the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles, and the Progressive Jewish Alliance.

Ms. Leibman cofounded the California Women’s Law Center, which she directed for 12 years, and has been a leading advocate for women’s rights and social justice. She has taught courses on advocacy, justice and civil rights as adjunct faculty at UCLA and American Jewish University.

Prior to founding the California Women’s Law Center, Ms. Leibman was the
Directing Attorney/Community Programs for Public Counsel, where she developed and then directed its Child Care Law Project and managed its project providing pro bono transactional assistance to nonprofit organizations. Ms. Leibman served a two-year term as one of five civilians appointed by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to the Equity Oversight Panel for the L.A. Sheriff’s Department.

Ms. Leibman taught as adjunct faculty at UCLA and the Graduate School of Management at American Jewish University. Ms. Leibman directed the New Leaders Project of the Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles from 2003-2011. She developed the project’s curriculum which guides emerging leaders on making civic engagement a priority.

She served as chair of the West Hollywood Human Services Commission, a member of the Los Angeles Mayor’s Advisory Committee on Child Care, a member of the Women’s Advisory Council to the Los Angeles Police Commission and currently serves on the President’s Council of the California Women’s Law Center. Ms. Leibman
has served on the Board of the Progressive Jewish Alliance and on the Executive Committee of the Jewish Community Relations Commission.

Ms. Leibman has her J.D. from Hastings College of Law and is a magna cum laude graduate of UCSD with a B.A. in Political Science.