Introducing Our New Director of Jewish Community Security
San Francisco, CA – We are pleased to announce the hiring of the Federation's Director of Jewish Community Security, Rafael J. Brinner, who will assume the position effective January 16, 2018. Rafael brings extensive high-level security experience and a deep knowledge of the local community. He will be an invaluable resource for the Federation and our partner Jewish organizations throughout San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties.
Safeguarding our Jewish community has been a longstanding Federation priority, with our Federation being among the first communities to create and fund a dedicated Director of Jewish Community Security, housed for over 16 years at the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC). In accord with the JCRC, the Federation assumed full responsibility for management and oversight of this program as of July 1, 2017, in direct alignment with our goals to address pressing issues facing our community, to build capacity of partner organizations, and to develop strategies for collective impact.
The need for an effective centralized community security resource is more pronounced now than ever, and we look forward to working collaboratively to ensure the safety and security of our most precious assets. Rafael's work will focus in four primary areas:
- Development of a strategic approach to community security which builds confidence in our community's ability to ensure the safety of its organizations, members and employees;
- Provide customized support and consultation to Jewish institutions on security planning and incident response;
- Establishing systems and protocols for community-wide collaboration, coordination and communication; and
- Implementation of a security training program including centralized, regionally based and organization-specific trainings.
"I have always enjoyed figuring out how things fit together," said Rafael. "As a terrorism analyst in the wake of 9/11, I found my role was to use cogent analysis to keep unwarranted fears in check, bring emergent threats into sharper focus, and convey all of that in a way that people can easily grasp. Still today, even small incidents can erode our sense of security, both individually and as a community. I am eager and excited to dedicate myself to enhancing the security of the Jewish community."
With twenty years of intelligence experience, Rafael Brinner has worked with state and local law enforcement, fusion centers, first responders, and corporate security partners. He began his career in the late 1990s assessing terrorist threats in the Levant, Turkey, and Greece. After 9/11, his work focused increasingly on homeland security and detecting threats from foreign-based and domestic terrorists. For the past eight years, he has overseen strategic and tactical threat analysis at the Northern California Regional Intelligence Center and promulgated best practices throughout the national network of fusion centers.
Rafael graduated from the University of California, Berkeley and earned a master's degree in History from Northwestern University, and a master's degree in International Policy Studies from Middlebury Institute of International Studies.
We are very excited to welcome Rafael to the team and look forward to sharing his expertise with our community. He may be reached directly at RafaelB@sfjcf.org or 415.369.2893 after January 16.
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The Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties connects people of all ages, backgrounds, and perspectives to the power of the Jewish community to improve the world. We partner with donors, organizations, and foundations to address pressing issues facing our community, and develop innovative strategies that result in deep and lasting impact locally, in Israel, and around the world. Learn more at www.jewishfed.org.
