Eric Goldstein felt a desire to lead the Jerry Shaw Jewish Community Center of Akron the moment he walked through its front doors.
“I fell in love as soon as I got here. It just feels like home,” said Goldstein who started working as executive director of the center March 12.
Goldstein, 44, was selected from a pool of about 25 candidates, with the help of the Jewish Community Centers of America, according to David Koch, CEO of the Jewish Community Board of Akron. Koch said one of the most attractive things about Goldstein is his 20-year work experience with YMCAs and Jewish Community Centers, which includes serving as executive director of JCCs in Toledo, Las Vegas and Nashville, Tenn.
“We believe that his experience is going to pay off for us because he has seen all the various sides of running JCCs and Y’s. The models are similar,” Koch said. “The added bonus is that he and his family want to be in Akron. He and his wife want to raise their girls in a Midwestern environment. And, so far, the response [to Goldstein] from the community has been very positive.”
Goldstein, who grew up on New York’s Long Island, earned an undergraduate degree in education at the University of Central Florida. His experience includes employment in membership in Richmond, Va., and work as a program director in sports and fitness in Wayne, N.J.
As an executive director in Toledo from 2001 to 2004, Goldstein worked to merge two entities to create the YMCA and JCC of Greater Toledo. The agreement to merge was prompted by the shrinking JCC, which became too small to stand alone.
Goldstein left Toledo to serve as executive director of the Jewish Community Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas and the Jewish Family Service Agency of Las Vegas. He spent five years in Nevada, leaving in 2009 to take the helm at the Gordon JCC in Nashville, where he oversaw a 53-acre campus until 2012.
A desire to move closer to family — his in New York and his wife, Anne’s, in Indianapolis — drew Goldstein to the Chicago area, where he served as executive director of two YMCAs.
“I really wanted to get back into the JCC field, so when Akron opened up, I went for it,” Goldstein said. “I see tremendous potential for this campus. While I am still getting to know the staff and the community, I can already see opportunities to interact and collaborate with other organizations and opportunities to build programs and relationships. We have great board members, great volunteers and a staff that works as a team.”
The local JCC includes three primary components: camp, early childhood education and health and fitness. The center, established in 1920, is located on a 60-acre campus at 750 White Pond Drive, which is also home to the Jewish Community Board of Akron, Jewish Family Service, The Lippman School and Beth El Congregation.
Thom Mandel, president of the Shaw JCC board of trustees, said he expects the center to thrive under Goldstein’s leadership. Mandel was also part of the search committee for the new executive director.
“He is already getting a lot of support around the community, and it’s building. He’s going to be our ambassador to Northeast Ohio,” Mandel said. “We like that he’s a family man and that he has experience working with the broader community, beyond the Jewish community.
“Our population has a significant number of non-Jewish members,” he said, “and we need someone who knows how to program for everybody.”
Goldstein and his wife are the parents of three daughters: Gabriella, 10; Lindy, 8; and Mimi, 7. He replaces Todd Rockoff, who resigned in July to become president and CEO of the Jewish Community Center of Tucson, Ariz.
Stephanie Davis-Dieringer, who served as the local center’s interim director after Rockoff left, is now the JCC’s assistant director.
“I’m excited to be here, and I’m looking forward to putting together a vision for the JCC with the board and staff,” Goldstein said. “As we set our goals, we want to work toward having the best programming in the community and to create a place where people want to be by concentrating on customer service.”
The JCC is launching a $1.7 million project to reconstruct its indoor pool and locker rooms. A kickoff event for the project is scheduled for 6:30 to 7 p.m. Monday.
For more information at the JCC, call 330-867-7850 or go to www.shawjcc.org.
Colette Jenkins can be reached at 330-996-3731 or cjenkins@thebeaconjournal.com. She can be followed at www.twitter.com/ColetteMJenkins.