Cynthia D. Shapira
Cynthia D. Shapira is the vice chair of the Board of Trustees of The Jewish Federations of North America. Co-chair with her husband David Shapira of the 2016 GA, Ms. Shapira also chairs JFNA’s Jewish Education & Engagement unit.
Ms. Shapira chairs the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and sits on the Board and executive committee of the Jewish Agency for Israel, where she also chairs the Strategy & Planning committee.
Ms. Shapira is President of the Shapira Foundation. With her husband David, she leads the development and implementation of the foundation’s initiatives, such as Onward Israel (which transforms young adults through professional summer internships with Israeli businesses) and the Comprehensive Excellence project with Hillel International (creating a data-informed culture to define and achieve a new standard for non-profit operational excellence.) She is a trustee of Brandeis University and member of the board of the Jewish Funders Network and Leading Edge.
Ms. Shapira was recently elected Chair of the Board of Governors of Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education. She served as Vice-Chair of Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf's transition team, and also serves on the Governor's Advisory Board on Education and Workforce Development. She was appointed by Governor Corbett to the Pennsylvania Commission on Women and was a member of the 2012 Pennsylvania Electoral College.
Her civic activity in Pittsburgh includes serving as a Board Member for the Allegheny County Airport Authority. Past service includes chair of the Pennsylvania Center for Women In Politics at Chatham University, the boards of Point Park University, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, The Pittsburgh Promise, United Way of Allegheny County, and WQED Pittsburgh.
Ms. Shapira was Honorary Co-Chair of Allegheny 365, an initiative to ensure access to individuals of varying abilities in Allegheny County, and founded the 21 & Able policy project to address the needs of youth with disabilities aging out. She was a management consultant for twenty years in the non-profit and education sectors, including ten years as executive vice president of Pappas Consulting Group, Inc.
Ms. Shapira has a Master’s degree in public administration (MPA) from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a Bachelor of Arts degree summa cum laude from Wellesley College.