Eric S. Goldstein, who has served as CEO of UJA-Federation of New York for 11 years, will step down next summer as the head of North America’s largest and most influential Jewish federation.
In a statement Tuesday announcing his departure, Goldstein reflected on a tenure marked by several communal crises, bracketed by two wars in Gaza and including the COVID pandemic.
“I remember well my plans for that first summer of 2014. I expected to learn the ropes and ease into the job. History, tragically, had other plans. On June 30, 2014, the bodies of three yeshiva boys kidnapped by Hamas were discovered — and a 50-day war followed. My first public role was speaking at a heartbreaking memorial service,” wrote Goldstein.
“I learned by doing, witnessing in real time the power of UJA to respond in crisis. I also saw how, in moments like these, our community — so often divided — would come together, finding strength and solace in one another,” the statement continued.
Goldstein also reflected on the way that his role has transformed since his arrival in 2014, making note of the way antisemitism has “metastasized into a fast-growing cancer here in America.”
“In 2014, UJA did not have a single line item in its budget for confronting domestic antisemitism or Jewish communal security,” wrote Goldstein. “Today, UJA is leading the charge in responding to this growing threat in New York — including through the creation in 2019 of the Community Security Initiative, now a vital 20+ person team responsible for helping secure over 3,400 Jewish institutions in New York and beyond.”
At the time of his hire, Goldstein, a financial litigation lawyer, was a mold-breaking choice to head the federation, having been a top lay leader at UJA-Federation and several Jewish institutions, and not a “Jewish professional” like many of his predecessors.
In 2020, five months into the pandemic, as UJA-Federation anticipated declining donations and was forced to cut 12% of its staff, Goldstein forwent his salary, listed at $546,000 at the time.
In the fiscal year 2024, the federation raised $445.4 million, including $40.4 million in planned giving and endowments. That year it disbursed $263.5 million in grants to beneficiaries that included social welfare programs, Hillels, community centers, Jewish day schools, Israel trips and Israel-based projects. (70 Faces Media, the parent company of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and the New York Jewish Week, is among the many beneficiaries.)
Since Hamas’ attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, it has allocated nearly $198 million to date in emergency funds for ravaged communities in Israel’s south and north and other responses to the war.
“This past year alone, UJA distributed $336 million for grants and programs, including approximately $134 million for Israel,” Linda Mirels, president of the federation, and Marc Rowan, chair of its board, said in their statement accompanying the announcement.
“Eric’s tenure has been transformational,” they said. “His steady judgment guided UJA through some of the most challenging periods in recent history, including the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, the aftermath of the October 7 attacks, and Israel’s just-concluded 12-day war with Iran.”
Goldstein plans to step down in June 2026, according to the announcement, which did not mention a successor.
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