Jews of Color Panel

Moderator - Jordan Daniels

Jordan Daniels (he/him) is equipped with a decade of storytelling experience through an intersectional lens, and has spent his professional career in the nonprofit space. His lived experience as a Queer Afro-Jew deepens his commitment to cultivating diverse and inclusive leadership in the communities he serves, with his work centering justice and liberation. Jordan is an alumni of several professional programs such as the San Diego LGBT Center's Young Professionals Council and Schusterman Family Philanthropies ROI, and was recently honored with the Young Leadership Award from the San Diego Jewish Federation.

Dr. David McCarty-Caplan (PhD)

Dr. David McCarty-Caplan (PhD) is the Director of Research and Evaluation with Jewtina y Co. David was Born in Bogota, Colombia but adopted and raised in a white Jewish family in the United. States. This lived experience has profoundly influenced his life, and career as a researcher, educator, writer, and consultant whose professional experience focuses on issues of identity development, support of underserved populations, racial equity, and pursuit of social justice.

Octavia Shulman

Octavia Shulman is an attorney, project manager, and educator. She has 15 years of past federal government service as an analyst and attorney advisor. Octavia is a proud and active Orthodox Jew. She is a professional volunteer, serving in many roles in her synagogues, children’s schools, and broader community. Octavia is currently on the board of Be’chol Lashon, an organization dedicated to strengthening Jewish community by including and amplifying the stories and contributions of multi ethnic and multi racial Jews. Octavia is married to her high school sweetheart and they live in Southern California with their two teenagers and two dogs.

Lindsey Newman

Lindsey Newman has over a decade of experience advancing racial justice in the Jewish community. During that time her work has focused on helping organizations find the right tools to develop equity strategies for long term impact. Lindsey serves as the Director of Community Engagement for Be’chol Lashon, an organization that advocates for the racial, ethnic and cultural diversity of the Jewish community. Lindsey is an alum of the Selah Leadership Cohort, was a 2018 Fellow of the Ruskay Institute for Jewish Professional Leadership and received her B.S. degree in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University.

Maya Katz-Ali

Maya, born and raised in a multicultural home in Oakland, California, has a passion for building community across diverse contexts. She holds a B.A. in International Development and Social Change and an M.A. in Community Development and Planning from Clark University. Currently, she is the Senior Community and Partnerships Manager for the Bay Area at OneTable, inspiring young adults to explore Shabbat practices. Maya also participates in LUNAR: The Asian Jewish Film Project and pioneered the Refilling Our Cups JOC Shabbat series. After a year-long fellowship at JOCI, she returned to OneTable with a focus on preserving rituals through intergenerational connections. For Maya, sharing stories and traditions around the dinner table is key to fostering a global community.