Shane Better of the Frederick County town of New Market, Potomac resident Sasha Gerber and Daniel Osheroff of Columbia were among the more than 300 Birthright Israel Excel fellows from around the globe who attended the Excelerate23 summit in New York last weekend Mar. 24-26.

Birthright Israel Excel is a business fellowship offering college students a summer internship in Israel, followed by membership in an exclusive community of peers focused on professional development, personal growth, Israel engagement and philanthropy.

After their internships, Excel fellows take positions at such companies as J.P. Morgan Chase, Bain & Co., and Google, developing strategic partnerships with Israeli companies and starting their own companies, often hiring other fellows.

At the summit, participants networked, attended industry-specific panels and discussions about such topics as business development, Jewish identity and Israel engagement.

Presentations were made made by Marc Rowan, CEO of Apollo Global Management, and Enes Kanter Freedom, activist and former NBA player. Rep. Ritchie Torre (D-New York) also spoke at the summit.

In addition, the summit held workshops on combatting antisemitism.

“I’ve been looking forward to the summit since the moment I landed in the U.S. in August,” said Gerber, a Duke University student who was an Excel fellow from October of 2021 until last summer. “I haven’t seen many fellows from my cohort in months because we live all around the world, so I can’t wait to be back together at this mega-reunion. I am also particularly excited to hear from Representative Ritchie Torres, who is one of the keynote speakers this year.”

Referring to escalating antisemitism across the United States, Torres said he strongly supports Israel and opposes the boycott, disvestment, sanctions movement. “BDS activists reject the two-state solution and thus the very existence of Israel, and that’s a double standard,” he said. “It is imperative that we all stand up and speak out against antisemitism.”

According to Idit Rubin, Birthright Israel Excel’s executive director, about 30 fellows from Israel and others from the United Kingdom, South Africa, Germany, France, Argentina and Mexico attended the summit.

“In these challenging times in Israel, it was heartwarming to see this amazing group of young leaders showing their love and support for the country,” said Rubin. “The Global Summit is literally the climax of the year for the Excel Fellowship when we gather as a global community to connect, share ideas, and advance partnerships with Israel. Especially this year, it’s important to address issues beyond our business and tech focus that affect the Jewish people around the world. We know that our community cares deeply about the horrific rise in anti-Semitism and we are eager to discuss approaches to effectively combat.”

Said Gidi Mark, CEO of Birthright Israel: “The Birthright Israel Excel program is considered to be the most prestigious program in the Jewish world today, with only a few dozen young people being accepted from thousands of applicants. This year, we received applications from 26 countries. Birthright Excel Fellows are active every day as recognized leaders in their professional arenas and within the broad Jewish community, and it’s our goal to continue guiding and supporting them in their efforts to build a thriving and better Jewish future for all.”