Hannah Rosenthal, the U.S. State Department’s Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, will become the president of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation.

The choice, announced Wednesday, comes after an almost two-year-long process of introspection and restructuring, according to the Federation. Rosenthal is expected to start in her new position in the fall.

“We were looking for somebody who would be a champion for the process that we’ve been going through as a community. We heard loud and clear that our organization should be, first and foremost, a fundraising organization and a convener. If we could have invented the perfect leader to lead the Federation now, it would be Hannah Rosenthal,” Federation President Jerry Benjamin said in a statement.

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Rosenthal, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, previously served as Midwest Regional Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under President Clinton and executive director of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs.

Dan Bader, who led the Federation’s CEO Search Committee, echoed Benjamin’s enthusiasm.

“We hired Hannah Rosenthal because she understands the vision for where the Federation wants to go and has the leadership skills necessary to get us there,” he said in a statement. “She has tremendous talent and strong leadership experience in many areas.”

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