Staff

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ENP Staff

Dr. Nigist Mengesha, Director-General
Amir Tewabe, Director of Operations
Grace Rodnitzki, Director of International Relations
Ayala Arish, Office Manager
Tegest Desta, Secretary
Michelle Shelemay, International Relations
Tracey Shipley Amar, Public Relations
Anat Azulai, Financial Comptroller
Keren Bezaleli, Bookkeeping
Sivan Gov Ari, Bookkeeping

Dr. Nigist Mengesha
Director-General

Dr. Nigist Mengesha immigrated to Israel in 1984. In Ethiopia, Dr. Mengesha served
as a social worker for the Ethiopian Prisons Authority. After making aliyah, she
received a BA in Social Work from Bar-Ilan University, an MSW from the Hebrew
University in Jerusalem, and graduated from the fellowship program of the Mandel
School for Educational Leadership in Jerusalem. She received her degree of Doctor
of Philosophy from the University of Sussex in July 2007 for her thesis “Socio-
Educational Mediation among Ethiopian Immigrant Jews in the Israeli School
System.”

Dr. Mengesha has been a community activist and advocate of Ethiopian rights since
her arrival in Israel. Her activities included working for the Israeli Social Welfare
Department, serving as the SHATIL (a New Israel Fund project) project coordinator
for Ethiopian organizations, founding and directing Fidel, the Association for
Education and Social Integration of Ethiopian Jews in Israel, representing Israel at
the Durban United Nations Conference Against Racism, and sitting on the boards of
many international and national voluntary organizations. Dr. Mengesha has served
as the Director-General of the Ethiopian National Project since June 2003.

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Amir Tewabe
Director of Operations

Amir Tewabe made aliya in 1984. He left Ethiopia at the age of 13 with his brother
and sister, walking the arduous journey to Sudan, where the siblings spent time in
a refugee camp. Their parents joined the children a year later in Israel. The family
lived in Safed, and Amir later attended boarding school and then an agricultural
school where he attained a full matriculation certificate.
Amir served in the Israeli Air Force as a commander, and was trained for and carried out air operations with helicopters. During his air force career, he received special recognition as an
outstanding soldier. Today, in the reserves, he commands 100 soldiers.
In 1994, 1996 and 1997, Amir was sent to Ethiopia by the government of Israel to
assist in the aliya of the remaining Ethiopian Jewish community. During his time in
the Addis Ababa compound, Amir taught Judaism, and aided in compiling the lists of
those eligible for aliya.

Amir obtained his BA in Political Science and Israel Studies from the University of
Haifa in 1996. After obtaining his BA, Amir worked for five years with the Ministry
of Education’s Steering Committee for Ethiopian Immigrants. He later returned to
academia, receiving an MA in Public Administration from the University of Tel Aviv.
In 2001, after an intensive selection process, Amir was chosen to work at Yemin
Orde, a boarding school renowned for its preparation of young Ethiopian-Israelis
for success in Israeli society. There, he managed the organizational, educational
and social components of a class of 150 students during their studies from tenth to
twelfth grades. Amir also volunteered as a liaison between Ethiopian-Israeli soldiers
who were sentenced to jail during their army service, bridging the rift between the
soldiers, their parents and the IDF.

Today, Amir Tewabe serves as the Director of Operations of the Ethiopian
National Project. In this capacity, he promotes ENP’s programs nationwide, serving
as a liaison between local service providers and national management while
ensuring superior programs and successful execution of projects.

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Grace Rodnitzki
Director of International Relations

Grace works closely with field workers and professionals in Israel, delving into the
critical day-to-day work they carry out so that she can illustratively tell ENP's story.
In her capacity as ENP’s Director of International Relations, she shares her in-depth
knowledge of the amazing potential and the compelling need of Ethiopian-Israelis
with individual donors, foundations and federations.

Grace hails from King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. She has felt a calling to inform
others about Israel’s uniqueness since her youth, when she was actively involved on
the regional and international levels of the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization.
Grace received a B.A. in Politics from Brandeis University in 1990, and studied a
year abroad at Oxford University. Following her undergraduate career, while a Raoul
Wallenberg Fellow at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, she witnessed first hand the
miraculous Ethiopian airlifts and the massive emigration from the Soviet Union, and
endured the insecurity of living in Israel during the Gulf War.

In 1992, Grace was invited to Australia to study and lecture as a Rotary
Ambassadorial Scholar, traveling the continent and speaking about her experiences
in Israel. She returned to Israel in May 1993, herself a new immigrant. Grace then
worked for over seven years as an International Relations Associate at the American
Jewish Joint Distribution Committee in Jerusalem.

Grace Rodnitzki lives in Modi’in, Israel with her husband and three children.

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Tracey Shipley Amar
Public Relations

Tracey made Aliyah in 1984. Her professional experience includes working as an Art and Creative Therapist with teen and adult addicts and serving as a marketer and project initiator and coordinator for various projects in the Jerusalem Municipality Arts Department, as well as for Seeds of Peace. She joined ENP in 2008. Her job as Public Relations Coordinator for ENP is to inform and educate foundations, organizations and the public in Israel and abroad about the work ENP is doing. Tracey lives in Jerusalem with her three teens.

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