Idit Klein

Idit Klein is a longtime social justice advocate and was the founding CEO of Keshet, an organization which “works for the full equality of all LGBTQ+ Jews and [their ] families in Jewish life” (About Us). Born in Tel Aviv, Israel but raised in Massachusetts, Klein’s commitment to justice began at age four, when she learned about the Holocaust from her Great Aunt, herself a Holocaust survivor. Her story terrified her, as did the stories she heard later on from her four survivor grandparents. But what Idit heard also motivated her to work towards a world in which such atrocities could not occur. Klein’s connection to Israel was also nurtured from a young age; as a child, she spent many summers there and, learning about the brokenness of the political situation, became committed to the Israeli-Palestinian peace movement.

Six weeks after graduating from Yale in 1994, Klein moved to Israel, where she worked for the New Israel Fund, as well as for the Israel/Palestine Center for Research and Information, a joint Israeli-Palestinian think tank committed to a two state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. While living in Jerusalem, Klein also founded a support group for queer women and worked with gay men to bridge the gender divide within the Jerusalem LGBTQ+ community, efforts which led to the establishment of an LGBTQ+ community center, Jerusalem Open House.

In 1996, Klein returned to the United States for what was intended to be a brief period while her then-partner finished college. Upon her return she became involved with Keshet, at the time a local, volunteer-based organization. Klein was invested in Keshet’s growth and development even before becoming CEO; as a volunteer, she spearheaded fundraising for Keshet’s first part-time staff member and became the chair of the organization’s board. In 2001, as Keshet faced dissolution, Klein stepped up and secured seed funding from CJP, the Jewish federation of Boston, enabling her to become Keshet’s founding CEO.

In addition to growing the volunteer base and professionalizing the organization, Klein’s work in these early days included executive producing the documentary film “Hineini: Coming Out in A Jewish High School,” about a student’s campaign to institute a GSA at her Jewish high school. “Hineini” in turn led to requests from other Jewish organizations for film screenings, consultations, and training, which led Keshet to do substantial work nationwide supporting Jewish educators and leaders in fostering educational communities where all youth can thrive.

Klein names “Hineini” as one of her proudest accomplishments with Keshet. Another, later source of pride is Keshet’s work directly with queer Jewish youth. Inspired by emails from two young people frustrated with Keshet’s lack of youth-oriented programming, Keshet worked with the Isabella Friedman Jewish Retreat Center to organize a weekend retreat, the first ever LGBTQ and Ally Teen Shabbaton in 2012. The success of the retreat led to its becoming a permanent Keshet program, and Keshet hosts multiple youth retreats across the country each year to offer spaces for LGBTQ+ Jewish teens to be their full selves.

In 2024, Klein decided it was time to move on from her position as CEO of Keshet and into the next chapter of her life. She stepped down in July 2025, but remains a donor and a member of the Emeritus Board. She has also served as a mentor to her successor as CEO, Jamie Krass. Klein now works as the Vice President for Public Engagement at the New Israel Fund, which promotes equality, democracy, and peace in Israel. She lives in Boston with her family.

(This biographical statement was written by Lynn Kusmin from a March 12, 2026 interview with Idit Klein as well as the sources below and was edited by Klein.)

Biography Date: July 2026

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