New York City - Jerome S. Teller, Chair of the Board of HIAS (Hebrew
Immigrant Aid Society) announced today that Gideon Aronoff has been
elected by the Board of Trustees to serve as president and chief
executive officer. Aronoff joined HIAS in 2000 and has served with
distinction as its vice president for governmental relations and public
policy and director of the organization's Washington, D.C. office.

HIAS, the country's oldest refugee, rescue and resettlement agency
currently celebrating its 125th anniversary, is delighted to have
Aronoff in this leadership role, said Teller. Teller stated that
Aronoff has a keen and insightful knowledge of government relations and
refugee issues in Washington, D.C. and brings a strong sense of
traditional core Jewish values to drive the timeless mission of HIAS.

Aronoff has been a respected voice of the American Jewish community in
Washington, D.C. on refugee and immigration issues and has earned the
admiration of those in the immigration advocacy field. He has been an
integral force behind a number of key legislative successes with
Congress and the White House. "Gideon has been a strong
coalition-builder in the Jewish community," says Teller. "He has taken
a leadership role bringing about joint collaboration in the community.
It's what we as an organization need more than ever in a leader,”
continues Teller.

Aronoff earned a JD from Cornell Law School and a BA in History from
Brandeis University. He is a member of the board of directors of the
National Immigration Forum and has brought to the fore his knowledge of
Jewish community institutions, interests and community relations
concerns throughout his career. Before joining HIAS to lead the
Washington, D.C. office, he worked for nearly a dozen years in Boston
and Washington in policy, advocacy and leadership positions in the
Soviet Jewry movement. Aronoff and his wife, Victoria, have one
daughter, Dalia.

Immediately following his election, Aronoff stated that he and HIAS owe
a debt of gratitude to Neil Greenbaum, a Chicago attorney, former HIAS
board chair, and the man who shepherded the organization through its
recent months of transition. "Neil came through for us - he took time
away from his firm in Chicago, traveled regularly to New York and saw
to it that the important work of the organization continued during the
months long search process. We all owe him our humblest thanks," stated
Aronoff.