Introducing LEAP’s New Board!
Program Director
Basma Eid is a first generation Arab-American born to Egyptian immigrants raised in Rochester, NY. She has been a member of the LEAP family since 2012 when she first volunteered with Project SHINE. Since then, her love and commitment to justice and self-determination for all oppressed people has brought her back to Lebanon year after year. Her work with LEAP motivates her to continue to organize for dignity across communities and she currently is the Lead Trainer at Enlace, an international alliance of worker centers and community organizations fighting for the self-determination of working people. Basma received her Masters in Labour, Social Movements and Development from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London in 2014. She’s based in New York City.
Education Director
Jackson Gzehoviak has worked with LEAP since 2014 as an Education Coordinator and Curriculum Lead. He has been involved in refugee education for eight years and has worked in various positions with ESL programs, refugee resettlement agencies, and tutoring companies. Jackson holds a B.A. in Psychology from Harvard University, as well as language certification in Arabic, Polish, and Russian.
His current academic interests are in the intersection of community mental health programs and language acquisition. Jackson is a certified ESL teacher for Omaha Public Schools in Omaha, Nebraska, where he specializes in working with students with limited or interrupted formal education. He is passionate about children’s rights, intersectional social justice, and the Palestinian refugee community. Jackson looks forward to working with the Board in the years to come!
Learn about our Board of Directors: responsible for driving LEAP to meet its strategic objectives and fundraising goals; and our LEAP Advisory Board: serve as volunteer-staff of LEAP by coordinating and executing its work to ensure the smooth implementation of its educational projects and advocacy efforts.
