American Jewish University has appointed longtime fundraising professional Alissa David Duel as its new director of alumni engagement, a role dedicated to strengthening connections among AJU’s alumni community, particularly alumni of Camp Alonim and Brandeis Camp Institute (BCI), while fostering lifelong relationships with the university.
“Alissa brings a rare combination of professional expertise and personal history with AJU,” said AJU President Jay Sanderson. “Her life has been deeply shaped by Camp Alonim and BCI, and she understands how these programs transform lives. As an institution singularly focused on the Jewish future, AJU is committed to ensuring that our alumni are not only celebrated for their past experiences but engaged as partners in shaping what comes next. Alissa will play a pivotal role in making that vision a reality.”
Before joining AJU, Duel—whose hiring became effective Sept. 29—served as a development officer at several nonprofit organizations. She previously led fundraising campaigns and volunteer engagement at Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, directed the New Leaders Project at Jewish Federation Los Angeles and was a campaign director at Jewish Federation of Orange County, among other roles. She was also involved with AJU’s Intro to Judaism program and its predecessor to today’s Partnership Project, Making Marriage Work.
Growing up in Southern California, Duel has been connected to Jewish camping since the age of 10 years, when she first attended Camp Alonim. She went on to become a CIT, a BCI participant, and later, a parent of two Alonim campers; her daughter is now an alum and her son is a current camper.
“I know what camp means from every perspective: as a child, a young adult and a parent,” she said. “For me, Jewish was camp. Camp was fun. So Jewish was fun. Camp, BCI and AJU offered me transformational experiences—and as director of alumni engagement, I want to show the world what that means by stewarding alumni and deepening their lifelong connection to Camp, AJU and the Brandeis-Bardin Campus.”
At AJU, her alumni engagement work will focus primarily on engaging the thousands of alumni of BCI, which provides immersive Jewish retreats for young adults ages 18 to 29, and Camp Alonim, AJU’s pluralistic Jewish summer camp. She’ll also work to engage alumni from AJU’s academic programs, including the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies and Masor School for Jewish Education and Leadership, as well as the Maas Center for Jewish Journeys.
Her responsibilities will include bringing donors and potential supporters to the Brandeis-Bardin Campus, on 2,700 scenic acres in Simi Valley, to see it and experience it for themselves.
“People want to touch camp; they want to come walk on Peppertree Lane,” she said. “That’s what people want to see.”
As she takes on this new role, Duel emphasizes that alumni engagement is more than nostalgia—it’s about the Jewish future. “I’m a camp person. I love it. I believe camp is transformational,” she said. “It’s such a beautiful way to kickstart your Jewish identity, and I’m excited to help alumni carry that spark forward into the next generation.”
While AJU has not traditionally had a professional who was an alumnus, Sanderson said the role was pivotal to ensuring the organization’s future success. “With Alissa’s hiring,” Sanderson said, “AJU is reaching back to go forward.”
