Stephen M. Siderow, Co-Founder and Co-President of the diversified alternative asset manager BlueMountain Capital Management, was recently named a Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Birthright Israel Foundation. Thomas D. Stern was named the Chairman of the Board, and Phil Rosen also was named a Vice Chairman. Mr. Stern is a principal and managing director of Chieftain Capital Management, Inc.; and Phil Rosen is a senior partner at the international law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP.
Stephen M. Siderow
Birthright Israel provides the gift of first-time, free peer education trips to Israel for young Jewish adults aged 18-26. Since 2000, the program has enabled more than 500,000 young Jewish adults to travel to Israel, connecting strongly with their Jewish identity and the country and making an impact on them that lasts long after they return home.
“In my opinion, Birthright is the most important Jewish organization in the world– bar none,” said Siderow. “Birthright is helping a new generation to form an unbreakable bond with the State of Israel, the Jewish community, and their unique heritage.”
Siderow’s own deep connection with Israel was forged at age 13, when he visited the country for the first time for his bar mitzvah, held at the Western Wall—Judaism’s holiest site. Since then, he has returned many times, including studying for a year at Tel Aviv University as a Fulbright and Sheldon scholar. He joined the Birthright Israel Foundation’s New York City Leadership Council in 2010 and was named to the Board of Directors in 2012.
“More than 45,000 young Jewish adults travel to Israel each year through Birthright Israel’s efforts, and our goal is to double that number with enough funding, Siderow added. “I look forward to devoting the skills I have honed in building a leading alternative asset management firm, and especially my relationships with potential funding sources, to increase the reach and impact of Birthright.”
Birthright Israel was formed by a core group of dedicated Jewish philanthropists in 1999, with a vision to strengthen Jewish identity, build a lasting bond with the land and people of Israel, and reinforce the solidarity of Jewish people worldwide. The Birthright Israel Foundation raises funds in the United States to support the Birthright Israel program.
Mr. Siderow is Co-Founder and Co-President of BlueMountain Capital Management, with assets under management of $22 billion as of December 31, 2016, and oversees the firm’s business development and strategic initiatives. Prior to co-founding BlueMountain in 2003, he was a Senior Consultant with McKinsey & Company. Prior to McKinsey, he was a corporate attorney with Cleary Gottlieb. In addition to serving as Vice Chairman of the Birthright Israel Foundation, he also serves on the Board of Directors of Ars Nova, which provides training and development programs for young performing artists, and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Hertzberg Palliative Care Institute at Mt. Sinai Hospital. He earned a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School, and a B.A., magna cum laude, in Philosophy, from Amherst College.
