Simcha Cohen was born and raised in Milwaukee, WI where he attended Camp Interlaken JCC beginning at the age of two. While there, Simcha enjoyed 25 years at camp through multiple lenses - as a staff kid, camper, CIT, Counselor, Unit Head, and a member of the Executive Leadership team. Simcha's love and passion for working with the next generation of Jewish youth was solidified during this experience at Interlaken. He also fell in love with the sport of windsurfing. Towards the end of his Interlaken tenure, Simcha took his passion to Gann Academy, a pluralistic Jewish High School in Boston, where he was an experiential educator and the Assistant Dean of Students for 8 years. Over those years, Simcha collaborated with the Foundation for Jewish Camp on its Cornerstone Fellowship as an intern and educator, and also received his Masters in Jewish Educational Leadership from Hebrew Union College.

After the birth of their first child and itching to get back into the camp world, Simcha and his family moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota for an opportunity with Herzl Camp in 2016. Currently entering his fifth summer as Herzl Camp's Assistant Director, Simcha has enjoyed guiding Herzl's recruiting, hiring, and training process for summer staff, the Ozrim (SIT) program, as well as overseeing camp's logistical and operations needs. As a cohort junkie and lifelong learner, Simcha recently celebrated graduating FJC's Yitro Cohort IV. Simcha loves making connections with new people in and out of the field of camping. Make sure to find him while at Leaders, or digitally connect with Simcha anytime at simcha@herzlcamp.org.