Five members were sworn into the board of the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust on Wednesday, December 16, 2015, after their appointments were announced on October 3, 2015, by Governor Nathan Deal. Joining the Commission are Chuck Berk, Dr. Claire D'Agostino (reappointment), Evan Jacobs, Sara Kogon, and Lisa Olens. Dr. Agostino was appointed chair.

The Commission consists of fifteen members appointed equally by the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the House. 


Left to right: Dr. Claire D'Agostino, Evan Jacobs, Sara Kogon, Lisa Olens, Chuck Berk. More photos.

Chuck Berk, Georgia Commission on the Holocaust
Berk is the president and CEO of BCR Properties. He previously owned R.S. Andrews of Tidewater and was vice president of Sears Home Improvement. Berk is the chairman of the Israel Bonds Atlanta board and co-chair of the Republican Jewish Coalition of Atlanta. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Bucknell University. Berk and his wife, Bonnie, have two children and four grandchildren. They reside in Atlanta.
 
Dr. Claire D’Agostino, Georgia Commission on the Holocaust
D’Agostino is a past president and current board member of Temple Sinai. She sits on the board of Birthright Israel and is a member of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta. D’Agostino is also a Leadership Atlanta graduate. She earned a master’s degree and doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from Georgia State University. D’Agostino and her husband, Robert, have three children and five grandchildren. They reside in Sandy Springs.
 
Evan Jacobs, Georgia Commission on the Holocaust
Jacobs is a speech language pathologist at Lakeside High School in DeKalb County. She is a member of Congregation B’nai Torah. Jacobs earned a bachelor’s degree from George Washington University and a master’s degree in Education from the University of Georgia. She and her husband, Mike, have three children. They reside in Brookhaven.
 
Sara Kogon, Georgia Commission on the Holocaust
Kogon is the founder of West 44, LLC. She sits on the national council of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and the executive council of the Atlanta chapter of AIPAC. Kogon is involved with the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, the Jewish Women’s Fund, the William Breman Jewish Home and the Epstein School. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a master’s degree in Business Administration from Emory University. Kogon and her husband, Ross, have four children. They reside in Sandy Springs.
 
Lisa Olens, Georgia Commission on the Holocaust
Olens works in the economic development division for Georgia Power. She sits on the board of directors for SafePath Children’s Advocacy Center, the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and Congregation Etz Chaim. Olens previously sat on the boards of the Cobb County Community Foundation, the Jewish Family and Career Services and the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta. She is a graduate of Leadership Cobb and recipient of the W. Wyman Pilcher Jr. Award for community service. Olens was also awarded SafePath’s Hearing Children’s Voice Award for Service, the Jewish Family and Career Services’ Herbert Cohn Meritorious Service Award and was an honoree of the YWCA of Northwest Georgia’s Tribute to Women of Achievement. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Duke University and a master’s degree in Finance from Georgia State University. Olens and her husband, Sam, have two children. They reside in Marietta.