Jessie Kornberg began her tenure as the President & CEO of the Skirball Cultural Center in 2020, leading one of the nation’s most dynamic, diverse, and respected Jewish cultural destinations.

In her first five years at the Skirball, Jessie oversaw the reopening of the center following the COVID-19 pandemic and the origination and touring of blockbuster exhibitions, including The Jewish Deli and Jack Kirby: Heroes and Humanity. In 2023, the Skirball launched major new programs spurring research of its 30,000-object collection and a series of exhibitions and programs highlighting Black-Jewish community connections. In 2025, Jessie led the expansion of the award-winning Noah’s Ark children’s galleries and school programs to include learning gardens and an environmental science curriculum.

Jessie is widely recognized for her transformative leadership of Bet Tzedek Legal Services, a leadership role that capped two decades of civil rights work, including anti-poverty services at the largest provider of homeless family housing in New York City, impact litigation with the NAACP and NOW, and pro bono class action work on behalf of the death row inmates at Angola State Penitentiary in Louisiana.

Additionally, Jessie serves as a trustee for the Motion Picture & Television Fund and the Girl Scouts of the USA. Jessie holds a B.A. in History from Columbia University and a J.D. from UCLA, where she was recognized as UCLA Law School’s Alumni of the Year in 2018. She was named to the American Bar Association’s inaugural 40 Under 40 and has been published in the Los Angeles Times, National Law Journal, and Zocalo Public Square.

Jessie lives in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles with her spouse, Aaron Lowenstein, and their young children, Asa and Sadie.