Ori Akrish Named Executive Director of the Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank

CLEVELAND, OH | September 23, 2022 – The Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank, the non-profit organization that works to foster literacy and a love of reading by providing free books to children, has named Ori Akrish as its next executive director.

For the past seven years, Akrish has been the executive director of Coach Sam’s Scholars, an afterschool program that provides educational support to at-risk children through a combination of literacy, personal development, and health and fitness programs designed to develop the whole child. During this time, he revised the curriculum to become culturally relevant, grew the program to 10 locations, added virtual programming, and created a sustainable infrastructure.

He has a Master’s degree in Education with a specialty in Organizational Leadership from Cleveland State University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science/International Affairs from the University of Cincinnati.

Akrish will be responsible for overseeing the leadership, community relations, management and operations of the Kids’ Book Bank, an organization that has distributed more than 3.5 million free books to children in need since its founding in 2016. He will work closely with the board of directors, staff, donors, partner distribution organizations, and volunteers to ensure that the organization continues to expand and serve children living in under-resourced communities.

“We are so excited to have Ori lead the organization into our next chapter,” said Kids’ Book Bank co-founder and chair Judi Kovach. “Our community has been so supportive in propelling the Kids’ Book Bank forward, and we know that Ori’s passion for our mission and innovative thinking will be further inspiration as we work together to share the magic of reading with children throughout our community.”

Akrish will begin October 10, 2022. He can be reached after that date at ori@kidsbookbank.org.

About the Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank
The mission of the Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank is to foster improved literacy and a love of reading by providing free books to children in need. Through partnerships with 1,500 government agencies, nonprofit organizations, schools, and more, the Kids’ Book Bank has distributed 3.5 million free books to children in Greater Cleveland since opening in 2016.

Contact: Leslie FitzSimmons
Communications Manager, Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank
Email: leslief@kidsbookbank.org