PHILADELPHIA (JEWISH EXPONENT) — The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia has selected Naomi Adler, a United Way official in New York, to be its new CEO, the Jewish Exponent reported.

Adler, a 47-year-old former attorney who has spent the past 13 years as a top executive with the United Way, will be the first-ever woman to lead the federation. She currently is president and CEO of United Way in New York’s Westchester and Putnam counties, a post she has held since 2008.

When Adler takes the helm in May, she likely will be the only woman to head a large-city American Jewish federation. The only other woman leading a major federation, Jennifer Gorovitz, is slated to leave her post at the San Francisco federation at the end of March.

Adler is replacing Ira Schwartz, who abruptly left the CEO position at the Philadelphia federation last May. Since then, the agency has been led by interim CEO Alex Stroker.

Adler says she is excited about combining her passion for Judaism and fundraising. A cantorial soloist, she is the daughter of renowned Jewish composer Samuel Adler and is married to a Rabbi Brian Beal, the senior rabbi of Temple Beth Torah, a Reform congregation in Upper Nyack, N.Y.

Adler’s appointment comes at a time when leadership is shifting in many Jewish federations. North America’s largest Jewish federation, UJA-Federation of New York, announced its new CEO last month, and several other federations are conducting CEO searches.