2016 Discretionary Grants
2016 Fund for Jewish Philanthropy and Field of Interest Fund Grant Recipients
The Jewish Community Foundation awarded discretionary grants, totaling $215,105 — to benefit the Jewish community locally and in Israel, through the unrestricted Fund for Jewish Philanthropy, the Jewish Women’s Endowment Fund and field of interest funds.
Building on last year’s grants, the Foundation again focused on two of the areas identified through the 2011 Community Conversation – public affairs and leadership development. The Foundation awarded a grant to the Board of Rabbis, which received a planning grant last year, to launch the Jewish Community Relations Initiative. Leadership development programs include college students at Hillel, and a second year of the Jewish Women’s Institute at the Women’s Jewish Learning Center, which pairs mentors and mentees over a nine-month period and immerses them in all aspects of leadership training and culminates with an active role in a project.
2016 Jewish Community Foundation Grants: Local
Local Community Grants (70%)
JDC Entwine, $10,000
Phoenix Learning Center: To launch a Learning Network in Phoenix in order to make global programming a frequent and regular part of Jewish life for young adults and provide a space for immediate follow through for service program alumni. The program also will develop a group of volunteer leaders who will conceptualize, host and implement Entwine’s peer-led events, and develop partnerships with organizations working with similar demographics in Phoenix seeking to support innovative programming.
Board or Rabbis of Greater Phoenix, $50,000
Re-establishment of JCRC: The Board of Rabbis (“BOR”) of Greater Phoenix will use this grant to support the launch of the Jewish Community Relations Initiative in the Greater Phoenix area. In its planning year, the BOR conducted research, interviews, assessments and ongoing strategy efforts which will inform and guide the second year’s work. The Board of Rabbis will continue to work with the consulting team and will hire an employee/executive whose role would be to implement the program components set forth by the consultants, the community work group and the BOR.
Hillel Jewish Student Center, $18,500
Student Leadership Initiative: The Student Leadership Initiative is an umbrella for the new and expanded initiatives at ASU Hillel that are all designed to train student leaders and give them the resources to lead the Jewish student community on campus. A main goal is to increase Hillel’s “closing rate,” meaning they convert students who attend one event into students who are actively engage in Jewish life and leadership. This grant includes $3,259 from the Max Schlissel Jewish Education Fund, a JCF Field of Interest Fund.
Jewish Community Foundation, $9,394
Discretionary Reserve: Funding from the discretionary reserve may be used for requests that are cultivated or solicited by the Foundation outside the annual grant cycle, or for responses to emergencies, man-made or natural disasters affecting the Jewish community.
Torah Day School, $9,500
Kids Succeed Program: The Kids Succeed Program will provide one-on-one tutoring to students professionally evaluated for further educational assistance. A special education teacher will be hired to assist those students in grades first through fourth that need more help than the current resource teacher can provide.
Valley Beit Midrash, $7,500
PJ Library: PJ Library’s new program partnership with Tribe for Tots seeks to deliver new programs for families in partnership with valley organizations and new parent-only programs through Valley Beit Midrash’s core curriculum. Key objectives include outreach to unaffiliated parents who may be looking for their first Jewish connection – or families who are reluctant to attend events at Jewish venues, and to integrate these less-affiliated families with peers who are active members of the Jewish community.
Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center, $1,500
Jewish Youth Group Sports League: The Jewish Youth Sports League is a collaborative teen sports league among many Jewish youth groups in the Valley, including chapters of BBYO, NFTY, NCSY and USY. Each chapter of each organization will have the opportunity to submit a team (or more than one team, space permitting) to play that season’s sport(s) at the JCC on Sunday evenings. At this time, basketball and kickball are available to 8th – 12th graders who are current members of a youth group for which they are playing.
West Coast NCSY, $10,000
Jewish Student Union Culture Clubs: JSU clubs provide Jewish teens an educational experience focusing on issues of Jewish pride, identity, social justice, and connection to Israel. JSU Club meetings take place during the schools’ lunchtime breaks, and have the added draw of serving kosher lunch without charge. This grant will enable JSU to open new clubs at additional schools throughout the Greater Phoenix area.
Women’s Jewish Learning Center, $10,000
Women’s Leadership Institute: The Women’s Leadership institute, a collaborative project of PJ Library Arizona and The Women’s Jewish Learning Center, seeks to develop new, well-grounded Jewish communal female leadership, and create new and wider engagement networks.
2016 Jewish Community Foundation Grants: Israel
Israel Grants – 30%
Be-Atzmi, $7,500
Mifne for Haredi Families in Israel: A program tailored to the overlooked needs of the Haredi community that will provide an easily adaptable platform which addresses both male workforce integration and provides training to enable Haredi women to remain in the workforce following their husband’s integration. The program also provides counseling to help the couples understand their financial situation, and help deal with the emotional strain of vocational and financial changes on family life.
Beit Natan, $5,000
Careers After Cancer: A program targeting Haredi female cancer survivors, the goal is to re-integrate these women. The program offers lectures to empower participants to regain their foothold in society, as well as weekly individual career counseling and support. Additionally, the program includes an online campaign to offer women from the target community, forums and information on this issue, while providing hundreds of women with online support and information.
Hillel – the Right to Choose, $7,500
Support for Former Haredi Single Mothers in their New beginning: Hillel provides support and resources designed to help these women triumph over integration challenges, effectively serve their families and achieve financial independence. Program components include housing assistance, mentorship, psychological counseling, empowerment workshops, cultural and educational activities.
Jerusalem Rape Crisis Center, $10,000
Anti-Violence Center for Social Change: The project aims to directly educate and empower Jerusalem’s youth-at-risk via comprehensive workshops in local schools, community centers and youth clubs as to the issues surrounding sexual violence, its prevention and support.
Kol Israel Haverim Alliance, $12,000
Cracking the Glass Ceiling: Promoting girls to science education in Kiryat Malachi: The program is a comprehensive process, starting in the 8th grade and lasting over five years in each school. The Alliance works cooperatively with the education department and municipality to choose the schools and locate female students who have potential in STEM studies. The participants are promoted and guided over the course of the program in three paths simultaneously: Ambition, Success and Excellence.
Women’s Spirit, $15,000
Opening Doors: This unique program provides residents of battered women’s shelters with efficient financial and employment skills to achieve self-reliance and financial Independence, as they transition from the shelter to independent living.
Field of Interest Grants
Jasmine, $10,000
Kulanu-Beyahad (“All of us together”): This program provides interest-free micro-loans to severely economically marginalized women to start their own small, home-run businesses; and provides group and individual training focusing on financial tools and knowledge, in topics such as business plan development and how to start and grow a business.
Mavoi Satum, $7,788
Justice for All: The Justice for All project defends a woman’s right to divorce her husband by providing individual legal support, which consists of preliminary and ongoing consultation, as well as representation and guidance in both civil and religious courts. In addition to individual legal action, Mavoi Satum lawyers promote legislation in the Knesset and propose bills that are aimed at bringing about an end to the ongoing violation of women’s rights.
Physically Disadvantaged Children’s Fund
Council for Jews with Special Needs, $2,608
Summer Camp Inclusion Resources: To enable children with special needs to attend typical day camp programs.
Paul Vermes Endowment for Disabled Youth in Israel
Shekel Community Services for People with Special Needs, $11,315
Hettena Day Center: Medical supervision at a residential home for severely developmentally disabled children.
