by Maxine Dovere JNS.org When Pascale Bercovitch took a chair next to the podium at ADVANCE: The Ruderman Jewish Disabilities Funding Conference, she lifted herself from a sleekly designed wheelchair onto the same slightly uncomfortable chair on which each member of her audience sat. “I am who I wanted to be. I set out to be a champ,” said the Israeli Paralympic athlete. More than 100 members of the Jewish Funders Network (JFN) gathered in New York to attend the annual ADVANCE conference in early May. The conference brought together funders from around the Jewish world passionate about the field of special needs and disabilities, and discussions included inclusion of people with disabilities in Jewish communal life. For three days, JFN members - prospective funders - met with advocates … [Read more...]
Funders, Advocates, Providers Rally Around Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Jewish Life
Funders Exert Positive Influence on Jewish Communal Agenda
by Ramie Arian Looking back at the Jewish landscape of the year just concluded, I am struck by how deeply and positively the Jewish communal agenda has changed. Once motivated mainly by important but dark imperatives - to save Jewish communities in danger and to remember the Holocaust - today’s Jewish agenda is dominated by creativity dedicated to revitalizing American Jewish life. It is remarkable how much of this shift has been shaped by the strategic investments of philanthropists. The just-concluded Weinstein Institute for Staff Training, a four-day seminar sponsored by the National Ramah Commission (NRC), is a case in point. Ramah, the camping arm of Conservative Judaism, has become a remarkably attractive target for philanthropic investment, according to Rabbi Mitchell … [Read more...]
Looking in the Mirror
by Jay Ruderman I am concerned that Jewish people, everywhere, are so focused and exclusionary in our desire to assert a strong and single identity that we limit who and what we are - and we weaken our community and deprive it of potential and opportunity. … [Read more...]
Ruderman Family Foundation, JDC and Israeli Government Expand Disabilities Partnership
$12.5 Million Expansion Enables New Growth in Inclusion Programming and Focus on Employment for Israelis with Disabilities … [Read more...]
Applications Open for Slingshot 2013-2014
Slingshot ’13-’14: A Resource Guide for Jewish Innovation is now open for applications. Applications are evaluated by a panel of independent readers, who review organizations and projects based on four main criteria: innovation, impact, leadership and organizational effectiveness. Selected organizations are eligible for grants from the Slingshot Fund, a peer giving group of NextGen philanthropists. Additional information, including application information, can be found at slingshotfund.org. New for next year, Slingshot Supplements: In 2013, Slingshot will publish Slingshot Supplements, guides with narrower focus to learn more about particular programs areas. These supplements will both be an opportunity for more organizations in a particular program area to showcase their work to the … [Read more...]
Joshua Venture Group Announces 2012-14 Fellows
New York, NY - September 10, 2012 - Joshua Venture Group (JVG), a nonprofit organization dedicated to reinvigorating and expanding the Jewish community through building the capacity of young ventures and their leadership, today announced the eight social entrepreneurs who will each receive more than $100,000 in grants and organizational development support as Fellows of its 2012-2014 Dual Investment Program. Each Fellow will receive $80,000 in unrestricted funding and over $20,000 in personalized coaching, training and networking, which equip them to realize their visions to transform the Jewish landscape. JVG's Dual Investment Program is designed to bolster the emergence of the Jewish innovation sector, which reflects the collective desire of Jews from all backgrounds to re-envision their own … [Read more...]
