The Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles (The Foundation) today announced that it has granted $1.1 million to six Israeli organizations that strengthen that country’s Jewish identity and support economic development.
The Foundation, the largest manager of charitable assets and planned giving solutions for Los Angeles Jewish philanthropists, awards its multi-year Israel Grants annually to organizations that have the potential to create meaningful change in the country, have achievable short-term outcomes, affect a significant number of people or regions, and offer opportunities for partnerships with other funders. Since 2010, The Foundation distributed grants totaling more than $5.5 million to 41 organizations throughout Israel.
In announcing the grants, Marvin I. Schotland, president and chief executive officer of The Foundation, told eJP: “This year’s Israel Grants extend our Foundation’s tradition of supporting programs that foster Jewish identity and underpin economic self-sufficiency. These grants, to initiatives which stretch throughout Israel, reflect the very best of those efforts and will positively impact prospectively thousands of Israeli lives in total. To be able to reach, engage and uplift so many – from such a great distance – is richly gratifying. We look forward to watching these inspirational programs flourish.”
Recipient organizations of The Foundation’s latest Israel Grants awards include: Beit Midrash Elul; Beit Tefilah Israeli; Hut HaMeshulash; Joint Council of Pre-Military Leadership Academies; Hillel-The Right To Choose; and Tech-Career.
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Beit Tefilah Israeli (BTI), founded in 2004, is the recipient of a $200,000 grant for its program, Open Tent Shabbat and Holidays: Israeli-Judaism in the Public Sphere.
Also awarded a $200,000 grant is Tech-Career for its program, Closing the Digital Gap – Empowering Ethiopian Israeli Young Adults. The program will support a comprehensive vocational technology training and placement program for Ethiopian Israelis.
This year’s other Israel Grants recipient organizations and their programs, including amounts awarded, are as follows:
Beit Midrash Elul, Learning Communities – Building Jewish Identities Through Text, $150,000 – To engage Israeli Jews from 40 communities through an exploration of modern and traditional Jewish texts; and community members through public events related to Jewish identity.
Hut HaMeshulash, Inspired Living: Renewing Jewish Identity, $150,000 – To provide at-risk youth and young adults with a strengthened Jewish identity through engagement with Jewish text learning; art, music and creative writing; and Shabbat and holiday-based activities.
Joint Council of Pre-Military Leadership Academies, Judaism, Zionism and Jewish Peoplehood for Students of the Pre-Military Leadership Academies (Mechinot), $200,000 – To expose high school graduates to Jewish literature, holidays, history, practice and communities through a one-year Mechina program.
Hillel–The Right to Choose, Workforce Integration and Facilitation Program, $200,000 – To provide job training to young adults who leave ultra-Orthodox communities to facilitate their full integration into the Israeli workforce and broader society.
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