For researchers, it can be deflating when a study concludes with findings that readers claim they “already knew.” But when it comes to how we operate our foundations and nonprofits, affirmational outputs can actually be incredibly valuable, demonstrating what we’ve been doing right.  

When the Harold Grinspoon Foundation partnered with Crown Family Philanthropies and the Jim Joseph Foundation to commission a study of non-Orthodox Jewish families today, we set out to better understand how parents create Jewish experiences for their young children. The Harold Grinspoon Foundation and our PJ Library team wanted to know what kinds of inspirations animated parenting choices and by what means parents introduced Jewish content into their children’s lives.

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Rosov Consulting conducted the study, an ambitious project involving 40 focus groups with more than 180 people from 30 U.S. states. The research team then conducted follow-up interviews with 40 individuals who had previously participated in the focus groups. 

What did we learn? That what we’re doing is working. Our intuitions were correct. The data and accounts in the results were valuable and validating, providing strong, data-supported affirmations of what’s guided our foundations’ work in recent years. 

Now we have to double down on what we do best in order to reach even more families and support those who want to engage with Jewish life. But first, understanding the challenges: 

The findings, a study of Jewish families today, vividly illustrated just how diverse Jewish families have become — ethnically, economically, structurally and geographically. Yet across all this diversity, one theme rang out: parents of young children crave community. They want their children to feel connected to something larger than their nuclear family.

The study showed, however, that because of the relative thinness of their own Jewish education and upbringing, many parents lack the know-how and cultural resources to bring Jewish content into their children’s lives. They turn to online resources to fill these gaps — even when, as one interviewee put it, they’d prefer “more guidance and less Google.”

Luckily, building trusted resources, taking creative steps to reach families and identifying avenues for positive representation have long been the name of the game at PJ Library. And as a result of these findings, we’re committing to three extensions of our ongoing work, with the knowledge that by doing so, we’re adding even more value into our programs and offerings.

1.) Reach families where they are

We’ve long known that families with young children are increasingly hard to reach. Data from the study confirm that we shouldn’t conflate this trend with a lack of interest. Economic pressures are pushing families farther from established centers of Jewish life. We should stop trying try to lure them to these centers—they’re not coming. Instead, we have to get resources to them, where they are. Hence PJ Library’s direct-to-mailboxes book program. Plus, last year, we expanded our Get Together microgrant program to empower families to create Jewish experiences with their peers in their own communities. It was exciting to see that the advisory group of practitioners and scholars that worked with the research team argued for a program just like this, based on what they found in the data.

2.) Create meaningful content

Even before the post-Oct. 7, 2023 surge in Jewish engagement, we knew that parents of young children were hungry for Jewish content. The study makes that clear: parents want their children’s lives to be filled with meaning. If Jewish tradition and Jewish wisdom can provide that meaning, then all to the good, especially when Jewish content is competing for attention with cultural content associated with other identities of importance to families. The challenge is figuring out how, in a congested cultural marketplace, to provide access to Jewish content in ways that go beyond surface-level exposure. This has been a perennial focus for our foundation, and the study provides vivid evidence of how this challenge plays out in people’s lives and how it can be successfully met with compelling content in welcoming settings.

3.) Represent stories, not just statistics

This study underlines the aphorism that stories beat statistics (dare we say it, 100% of the time). We have long known that the demographic makeup of the next generation of our Jewish communities will be different from previous ones. Pew Center data and numerous Jewish community studies have provided signals of these changes. The Jewish Families Today study confirms with vivid narrative the increasing diversity of those who identify as Jewish, and the tensions within families and communities created by these changes. These trends are not new, but reading the stories of the people behind these trends calls us to give the greatest possible attention to thinking about how we serve our ever-changing people. 

But these findings and recommendations aren’t specific to PJ Library or the Harold Grinspoon Foundation — they’re an offering for everyone looking to engage with Jewish families today. At a time when people are seeking Jewish community and learning, this data gives us inspiration and helps cement our commitment to doing exactly that, one family at a time. 

Alex Zablotsky is the executive director of PJ Library at the Harold Grinspoon Foundation.

Alex Pomson is the principal and managing director at Rosov Consulting.