The Tribe of Nova Foundation is hosting a ribbon-cutting ceremony today outside Netanya, Israel, for Beit Nova, a new facility for survivors of the Nova music festival attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, and bereaved family members. The facility is being funded in part by UJA-Federation of New York. Read more about the facility here.

A QUICK WORD WITH EJP’S JUDAH ARI GROSS

The first two weeks of 2026 have made clear that security and combating antisemitism will remain top priorities for American Jewry for the coming year, despite the hopes of many to focus communal attention elsewhere after more than two years of post-Oct. 7 crisis mode.

After last month’s deadly terror shooting on Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, the American Jewish community was shocked by an arson attack on Jackson, Miss.’s Beth Israel Congregation over the weekend, which was followed — unrelatedly but almost immediately — by the vandalism of a Los Angeles synagogue that had burned down the year before in the city’s wildfires.

Emblematic of the challenges facing the American Jewish community and of the so-called “horseshoe theory” of antisemitism, these two attacks on synagogues appear to come from either extreme of the political spectrum. Based on his admission to federal agents, the Jackson arsonist was motivated by so-called “classical antisemitism,” referring to Beth Israel as a “synagogue of Satan.” The perpetrator or perpetrators that vandalized the burnt remains of the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center, who have yet to be caught, appear to come from the opposite side of the political map, painting “F— Zionism” on an exterior wall, along with — bafflingly, as the synagogue’s president described it to The New York Times — “RIP Renee,” in reference to Renee Good, who was killed last week by an ICE agent. On top of these acts of vandalism, last week also saw anti-Israel protesters openly praising Hamas outside a synagogue in Queens. 

This all contributes to a growing, and understandable, bunker mentality in the Jewish community, one that comes at a cost, both in resources and bandwidth. In the wake of the Oct. 7 terror attacks in Israel and the rise in antisemitism around the world that followed, Jewish donors and the communal groups that they fund reordered their priorities, which has resulted in a boom for some organizations — particularly those focused on aid and recovery in Israel, combating antisemitism and Jewish education — and in a bust for others, such as those focusing on diversity and equity, Jewish culture and international development. 

With the release of all of the Israeli hostages but one and the war in Gaza largely winding down toward the end of last year, there appeared to be a hope on the horizon that the Jewish world would again be able to allocate resources to what were largely seen as “nice to haves.” Heading into 2026, this seems less likely.

Read the rest of ‘What You Should Know’ here. 

Student Snapshot: While today’s Jewish college students are not a monolith, they do have several formative experiences in common, writes Jonathan Falk in The Times of Israel. “Most of today’s Jewish college students were born during or just after the Second Intifada. They entered the world at a moment of profound Israeli vulnerability, yet they grew up seeing only a strong, innovative, globally respected Israel; a nation rarely perceived as weak until October 7, the first moment in their lives when Israel appeared profoundly endangered. … Many grew up in years of relative calm and prosperity for American Jews, only to arrive on campus and find themselves shouted down, doxxed, isolated, and — in some cases — physically endangered. … Yet they’ve also seen extraordinary solidarity — students organizing vigils, filling Shabbat tables, building Jewish community with defiant joy, and showing up for each other with remarkable clarity and grace. Because of all this, not despite it, they are the most resilient generation we have seen on campus.” [TOI]

Nice vs. Good Leadership: In the Harvard Business Review, Ron Ashkenas and Gali Cooks argue that commitment to coming across as eternally agreeable or supportive can backfire for leaders. “[T]here are real strategic reasons to consider the impact of your tough choices and words on others. But conflating that with avoiding tough decisions and conflict is a mistake. In fact, in a recent [Harvard Business Review] article, ‘Why Kindness Isn’t a Nice to Have,’ Nicki Macklin, Thomas H. Lee and Amy C. Edmondson argue for the importance of kindness, while noting this important distinction: ‘Kindness often means doing hard things like giving tough feedback… Niceness is about avoiding discomfort, staying agreeable, sidestepping hard conversations, and letting things slide. Kindness means the opposite.’ In other words, good leadership is about having a positive impact not just on individuals in a given moment, but, where possible, on those individuals in the long term, and especially on the organization as a whole in the long term.” [HarvardBusinessReview]

Funding Peace: In Inside Philanthropy, Philip Rojc addresses concerns about the impacts of U.S. funding cuts to peacebuilding efforts abroad and the country’s changing role on the world stage. “For philanthropy, it’s probably in vain to attempt to revive a post-WWII world order that’s fading away. The better option might be to recognize that outside the great power dynamic, there are opportunities for engagement among nations that retain a desire for cooperation over coercion. That emerging multipolar world has not given up on attempting common projects or on the spirit of global cooperation, even if the cooperation it embraces no longer places a premium on U.S. leadership.” 
[InsidePhilanthropy]

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a settlement with Betar U.S. over what she described as a campaign of “fear, violence, and intimidation” targeting the group’s ideological opponents; Betar U.S. said it would discontinue its New York operations, though the move was unrelated to the settlement…

A cryptocurrency token announced by former New York City Mayor Eric Adams crashed less than a day after its launch, leading some analysts to refer to it as a “rug pull” scam, in which investors drum up interest in a token before cashing out and making it worthless; in his announcement of the coin on Monday, Adams had said that the token would be used to fight antisemitism and anti-American sentiment…

The Chronicle of Philanthropy examines the overabundance of payment platforms currently used by nonprofits for donations, which makes it easier for people to make contributions and much more difficult for gift-management officers to keep track of them…

Vanderbilt University is opening a new campus in San Francisco, in the Nashville, Tenn.-based institution’s latest expansion; the new location will host 1,000 full-time students and 100 faculty members…

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry is warning against the creation of a loophole in new hate-speech laws in the country that exempts those who read from or cite religious texts…

The Sydney Jewish Museum is preserving the bouquets of flowers, as well as painted stones, cards and other ephemera, which served as an ad hoc memorial for the victims of the deadly terror attack at the Australian city’s Bondi Beach…

Israel’s Bar-Ilan University will award White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff with an honorary doctorate, citing Witkoff’s involvement in efforts to reach a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and secure the release last year of nearly all the remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza…

Officials in Venezuela released a 72-year-old Israeli-Argentine man who had been imprisoned in the South American for more than a year; Yaakov Harari was among 125 people, most of whom are Americans, who were released after being accused of being mercenaries operating on behalf of the United States…

Philanthropist and real estate developer Nathan Landow, who served as the chair of the Maryland Democratic Party from 1988-1992, died on Dec. 30 at 93…

Columbia University alum Jonathan Lavine and his wife, Jeannie, donated $10 million to the school’s men’s and women’s basketball programs in one of the largest-ever gifts to the school’s athletics department…

Jim Heeger and Martine Fleishman have joined the board of M²: The Institute for Experiential Jewish Education…

Ron Galperin has been named the interim director of the American Jewish Committee’s Los Angeles office…

Shai Oseran has been hired as the next managing director of Israel and program operations at the Israel education nonprofit Encounter… 

Actor Sydney Sweeney met with freed Israeli hostages Noa Argamani and Avinatan Or, posing for a photo with the pair that began circulating on social media yesterday, reports Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs. The photo of the three was shared by the Jewish advocacy group StandWithUs on its X and Instagram accounts. It is unclear when or where the meeting took place.

Screenwriter, director and producer, best known as co-writer of the films “The Empire Strikes Back,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Return of the Jedi,” Lawrence Kasdan turns 77… 

Chairman emeritus of the publicly traded Empire State Realty Trust, he is the father-in-law of Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Peter L. Malkin turns 92… Retired travel counselor, Barbara Singer-Meis… Washington Nationals baseball fan known as Rubber Chicken Man, he waves a rubber chicken over the Nationals dugout and is one of the few fans for whom Topps has issued a baseball card, Hugh Kaufman turns 83… Award-winning legal affairs correspondent for National Public Radio since 1975, focusing primarily on the U.S. Supreme Court, Nina Totenberg turns 82… Orthopedic surgeon, inventor and philanthropist, Gary K. Michelson, M.D. turns 77… Painter, editor, writer and book artist, Susan Bee turns 74… Co-founder and chairman of the Pritzker Traubert Foundation, which he manages with his wife Penny Pritzker, Bryan Traubert turns 71… Shaul Saulisbury… Former president of the Sprint Foundation and Sprint’s 1Million Project Foundation, Doug Michelman… Former member of the Knesset for the Likud party, she holds a Ph.D. in criminology, Anat Berko turns 66… AIPAC board chair, he is a founding member of LA-based law firm, Klee, Tuchin, Bogdanoff & Stern, Michael L. Tuchin… Actress best known for her movie roles in the late 1980s in “The Goonies” and “Lucas,” she later became a film producer, Kerri Lee Green turns 59… Staff writer at The New Yorker, Susan B. Glasser turns 57… Venture capitalist, Adam R. Dell turns 56… Movie and television producer and co-founder of Electric City Entertainment, Jamie Patricof turns 50… Director of behavioral health and educational consultant, Ari Yares… Sales associate in the Montclair, N.J., office of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, David Frey… Attorney at Toronto-based Sokoloff Lawyers, Aryeh Samuel…