Grants
Community Impact Grants
The Jewish Federation is proud to announce the 2024 Community Impact Grants have been awarded to eight collaborative programs this year.
As part of the Jewish community strategic planning process, there was an increased request from many organizations to fund creative partnerships to strengthen the impact across Greater New Haven. The goal is to build sustainable collaborative programs to educate, engage, and expand our Jewish community. The requirements to request seed money to develop new initiatives include collaboration, long-term impact, and positive change in our Jewish community.
We are pleased to share that the following Impact Grants have been awarded:
Colors of My Jewish Year
Beth Israel Synagogue in Wallingford, in collaboration with Quinnipiac Hillel and local area libraries will offer a series of creative, interactive educational programs for children ages 3-8 to provide meaningful, Jewish, experiences for affiliated, unaffiliated and interfaith Jewish youngsters in the greater Wallingford area.
Conversations with Yossi Klein Halevi and Imam Abdullah Antepli
A community wide program, open to all, will bring world renouned authors for a conversation about acceptance and connections. This event is sponsored by the Yale Forum of Jewish Faculty and Friends, the Slifka Center, The Buckley Institute, the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven and the Yale Program on Study of Antisemitism.
Community Inclusion Director
In 2023, as part of an Impact Grant program, the JCC, Jewish Family Services, Chapel Haven Schliefer Center, and the Towers, collaborated to institute Café J at the JCC. The success of this program, which has now trained 24 student interns and engaged more than 30 volunteers, has led to an expansion of our commitment to serve people with disabilities. An inclusion director will enable our community to hire a professional social worker to extend in all areas of service including a social, educational, recreational, camping and expanded vocational opportunities for teens and adults with disabilities. In addition, adult education classes adapted for those with disabilities, social experiences around important dates on the Jewish calendar and expanding recreational opportunities beyond athletic to include art and music, will be established.
Community Meal Delivery: Harnessing Volunteers for Community Connection
The Towers has initiated a Kosher Shabbat Meal delivery program. Those who are identified by Jewish Family Services, local synagogues, and the Jewish Community Center as more isolated, at-risk, or in need of community connection will be the recipients of this program. The goal of is to provide vulnerable older adults to be more socially connected, more Jewishly connected and educated about resources they made need through referral by providing a consistent volunteer visitor with a Kosher Meal. This inititve will provide an opportunity for social connection and broader referrals to those in need. It is a way to educate the community about events, resources and assistance, in a very personal way.
Examining Today's Greatest Challenges to American Jewish Life in Light of History
This is an Adult Educational Program Adult since learning is a key priority in our Jewish community. Congregations Mishkan Israel, Temple Beth Sholom, the Jewish Community Relations Council, and the Jewish Historical Society have joined together to create a four-part educational series of relevant topics and curriculum inspired by Hebrew College in Newton, Massachusetts.
Gospel Shabbat at Congregation B’nai Jacob
In an effort to create a diverse unified community, Congregation B’nai Jacob with the Towers, Woodbridge Ad Hoc Committee of DEI, First Church of Christ and the JEDI Taskforce of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven, will host a community event to acknowledge the social justice inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King. The program will expand social service programs throughout the year.
Jewish Women's Conference at Yale
The goal of the Jewish Women’s Conference at Yale is to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Jewish womens’ contributions to Jewish communal and religious life. This conference has been formative to so many female leaders such as Betty Friedan, Judith Plaskow, Debbie Friedman, and Rabbi Angela Buchdahl.
The conference inspires published writing, archival video, and other documentation that will inform contemporary conversation about Jewish women, particularly as Jewish community leaders.
Jewish Culinary Academy with Chef Danny Corsun
The newly renovated dining room and kitchen facilities at the Towers will be highly utilized with meals and programming. The Towers, Women’s Philanthropy of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven, and PJ Library will partner to share resources to infuse our community with fun and engaging hands-on Jewish education by bringing generations together for more meaningful connections, relationships through cooking.
The Boundry That Creates Unity
The New Haven Eruv will collaborate with PJ Library and the Greater New Haven community to provide a unifying educational event to share about the history, purpose and halachic significance of an Eruv. The program will include an interactive project.
The Beauty and Bliss of a Proper Burial
Jewish Cemetery Association, Shure Funeral Home, and Women’s Philanthropy of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven will collaborate on sharing with the community about the significance and appreciation of the spiritual and emotional aspects of a proper Jewish burial. The program will also feature award Sarah Birnbach, award winning author of “A Daughter’s Kaddish.”
We are grateful to the task force members, Linda Caplan, Nancy Cohen, Dena Schulman Green, Sami Merit, Stacey Perkins, and Norman Ravski (chair), for their time and dedication to this process.
Community Security Grants
These monies are available thanks to the Arthur Eder Family Fund of the Jewish Foundation of Greater New Haven and are made in memory of Arthur and Yvette Eder. Applications open January 1. Deadline is November 13, 2024.
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Talmud Torah Meyuchad
The Talmud Torah Meyuchad grant provides supplemental financial assistance to supplementary religious school programs serving children with individualized learning and special needs. The grant is designed to serve as the community’s contribution toward supporting these services and is to be part of a total financial and service support system partnership among schools, synagogues, parents/families and the community. The grant is to be used to partially support the added services, staffing or materials that will enhance student’s ability to benefit from the religious school program. Deadline is August 15, 2024.
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Grants for the Jewish Elderly
Grants to benefit programs and projects for Jewish elderly residing in greater New Haven. Since 2020, $450,000 in grants has been awarded. 2024 applications are due May 17, 2024.
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Jewish Foundation Professional Development Grants for Jewish Educators
Thanks to the Judith A. Kaye Fund for Teachers in Jewish Education and the Community Education Funds, the Jewish Foundation is thrilled to offer professional development grants for Jewish educators. These grants will help ensure that classroom educators in local Jewish schools have the opportunity to attend workshops and conferences in order to develop their teaching skills, and will help local Jewish organizations to provide educational opportunities to instructors and the community.
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Applicants must be either 1. classroom educators employed in Jewish education in a local Jewish school or synagogue and/or 2. A local Jewish school or synagogue . Eligible programs must be hosted by a recognized Jewish institution or reputable educational institution. Application deadline is April 12, 2024.
Women of Vision Society Grant
The Jewish Foundation’s Women of Vision Society has been helping women and girls in the Greater New Haven area and Israel for over 20 years. This endowment, created by 100 founding members in our community, has tackled issues from domestic violence and health to acculturation and spirituality. The endowment has more than doubled its membership and giving since its creation. Since its inception, Women of Vision has disbursed over $220,000 to help seed and sustain critical programming and services for women and girls.