F O LL OWI NG T HE M O NEY: A L OO K AT JEWI SH F OU NDAT IO N G I VI NG

MAJ OR F I ND IN GS
Nearlyonequarter(24%)oftotaldollars donatedbyJewishfoundations,or$335 million,wenttoJewishcauses,showing asmall(3%)increasefromtheprevious IJCRstudy.

INTRODUCTION
FollowingtheMoney:ALookatJewish FoundationGiving presentsselected findingsfromtheforthcomingStudyof JewishFoundations.Thestudybythe InstituteforJewish&Community Research(IJCR)providesinsightinto Jewishfoundationphilanthropyandits impactonJewishandnonJewish charitableorganizations.Thisresearch notefocusesonJewishfoundationgiving toJewishcausesinAmericaandabroad. Jewishfoundationsaremakingtheirmark ontheJewishphilanthropicworld.They helptofundthevastnetworkofJewish communalinstitutions,whilealsoacting ascatalystsforinnovativeprogramming andupstartorganizationsmeetingthe diverseneedsoftheJewishcommunity. Theincreasingroleoffoundationsisnot uniquelyaJewishtrend.From1999to 2009thenumberofgrantmaking foundationsinAmericahasincreasedin totalnumberfrom50,201to76,545,an increaseofover50%.1 Nearly10,000 foundationshavemadegrantstoJewish causesandofthe100largestprivate foundations,16werefoundedbyaJewish donor. TheInstituteforJewish&Community Researchhasprovidedindepthanalysisof

FOLLOWING THE MONEY: A LOOK AT JEWISH F O U N D ATION GIVING ERIK LUDWIG A RYEH WEINBERG

Thirtysixpercent($119million) oftotaldollarsdonatedbyJewish foundationstoJewishcauseswent toIsraelrelatedorganizations. TheaveragegranttoIsraelrelated organizationswasover60%largerthan thosetootherJewishorganizations. Jewishfoundationsarecommittedto centralizedfundinginAmericaand Israel. Israeladvocacy,includingtripstoIsrael, accountedfor24%ofalldollarsto Israel. ThepercentofJewishfoundationdollars donatedtoIsraelrelatedorganizations hasincreasedfrom32%to36%since thepreviousIJCRstudy.

ErikLudwig ChiefOperatingOfficer

IN S T IT UTE F OR JE WI S H & COMMUN I TY R ES EA RC H

TheInstituteforJewish&Community Researchisanindependent,nonpartisan thinktankthatprovidesinnovative researchandpragmaticpolicyanalysison abroadrangeofissuesincludingphilan thropy,racialandreligiousidentity,and antiSemitism.

AryehWeinberg ResearchDirector

2012Allrightsreserved.InstituteforJewish&CommunityResearch.

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trends,valuesandbeliefsinphilanthropyoverthe lastfifteenyears.Ourgoalistoprovideaccurate andunderstandabledataonJewishgiving.Weare notadvocatingthatfoundationsgiveinaspecific mannermoreJewishlyorlessJewishlyorfor whatpurposesfoundationsshouldgive.By providingdataandanalysisthatofferadeeper understandingofJewishgivinginAmerica,our intentistoencouragedialoguebetween foundations,communityleaders,andJewish organizations.

offoundationsmissionstatementsclaimaJewish interest,thisisnotarequirement,thoughall foundationsselectedhavemadegrantstoJewish causes.TheselectedJewishfoundationsinclude privatefoundationsandsupportingfoundations undertheroofofJewishFederations.Foundations wereselectedforstudybasedonanumberofcri teria,includingprominenceintheJewishcommu nityandinAmericansocietyasawhole,regional diversity,size,ageandorganizationalstyle.The sampleprovidesavaluablelookatabroadrange ofJewishfoundations.Thestudyreflectsfounda tiongivinganddoesnotcomprehensivelycap turethegivingoflivingdonorswhohaveaccessto amultitudeofphilanthropicmechanismsoutside oftheirfoundations. Jewishrecipientinstitutionsweredefinedasany charitableorganizationsthatservetheJewish communitydirectlyorservethegeneralcommu nitywithanexplicitlyJewishmission.Allgrants madetoorganizationsinIsraelareconsidered Jewish.GrantstoIsraelrelatedorganizationsare attimesinthisreportevaluatedseparatelyfrom otherJewishgiving,buttogethercomprise Jewishgivingasawhole. Pleaseseelistoffoundationsat www.JewishResearch.org.Anydiscrepanciesin chartsareduetoroundingerrors.

METHODOLOGY
FollowingtheMoney:ALookatJewishFoundation Giving includes56foundationswithcombined assetsofjustunder$20billionthatmadegrants totalling$1.4billionaccordingtothemostrecent yearavailableinIRS990filings,either2009or 2010.Totalgivingrepresented7%oftotalassets, anamountabovethe5%minimumrequiredby theIRS. Jewishfoundationsaredefinedasfoundations establishedbyaJewishdonor.Whilethemajority

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F O LL OWI NG T HE M O NEY: A L OO K AT JEWI SH F OU NDAT IO N G I VI NG

GI VI NG TO JE WI S H CAU SE S
PrivatefoundationsestablishedbyJewsholdvast sumsofwealth.Thefoundationsselectedforthis studyhaveapproximately$20billionincombined assets.AnimportantquestionfacingtheJewish community,especiallyascentralizedfundraisingin theJewishcommunitydecreasesandthenumber ofprivatefoundationsincreases,is:Towhat extentshouldprivatefoundationsbereliedonto supportJewishcauses?Thedatarevealedthat 24%($335million)ofthetotal$1.4billiondollars donatedwenttoJewishcauses,withtheremain ing76%($1.05billion)goingtononJewishcauses. (Figure1)Thedistributionoftotalgrantsmirrored totaldollars,with24%ofallgrantsgoingtoJewish causes,and76%tononJewishcauses. ThepercentofdollarsthatwenttoJewishcauses (24%)representsasmallincreaseoverfindings fromthepreviousIJCRstudyofJewishfoundation giving.2 However,thepercentofgrantsremained constantat24%(2,177)outofatotal9,232,indi catinganincreaseintheaveragesizeofgrantsto

Jewishcauses.TheaveragesizeofagifttoJewish causes,excludingIsraelrelatedorganizations,was $134,000. HowmuchshouldtheJewishcommunityexpect fromprivateJewishfoundations?AsJewish organizationsseektoincreasephilanthropic supportfromJewishfoundations,itisimportant torememberthatJewishfoundationshave historicallygiventogeneralAmericancausesat exceptionalrates,andwilllikelycontinuetodoso. Asacommunity,AmericanJewryexpressesvalues andethicsthataresimultaneouslyJewishand American.Jewishfoundationsarenodifferent. JewishfoundationsarecommittedtotheJewish philanthropicnetworkaswellasthevast Americanindependentsector.Manyofthese donorsbelievetheirphilanthropytohealth, education,socialjusticeandhumanservices reflectcoretenetsofJewishlifeevenwhenthese recipientorganizationsmaynotbeJewish.

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GI VIN G T O I S RAE L
OneoftheuniqueaspectsofJewishgivingin AmericaisthecommitmenttoIsrael.Whilegiving toIsraelisconsideredJewishgivingandis includedinthetotal24%donatedtoJewishcaus es,wehavealsobrokenitoutsothatthiscatego rycanbebetterunderstood.Outofthetotal$1.4 billiondonated,8%($119million)wenttoIsrael relatedorganizations(Figure2),asdid6%ofall grants. Ofthetotal$335milliondonatedtoJewish causes,36%($119million)wenttoIsraelrelated organizations(Figure3),whichconstitutes26% (560)oftotalgrants(2,177)toJewishcauses. (Figure4)

JewishgivingtoIsraelremainsimportantto foundations.TheaveragegifttoIsraelrelated organizationswas$212,000,whichrepresents anincreaseofmorethan60%overgrantsto otherJewishcauses. Despitetheeconomiccrisisthatstressedfounda tionresourcesandthatcouldhaveleadtoamore localfocus,givingtoIsraelsawa4%increase sincethelastIJCRreport.Consideringconcerns overthedecliningpriorityofIsraelamong youngerJewsandnextgenerationdonors,con tinuedcommitmenttowardsIsraelbyJewish foundationsisencouraging.Itshouldbenoted thatconsistencyingivingtoIsraelisrelativeand canfluctuatebasedonexistentialthreatstothe JewishState.

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W HE RE DO JE WI S H GI FT S GO? J EW IS H GI VI NG - NOT I S RAE L RE LAT E D

Centralizedgivingdominatedthetotaldollarsin nonIsraelrelatedJewishphilanthropy,with29% oftotaldollarsand11%oftotalgrants.Human Servicesfollowed,with18%oftotaldollarsand 12%oftotalgrants.Educationreceived14%of dollarsand21%ofgrants.Organizationsdevoted tostrengtheningJewishLifereceived13%ofdol larsand19%ofgrants;Religion,8%ofdollarsand 13%ofgrants.(Figures5&6)

WhenallEducationalcategoriesarecombined theyrepresent14%($30million)ofnonIsrael relatedJewishgiving.Ofthisamount,$11.2 millionwenttoK12Educationand$9.5million eachwenttoPrivateHigherEducationand GeneralEducation.Theaveragesizeofagiftto Educationwas$87,000.

ThenumberofgiftstononIsraelrelatedJewish causesisrelativelyevenlydistributedcomparedto thetotaldollarsgiventothesecauses.The averagesizeofagifttoFederations/Fundswas $356,000,andtoHumanServiceswas$195,000. Incomparison,theaveragegifttoJewishLifewas $95,000,and$81,000toReligion.

Jewishfoundationsprioritizecentralizedgivingto Federations/Funds.Asgeneralfundraising campaignsdecline,thisrelationshipwillbecome increasinglyimportant.Itisworthnotingthatthat JewishFederations/Fundsmayinthefuture redistributedollarstoIsraelrelatedcausesor nonJewishcauses,butarelistedhereasnon IsraelrelatedJewishgiving.Likewise,IsraelFunds, toalesserdegree,alsoredistributefundsraisedto causesoutsideofIsrael.

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WH E RE DO JEW I S H GIF TS GO? JE WI S H GI VIN G - IS RA EL R EL AT E D

JewishgivingtoIsraellooksdifferentthanJewish givingoutsideofIsrael.Ourmethodologycounts allJewishfoundationgiftstoIsraelasJewishgifts. Asavibrantsociety,Israelprovidesmanyfunding opportunitiesthatwouldnotbeconsidered JewishinAmerica,fromHigherEducationtoArts &CulturetotheEnvironment. DespitedifferencesbetweenJewishgivingto IsraelrelatedcausesandotherJewishcauses, therearesimilarities.IsraelFundswerethemajor recipientsofIsraeldesignatedJewishdollarswith 30%oftotaldollarsand30%ofgrants.While IsraelfundsdonotmirrorAmericanJewish federationsandfunds,theyareanalogousinthat theyrepresentacommitmentbydonorstothe centralizedmodel,evenastheyprovidedirect supporttoJewishnonprofits.(Figures7&8)

Thesecondlargestgivingcategory,Israel Advocacy(24%ofdollars;8%ofgrants),was influencedbylargegrantsfortripstoIsrael. Educationaccountedfor20%ofdollarsand17% ofgrants.Arts&Culturecombinedwith Public/SocietyBenefitaccountedfor13%oftotal dollarsand14%ofgrants.HumanServicesand YouthDevelopmentreceivedlessthan5%ofdol larseachand7%and6%ofgrantsrespectively. WhileitisevidentthatIsraelrelatedgivingand otherJewishgivingshareacommitmentto Federations/FundsandEducation,thereare significantdifferences.Israelrelatedgivingdoes notfocusonthecategoriesofJewishLife, Religion,orHumanServicesnearlyasmuchas nonIsraelrelatedJewishgiving.Atthesame time,IsraelrelatedgivingismoredevotedtoArts

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&CultureandPublic/SocietyBenefit.Givingto Educationalsomeanssomethingdifferentin IsraelthanintheUnitedStates.InIsrael,Jewish educationincludesallinstitutionsofeducation andisdominatedbyhighereducationwhereas outsideIsrael,Jewisheducationreferslargelyto K12Jewishdayschools.GivingtoReligionin Israelpredominantlymeanssupportingcentersof religiousstudy,whereasintheUnitedStatesitis largelydirectedtolocalsynagogues. Onecanframethedifferenceingivingpriorities basedonthecontextofdifferentneedsinIsrael. Arguably,littleisneededtofacilitateJewishlife whilelivingintheJewishstate.However,outside ofIsraelamultitudeoforganizationsexisttopro videspacesforJewishlife.

andhowtheyweightheneedsoftheJewishand nonJewishcommunities.Whatgetslostinthis conversationisthecontinuedcommitmentto JewishcausesandincredibleimpactJewishphi lanthropyhasontheJewishworldandbeyond. Jewishfoundationgivingisshapingthelandscape oftheJewishcommunitythroughitsphilanthrop icdecisions. Perhaps,themostimportantdecisionprivate foundationshavemadeistocontinuetoprovide significantsupporttowardtraditionalcentralized organizations,whilealsoseedinginnovative Jewishprojectsandorganizations.Thisand/ bothinsteadofeither/orapproachprovides theJewishcommunitywithsupportforcore programswhilemaintainingtheabilityto researchanddevelopnewprogramsthatmeet contemporaryneeds.Moreover,itencourages cooperation,communicationandcoordination betweenfoundations,communityleaders,and Jewishorganizations.Jewishfoundationsare criticalpartnersofferingcentralizedsupport directlyandalsoindirectlybygrantingprograms thatwouldotherwisecomefromcommunity funds.Jewishfoundationsareinvestedinboth traditionalandinnovativephilanthropy,question ingthenotionthatJewishphilanthropyisazero sumgame.

CONCLUSION
WalkintotheboardroomofaJewishorganization andsoonerorlater,usuallysooner,someonewill suggestthatJewsneedtogivemoretothe Jewishcommunity.Itisacomplicatedstatement oftenmadeinanoffthecuffmannerthat frequentlyfailstotakeintoaccountthe complexityofJewishphilanthropy.WhyJewish foundationsgivemoreorlesstoJewishcauses maybetheresultofthefundingopportunities available,howdonorsperceiveJewishgiving,

Endnotes: 1.Seewww.foundationcenter.org/findfunders/statistics/pdf/02.../2009/03_09.pdf 2.Tobin,GaryA.andAryehK.Weinberg,AStudyofJewishFoundations,SanFrancisco:TheInstituteforJewish& CommunityResearch,2007.

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F O RT H C O M I N G
Thissummaryprovidesasnapshotofthe completereportaboutphilanthropyinAmerica, tobereleasedlaterin2012.Previousstudies onphilanthropycanbeviewedonlineat www.JewishResearch.org Foradditionalinformationpleasecontact: ErikLudwigorAryehWeinberg InstituteforJewish&CommunityResearch 415.386.2604

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