FOLLOWING THE MONEY: A LOOK AT JEWISH FOUNDATION GIVING

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1 MAJOR FINDINGS INTRODUCTION FOLLOWING THE MONEY: A LOOK AT JEWISH FOUNDATION GIVING ERIK LUDWIG ARYEH WEINBERG Erik Ludwig Chief Operating Officer Aryeh Weinberg Research Director Nearly one quarter (24%) of total dollars donated by Jewish foundations, or $335 million, went to Jewish causes, showing a small (3%) increase from the previous IJCR study. Thirty-six percent ($119 million) of total dollars donated by Jewish foundations to Jewish causes went to Israel related organizations. The average grant to Israel related organizations was over 60% larger than those to other Jewish organizations. Jewish foundations are committed to centralized funding in America and Israel. Israel advocacy, including trips to Israel, accounted for 24% of all dollars to Israel. The percent of Jewish foundation dollars donated to Israel related organizations has increased from 32% to 36% since the previous IJCR study. INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH The Institute for Jewish & Community Research is an independent, non-partisan think tank that provides innovative research and pragmatic policy analysis on a broad range of issues including philanthropy, racial and religious identity, and anti-semitism All rights reserved. Institute for Jewish & Community Research. Following the Money: A Look at Jewish Foundation Giving presents selected findings from the forthcoming Study of Jewish Foundations. The study by the Institute for Jewish & Community Research (IJCR) provides insight into Jewish foundation philanthropy and its impact on Jewish and non-jewish charitable organizations. This research note focuses on Jewish foundation giving to Jewish causes in America and abroad. Jewish foundations are making their mark on the Jewish philanthropic world. They help to fund the vast network of Jewish communal institutions, while also acting as catalysts for innovative programming and upstart organizations meeting the diverse needs of the Jewish community. The increasing role of foundations is not uniquely a Jewish trend. From 1999 to 2009 the number of grantmaking foundations in America has increased in total number from 50,201 to 76,545, an increase of over 50%. 1 Nearly 10,000 foundations have made grants to Jewish causes and of the 100 largest private foundations, 16 were founded by a Jewish donor. The Institute for Jewish & Community Research has provided in-depth analysis of INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH 1

2 trends, values and beliefs in philanthropy over the last fifteen years. Our goal is to provide accurate and understandable data on Jewish giving. We are not advocating that foundations give in a specific manner more Jewishly or less Jewishly or for what purposes foundations should give. By providing data and analysis that offer a deeper understanding of Jewish giving in America, our intent is to encourage dialogue between foundations, community leaders, and Jewish organizations. METHODOLOGY Following the Money: A Look at Jewish Foundation Giving includes 56 foundations with combined assets of just under $20 billion that made grants totalling $1.4 billion according to the most recent year available in IRS 990 filings, either 2009 or Total giving represented 7% of total assets, an amount above the 5% minimum required by the IRS. Jewish foundations are defined as foundations established by a Jewish donor. While the majority of foundations mission statements claim a Jewish interest, this is not a requirement, though all foundations selected have made grants to Jewish causes. The selected Jewish foundations include private foundations and supporting foundations under the roof of Jewish Federations. Foundations were selected for study based on a number of criteria, including prominence in the Jewish community and in American society as a whole, regional diversity, size, age and organizational style. The sample provides a valuable look at a broad range of Jewish foundations. The study reflects foundation giving and does not comprehensively capture the giving of living donors who have access to a multitude of philanthropic mechanisms outside of their foundations. Jewish recipient institutions were defined as any charitable organizations that serve the Jewish community directly or serve the general community with an explicitly Jewish mission. All grants made to organizations in Israel are considered Jewish. Grants to Israel related organizations are at times in this report evaluated separately from other Jewish giving, but together comprise Jewish giving as a whole. Please see list of foundations at Any discrepancies in charts are due to rounding errors. INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH 2

3 GIVING TO JEWISH CAUSES Private foundations established by Jews hold vast sums of wealth. The foundations selected for this study have approximately $20 billion in combined assets. An important question facing the Jewish community, especially as centralized fundraising in the Jewish community decreases and the number of private foundations increases, is: To what extent should private foundations be relied on to support Jewish causes? The data revealed that 24% ($335 million) of the total $1.4 billion dollars donated went to Jewish causes, with the remaining 76% ($1.05 billion) going to non-jewish causes. (Figure 1) The distribution of total grants mirrored total dollars, with 24% of all grants going to Jewish causes, and 76% to non-jewish causes. The percent of dollars that went to Jewish causes (24%) represents a small increase over findings from the previous IJCR study of Jewish foundation giving. 2 However, the percent of grants remained constant at 24% (2,177) out of a total 9,232, indicating an increase in the average size of grants to Jewish causes. The average size of a gift to Jewish causes, excluding Israel related organizations, was $134,000. How much should the Jewish community expect from private Jewish foundations? As Jewish organizations seek to increase philanthropic support from Jewish foundations, it is important to remember that Jewish foundations have historically given to general American causes at exceptional rates, and will likely continue to do so. As a community, American Jewry expresses values and ethics that are simultaneously Jewish and American. Jewish foundations are no different. Jewish foundations are committed to the Jewish philanthropic network as well as the vast American independent sector. Many of these donors believe their philanthropy to health, education, social justice and human services reflect core tenets of Jewish life even when these recipient organizations may not be Jewish. INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH 3

4 GIVING TO ISRAEL One of the unique aspects of Jewish giving in America is the commitment to Israel. While giving to Israel is considered Jewish giving and is included in the total 24% donated to Jewish causes, we have also broken it out so that this category can be better understood. Out of the total $1.4 billion donated, 8% ($119 million) went to Israel related organizations (Figure 2), as did 6% of all grants. Of the total $335 million donated to Jewish causes, 36% ($119 million) went to Israel related organizations (Figure 3), which constitutes 26% (560) of total grants (2,177) to Jewish causes. (Figure 4) Jewish giving to Israel remains important to foundations. The average gift to Israel related organizations was $212,000, which represents an increase of more than 60% over grants to other Jewish causes. Despite the economic crisis that stressed foundation resources and that could have lead to a more local focus, giving to Israel saw a 4% increase since the last IJCR report. Considering concerns over the declining priority of Israel among younger Jews and next generation donors, continued commitment towards Israel by Jewish foundations is encouraging. It should be noted that consistency in giving to Israel is relative and can fluctuate based on existential threats to the Jewish State. INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH 4

5 WHERE DO JEWISH GIFTS GO? JEWISH GIVING - NOT ISRAEL RELATED Centralized giving dominated the total dollars in non-israel related Jewish philanthropy, with 29% of total dollars and 11% of total grants. Human Services followed, with 18% of total dollars and 12% of total grants. Education received 14% of dollars and 21% of grants. Organizations devoted to strengthening Jewish Life received 13% of dollars and 19% of grants; Religion, 8% of dollars and 13% of grants. (Figures 5 & 6) When all Educational categories are combined they represent 14% ($30 million) of non-israel related Jewish giving. Of this amount, $11.2 million went to K-12 Education and $9.5 million each went to Private Higher Education and General Education. The average size of a gift to Education was $87,000. The number of gifts to non-israel related Jewish causes is relatively evenly distributed compared to the total dollars given to these causes. The average size of a gift to Federations/Funds was $356,000, and to Human Services was $195,000. In comparison, the average gift to Jewish Life was $95,000, and $81,000 to Religion. Jewish foundations prioritize centralized giving to Federations/Funds. As general fundraising campaigns decline, this relationship will become increasingly important. It is worth noting that that Jewish Federations/Funds may in the future redistribute dollars to Israel related causes or non-jewish causes, but are listed here as non- Israel related Jewish giving. Likewise, Israel Funds, to a lesser degree, also redistribute funds raised to causes outside of Israel. INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH 5

6 WHERE DO JEWISH GIFTS GO? JEWISH GIVING - ISRAEL RELATED Jewish giving to Israel looks different than Jewish giving outside of Israel. Our methodology counts all Jewish foundation gifts to Israel as Jewish gifts. As a vibrant society, Israel provides many funding opportunities that would not be considered Jewish in America, from Higher Education to Arts & Culture to the Environment. Despite differences between Jewish giving to Israel related causes and other Jewish causes, there are similarities. Israel Funds were the major recipients of Israel designated Jewish dollars with 30% of total dollars and 30% of grants. While Israel funds do not mirror American Jewish federations and funds, they are analogous in that they represent a commitment by donors to the centralized model, even as they provide direct support to Jewish non-profits. (Figures 7 & 8) The second largest giving category, Israel Advocacy (24% of dollars; 8% of grants), was influenced by large grants for trips to Israel. Education accounted for 20% of dollars and 17% of grants. Arts & Culture combined with Public/Society Benefit accounted for 13% of total dollars and 14% of grants. Human Services and Youth Development received less than 5% of dollars each and 7% and 6% of grants respectively. While it is evident that Israel related giving and other Jewish giving share a commitment to Federations/Funds and Education, there are significant differences. Israel related giving does not focus on the categories of Jewish Life, Religion, or Human Services nearly as much as non-israel related Jewish giving. At the same time, Israel related giving is more devoted to Arts INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH 6

7 & Culture and Public/Society Benefit. Giving to Education also means something different in Israel than in the United States. In Israel, Jewish education includes all institutions of education and is dominated by higher education whereas outside Israel, Jewish education refers largely to K-12 Jewish day schools. Giving to Religion in Israel predominantly means supporting centers of religious study, whereas in the United States it is largely directed to local synagogues. One can frame the difference in giving priorities based on the context of different needs in Israel. Arguably, little is needed to facilitate Jewish life while living in the Jewish state. However, outside of Israel a multitude of organizations exist to provide spaces for Jewish life. CONCLUSION Walk into the boardroom of a Jewish organization and sooner or later, usually sooner, someone will suggest that Jews need to give more to the Jewish community. It is a complicated statement often made in an off-the-cuff manner that frequently fails to take into account the complexity of Jewish philanthropy. Why Jewish foundations give more or less to Jewish causes may be the result of the funding opportunities available, how donors perceive Jewish giving, and how they weigh the needs of the Jewish and non-jewish communities. What gets lost in this conversation is the continued commitment to Jewish causes and incredible impact Jewish philanthropy has on the Jewish world and beyond. Jewish foundation giving is shaping the landscape of the Jewish community through its philanthropic decisions. Perhaps, the most important decision private foundations have made is to continue to provide significant support toward traditional centralized organizations, while also seeding innovative Jewish projects and organizations. This and/ both instead of either/or approach provides the Jewish community with support for core programs while maintaining the ability to research and develop new programs that meet contemporary needs. Moreover, it encourages cooperation, communication and coordination between foundations, community leaders, and Jewish organizations. Jewish foundations are critical partners offering centralized support directly and also indirectly by granting programs that would otherwise come from community funds. Jewish foundations are invested in both traditional and innovative philanthropy, questioning the notion that Jewish philanthropy is a zerosum game. Previous studies on philanthropy can be viewed online at For additional information please contact: Erik Ludwig or Aryeh Weinberg, Endnotes: 1. See 2. Tobin, Gary A. and Aryeh K. Weinberg, A Study of Jewish Foundations, San Francisco: The Institute for Jewish & Community Research, INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH & COMMUNITY RESEARCH 7