Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston
/OVERVIEW: The Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston supports Jewish organizations in the Boston area and beyond. Other areas of giving include the environment, climate change, higher education, health and women and girls.
IP TAKE: The Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston runs open application programs for some of its grantmaking programs for Jewish organizations in the Boston area. The philanthropies run funding specific funding programs for Jewish community groups, arts and culture, youth, young adults and synagogue programs. For other grantmaking opportunities, grantseekers will need to network with leadership and board members.
While this funder’s Jewish causes funding tends to stay local, it also makes grants nationally and internationally for environmental, health and women’s causes. However, funding not related to Jewish causes most frequently supports established, large organizations rather than grassroots efforts. Grants can be substantial here, so grantmaking is competitive.
This is a transparent, accessible and approachable funder. It is a more mainstream funder that does not take pointed risks in it’s giving, however, which is common amongst similar organizations. However, grant guidelines and deadlines vary by program and initiative, so read directions closely.
PROFILE: The Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston (CJP) was established “over 125 years ago” with the goal of supporting Jewish immigrants to the Boston area as they established new lives, families and communities. JCP’s current aim is to “to inspire and mobilize the diverse Greater Boston Jewish community to engage in building communities of learning and action that strengthen Jewish life and improve the world.” While the philanthropies’ current grantmaking programs support initiatives for local Jewish causes, tax filings reveal strong support for non-Jewish national and international organizations involved in a broad range of causes including conservation, climate change mitigation, health and higher education. In addition to its proprietary grantmaking, CJP manages about $1.7 billion in donor-advised funds.
Grants for Jewish Causes
CJP’s grantmaking for Jewish organizations is broad, reaching large national and international organizations as well as local religious, cultural and education initiatives in the greater Boston area. Nationally, CJP supports the Jewish Federation of North America, Birthright Israel, the Hillel Foundation for Jewish Campus Life and the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America. Boston area grantees include Jewish Family and Children’s Services of Waltham, Boston’s Jewish Vocational Service, the Jewish Community Center of Greater Boston and the Hebrew College of Newton, Massachusetts. Grants have also gone to several U.S. organizations working to support causes in Israel, including the American Society of the University of Haifa, the American Israel Education Foundation and Friends of the Israel Defense Forces.
In addition to these larger grants, CJP runs the following grantmaking programs that award grants of $25,000 or less to Jewish organizations in the Boston area.
Community Impact Grants “support organizations in enhancing the well-being and vibrancy of the Greater Boston Jewish community.” Grants are awarded in amounts of up to $15,000 and stem from four separate sub-programs that focus on community, teens, college students and young adults from the ages of 22 to 40.
Arts and Culture Community Impact Grants are intended for individual artists and/or collaborative groups whose work explores or celebrates Jewish identity and culture. Each year, CJP awards one $25,000 and ten $7,5000 grants. Recent funding has prioritized collaborations between Jewish and BIPOC artists.
The Israel Teen Travel Scholarships Program supports teens whose family income is less than $185,000 a year with travel funds for summer programs, gap years, semesters abroad and other trips to Israel of 12 days or more.
Jewish Overnight Camping Incentive Grants supports children’s attendance and Jewish summer camps with grants of $1,000 and $500 for siblings.
Young Adult Microfunding grants offer Jewish individuals in their 20s and 30s grants of $200 to develop social and cultural programs and events that “touch on some aspect of Jewish life.”
RSIP Grants support synagogues running “accessible, inclusive programs or initiatives” for Jewish communities with grants of up to $1,000.
CJP also runs several signature outreach programs for the Boston area Jewish community, including mental health resources, antisemitism initiatives, antipoverty and youth development programs.
Grants for Environmental Conservation, Climate Change and Clean Energy
Recent years have seen an uptick in CJP’s giving for conservation, climate change mitigation and the development and adoption of clean energy production. Several grants of over $1 million have supported large, national and international organizations including the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Environmental Defense Fund, the Sierra Club Foundation, Energy Foundation China and the Advanced Energy Economy Institute.
Grants for Public Health and Access
CJP’s grantmaking for health appears to focus on the Boston area, with grants supporting the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, the Boston Medical Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, each of which received over $1 million in funding in a recent year. CJP has also supported Upstream USA, a Boston nonprofit that works in increase access to reproductive healthcare and contraceptives.
Grants for Higher Education
In addition to its support for Jewish colleges and universities in the U.S and Israel, CJP has given to a broad range of public and private institutions of higher education. Grantmaking appears to prioritize schools along the eastern seaboard, with recent grantees including Spelman College, Princeton University, Yale University, Cornell University, Boston University, Duke University, and others.
Grants for Women and Girls
CJP’s Miriam Fund supports projects and initiatives that support the advancement of women and girls in Massachusetts and/or Israel. Jewish and non-Jewish organizations with budgets of less than $1.5 are eligible for Miriam grants, which are awarded in amounts of up to $25,000. Funding prioritizes projects in the areas of education, economic development, health, legal rights and safety. Past grantees include Israel’s Center for Women’s Justice, the Jewish Women’s Archive and Hope and Comfort, an organization that distributes free hygiene products to women in need.
Important Grant Details
In a recent year, CJP made over $200 million in grants through its proprietary and donor-advised funds. Most grants fall between $5,000 and $500,000, but some large, national and international Jewish, health and environmental organizations have received grants ranging from $1 to $8 million. The philanthropies’ average grant size is about $50,000. This funder supports a broad range of organizations, prioritizing the greater Boston area and its many Jewish organizations and schools. For additional information about past grants see the philanthropies’ recent financial statements.
CJP runs application programs for its Community Impact, Arts and Culture, Israel Teen Travel, Jewish Overnight Camp, Young Adult Microfunding and Miram Fund grantmaking programs. Eligibility, guidelines and due dates vary by program and available on the linked program pages. All other grantmaking opportunities requires networking with the philanthropies’ leadership team or board of directors. An email and phone directory for various departments is available at CJP’s website.
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