Gottesman Fund

OVERVIEW: The Gottesman Fund supports Jewish causes in the United States and Israel. It also funds organizations focused on K-12 and higher education, public health, housing and homelessness, community development, and arts and culture.

IP TAKE: This funder is not transparent or accessible. It prefers a proactive grantmaking approach, while keeping a low profile with no website or a clear way to get in contact or apply for support. It does not accept unsolicited proposals or requests for funding. Nor is this low-key funder particularly approachable, making it a tough nut to crack.

PROFILE: Established in 1965, the Gottesman Fund is a private family foundation based in Washington, D.C. This is a low-key foundation that does not have a website to guide grantseekers. David and Ruth Gottesman created this foundation, which has largely given money to Jewish causes over the years. The late David Gottesman and was an early investor in Berkshire Hathaway after meeting Warren Buffet in 1962. Gottesman founded his own investment firm, First Manhattan Co., in 1964. The fund works to enhance and perpetuate Jewish life in the United States and improve the quality of life in Israel. The details of its grantmaking in Israel is not entirely discernible, though, because Gottesman directs millions through P.E.F. Israel Endowment Funds. The Gottesman fund also supports groups and organizations focused on K-12 and higher education, public health, housing and homelessness, community development, and arts and culture.

Grants for Jewish Causes

The Gottesman Fund is a major contributor to Jewish organizations in the United States and in Israel. It has supported PEF Israel, an endowment fund that collects and distributes funding to charitable Israeli organizations. It has also made donations to over 250 Israeli school libraries and the Jerusalem Zoo, which used the funding to establish the Gottesman Family Israel Aquarium. The Gottesmans’ daughter, Alice, is a longtime board member of the Jewish Community Center of Manhattan, and the family has steadily supported this and other JCC chapters in the U.S. Other past grantees include Birthright Israel, the Center for Initiatives in Jewish Education, the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces and the UJA-Federation of New York.

Grants for Higher Education and K-12 Education

The Gottesman Fund has strongly supported Yeshiva University, where David Gottesman is a chair emeritus. In 2008, Gottesman gave a $25 million gift to the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University to establish the Ruth L. and David S. Gottesman Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, and in 2024, Ruth gave a $1 billion donation to the college to provide free tuition in perpetuity. Other higher education grantees include Barnard College, Champlain College, the University of Wisconsin, and Teachers College at Columbia University, which established the Gottesman Libraries in the family’s name. Gottesman have supported many Jewish K-12 schools in the New York area including the Abraham Joshua Heschel School; SAR Academy in Riverdale, New York; the Golda Och Academy and the Solomon Schechter School of Westchester County, New York.

Grants for Public Health, Housing, Homelessness and Community Development

The Gottesman Fund’s health funding broadly prioritizes organizations in New York City. Past grantees include the Bachmann-Strauss Dystonia & Parkinson Foundation, the Center For Reproductive Rights, the Hospital for Special Surgery and New York University’s Langone Medical Center. 

Gottesman also funds organizations that address hunger, homelessness and at-risk youth. In the past, it has supported New York’s City Harvest and, in Vermont, the Committee On Temporary Shelter and the Lund Family Center, which offers services and support to individuals and families living in poverty or suffering from addictive disorders.

Grants for Arts and Culture

Gottesman’s philanthropy in the area of arts and culture has been directed mainly toward organizations operating in New York City. Past grantees include American Museum of Natural History, Bronx Children's Museum, and the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum.

Important Grant Details:

Grant amounts vary wildly based on the nature of the organization receiving funding. The Gottesman Fund gave Ramapo for Children, an organization dedicated to providing outdoor sports camps for boys and girls, just $1,000 in 2019, while P.E.F. Israel Endowment Fund received $1.6 million that same year.

While Gottesman should not be considered a regional funder, much of its grantmaking stays in New York and New Jersey. It does not accept or review unsolicited proposals or requests for funding.

PEOPLE:

Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).

CONTACT:

The Gottesman Fund does not provide a clear avenue of contact but below is an address and phone number: 

The Gottesman Fund

1818 N St. N.W., Ste. 400

Washington, DC 20036

(202) 785-2727