Attended the JUF YLD "Double Chai" networking night with friends from Spertus
Joined leaders from the Jewish Federation / JUF on an advocacy mission in Springfield, IL which included a Yom Hashoah ceremony
I was honored to share jobs and networking advice for 2 hours to the JUF Lewis Summer Interns
Coordinated a visit of 50+ JUF, JVS, JCFS and CJE staff on Devon Avenue to learn more about the local businesses and organizations of West Rogers Park
10 innovative initiatives receive inaugural JUF Breakthrough Fund grants
Ten new initiatives, each focusing on different aspects of engaging unaffiliated individuals, families and/or members of the LGBTQ community, are recipients of the first round of Breakthrough Fund mini-grants from the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago.
The $5,000 grants fund new, innovative local programs, projects and initiatives in Chicago’s Jewish community that meet local human needs and engage community members Jewishly throughout their lifespans. Through the Breakthrough Fund, JUF is investing in Jewish social entrepreneurship and innovation to:
Inspire community youth; strengthen Jewish congregational life; increase adult participation in Chicago Jewish communal life; engage groups that are underrepresented in Jewish communal life; and influence Jewish journeys.
Address needs emerging from the new health care paradigm; meet ongoing needs of people who are chronically poor or among the “new poor;” develop programs that reach diverse populations; and reduce barriers to inclusion for underserved populations.
“JUF Breakthrough Fund grants will support not only proven organizations that create and expand value-added programs and services, but will help new voices, visions and ideas to emerge and contribute to the Chicago community,” said David Rubovits, JUF’s Senior Vice President of Planning and Allocations.
This initial round of mini-grants is intended to kickstart a range of efforts quickly. The next Breakthrough Fund grant cycle, beginning with requests for proposals in February, will include additional categories of grant-making, including larger and multi-year grants that support innovation.
The ultimate goal is to award $1 million in Breakthrough Fund grants annually for new programs, capacity-building efforts and novel approaches that address local human needs or engage members of the Jewish community.
Three of the initial initiatives receiving funding reach out to unaffiliated individuals, families and members of the LGBTQ community.
Mishkan Chicago: Experiments in Family Education, seeks to increase the number of families identifying with the Jewish community through educational programs for young, unaffiliated, interfaith and LGBTQ families.
Congregation Or Chadash: Hidur Keshet, will create a space for LGBTQ Jewish individuals to connect with the extended Jewish community through program content that links gay history, gender identity, and Judaism.
Upstart Bay Area/Bayit Evanston: Afterschool Jewish Learning Community, a Jewish afterschool enrichment program, uses experiential, Hebrew-infused learning to connect with children of families that are not actively engaged in Jewish education, including children from interfaith, LBGTQ and Russian-speaking families.
The other first-round grantees include:
Emanuel Congregation: Stepping Stones, a program for students in eighth through 12th grade that offers confirmation credits in Torah (study), Avodah (prayer), Gemilut Chasadim (social justice), and Kehillah (community).
Chicago Filmmakers/Luminescence Media Group, for supplementary filming of the Chicago-based Holocaust documentary, “Rumbula’s Echo.” The film will be used for education and to inspire Jewish youth to explore family ties.
Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, for the first two in a series of family education initiatives designed to bring Jewish life into homes: “Seder in a Sack” and “Mi Ohev Et HaShabbat?” (Who Loves Shabbat?)
North Shore Congregation Israel, for development of Jewish Holiday Connections, new holiday programs for Tu B’Shevat, Purim, Passover and Shabbat, to be offered outside the synagogue. The goal is to build relationships among young families that are exploring raising their children Jewish.
Keshet, for development of an Ability Awareness Curriculum Guide for schools and camps. The guide will provide information for creating a more inclusive, accepting community for children and young adults with developmental disabilities.
Anshe Sholom B’nai Israel Congregation, for its Project Mishpacha Shabbat meals program, creating “mishpacha” (family) units for monthly meals at individual family homes, in order to develop meaningful social connections within the project’s diverse membership.
Shorashim, to support development of a Chicago-wide Hebrew National Honor Society in seven public high schools and the day schools offering Modern Hebrew.
Federation leaders applaud positions taken on academic boycott of Israel by local universities
David T. Brown, Chairman of the Board, and Steven B. Nasatir, President, have issued the following statement on the recent vote of the American Studies Association:
The resolution passed at the recent meeting of the American Studies Association (ASA) calling for a boycott of Israeli universities has raised considerable consternation. While the ASA may be a relatively small (approximately 5,000 member) organization, and while hardly more than 800 of its members voted for that resolution – which critics including ASA members claim was railroaded through – the issue is of legitimate concern to all true supporters of academic freedom, fairness, and a just resolution of the Israel-Palestinian conflict.
As the American Association of University Professors and other groups and individuals from the world of academia have proclaimed, the very concept of academic boycotts is totally alien to the principles of academic freedom which are basic to university life. And by singling out Israeli universities, and only them, as it has done, the ASA has invited criticism of its motives as well as it methods.
In response to this repugnant act by a body which has been described as “a fringe of a fringe,” university presidents and administrators around the country have raised their voices to condemn the step taken by the ASA, to support academic freedom, and in some cases to end their own institution’s membership in the ASA.
In our own area, Northwestern University and the University of Chicago were quick to raise their voices in this way. We commend and applaud those and other universities, listed here, that have already spoken out in opposition to the ASA academic boycott resolution or gone further and retracted their membership in ASA. Our hope and expectation is that all universities will join this chorus speaking up for academic freedom and against the violation of academic standards by the ASA and any other association who use their pulpits to promote misguided political agendas.
Chicago mayor lights JUF menorah on last night of Chanukah
Chicago received one last gift on the last night of Chanukah this year.
On Wednesday, the eighth and final night of the holiday, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel visited the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago to light the menorah (Chanukah lamp) during a ceremony co-sponsored by the City of Chicago.
JUF/JF President Steven B. Nasatir introduced the mayor. “Chanukah is all about freedom,” Nasatir said. “Here we are, thousands of years later. living in this great country, a country that has provided freedom for all Americans, in a wonderful community, in an extraordinary city that’s headed by a mayor who exhibits vigor and wisdom every single day.”
“I want to thank the Jewish United Fund not for what it’s doing today, but because the Jewish United Fund lights Chanukah [every day]!” said Mayor Emanuel. “What is Chanukah? Bringing light to those who live in the shadows and making sure that people, regardless of where they live, have light in their life. We have to contribute part of our light to helping others that are less fortunate regardless of where they live across the world or across the city. I want to thank the Jewish United Fund for your commitment to helping lift others up. This holiday should help all of us recommit to helping others who are less fortunate in our city, remember them, not just today, and not just in the holiday season, but yearlong.”
The spirited children’s choir from the Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School sang three songs during the candle lighting, including a Matisyahu song called “Miracle.”
The candle lighting came a week after the first night of the Festival of Lights, which coincided this year with Thanksgiving Day.
Have you watched my appearance on ABC / JUF's show "Sanctuary" on young leaders making a difference?
Selected as one of the Double Chai in the Chi / 36 under 36 by the Jewish United Fund
