UJA-Federation of New York Receives $1,000,000 Grant to Assist Hurricane Sandy Victims

Jim Joseph Foundation grant will help families access Jewish day schools and summer camps

NEW YORK – To aid victims of Hurricane Sandy, UJA-Federation of New York has been awarded a $1,000,000 grant from the San Francisco-based Jim Joseph Foundation. The grant will provide families devastated by the Hurricane with additional assistance for educational purposes such as tuition/enrollment subsidies for Jewish day schools and Jewish residential summer camps. As Sandy recovery continues to stretch out over months, the financial impact to many families has been significant, forcing many to choose relocation and restoration expenses over continued Jewish education opportunities for their children.

“In the immediate aftermath of the storm, UJA-Federation reached out to day schools, agencies, and synagogues to assess need and offer our support. Together, we responded to immediate need and committed to the long-term recovery effort.” said John S. Ruskay, executive vice president and CEO of UJA-Federation of New York. “With the magnitude of need so enormous, this grant from the Jim Joseph Foundation will bring families devastated by the storm some sense of normalcy, providing children the opportunity to continue their education in day schools and experience Jewish life at summer camps.”

The Jim Joseph Foundation does not award grants to individuals for direct tuition assistance. However, the Board is guided by the principle that grants to established Jewish organizations that know their constituencies can provide support for Jewish educational experiences that families would otherwise have to forsake. The Jim Joseph Foundation first implemented a similar grantmaking strategy following Hurricane Katrina and again early in the recession that started in 2008.

“It is of course vital that philanthropic dollars respond to the immediate humanitarian needs of victims, but there is a critical need for this aid as well,” says Al Levitt, president of the Jim Joseph Foundation. “Long after news coverage dissipates and much of the philanthropic funding ceases, families need assistance to return to a sense of normalcy. For Jewish families, this often means financial assistance to afford tuition to Jewish day schools and Jewish camp enrollment. We have a responsibility to help families once again have access to the Jewish learning and identity-shaping opportunities that are such an integral part of their lives.”

As noted by John Bonacorsi and Tia Subramanian of Arabella Advisors, research on disaster relief needs and efforts display a problematic trend:

The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation reports that within the first two months following a disaster, more than two-thirds of private giving is complete, and by five or six months almost all giving subsides. Considering, for example, that the Rand Corporation estimates it will take more than 11 years for communities affected by Hurricane Katrina to recover, it is clear how inadequate short-term commitments to disaster relief are.

An understanding of this philanthropic dynamic helped to shape this grant. The Jim Joseph Foundation sought a partner that could effectively administer funding to provide tangible, meaningful support to families victimized by Hurricane Sandy and struggling to keep their children engaged in Jewish learning. UJA-Federation of New York is an ideal partner.

“The impact of this grant will be far-reaching,” continued Ruskay. “Our recent Jewish Community Study of New York demonstrated that Jewish education through day schools and camps strengthens and builds long term connections to the larger Jewish community.”

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About UJA-Federation of New York

For more than 90 years, UJA-Federation has been a central force for communal planning and philanthropy in the New York Jewish community. Through UJA-Federation, almost 60,000 donors pool their resources to help people in need, inspire a passion for Jewish life and learning, and strengthen Jewish communities around the world — to address the issues that matter to us most as Jews and as New Yorkers. Working with nearly 100 network beneficiary agencies, synagogues, and other Jewish organizations, our reach spans from New York to Israel to more than 60 other countries around the world, touching 4.5 million people each year. Because we do the most good when we do it together. For more information on how to donate or how to volunteer, please visit our website at http://www.ujafedny.org.

About Jim Joseph Foundation

By investing in promising Jewish education grant initiatives, the Jim Joseph Foundation seeks to foster compelling, effective Jewish learning experiences for young Jews in the United States. Established in 2006, the Jim Joseph Foundation has awarded $270 million in grants to engage, educate, and inspire young Jewish minds to discover the joy of living vibrant Jewish lives.www.jimjosephfoundation.org