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On this webinar, speakers focused on mental health during this difficult time. Our speakers included Steve Margeotes from Main Street Counseling, Sonia Rodrigues-Marto from Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care, and Ron Chaluisan from the Newark Trust for Education on their social-emotional learning work in schools. We were then be joined by Aisha Glover of the Newark Alliance who is working with the City of Newark, Partners in Health, and the MCJ Amelior Foundation to help to coordinate the city's contact tracing initiative.

Speakers
Steve Margeotes, Executive Director, Main Street Counseling
Sonia Rodrigues-Marto, Program Director, Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care
Ron Chaluisan, Executive Director Newark Trust for Education
Aisha Glover, President & CEO, Newark Alliance

Cost: Free for CNJG Members/ $35 for Non Member Grantmakers

Webinar Video

Schools are uniquely positioned to support student wellbeing and promote a positive learning environment, but often lack the resources to do so. The Foundation for Educational Administration (FEA) is giving schools the tools needed to help students succeed through two initiatives: Transforming Early Childhood Leadership Institute and the Healing Centered Engagement program.

As New Jersey continues to expand full-day preschool, principals and school leaders face the challenge of creating a high-quality experience for early learners. The Transforming Early Childhood Leadership Institute supports this endeavor by training and coaching leaders from schools offering PreK-3 instruction. Through the Institute, participating schools send leadership teams of principals, teacher leaders, and central office staff to learn best practices on strengthening early childhood education and creating a strong learning foundation. The Institute is supported by The Nicholson Foundation (now sunsetted) and The Henry and Marilyn Taub Foundation.

Launched in response to unprecedented levels of youth mental health concerns, the Healing Centered Engagement program offers interactive trainings and tailored coaching to school staff on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), trauma informed practices, healing centered engagement, and Youth Mental Health First Aid. The model takes a whole-school approach – reaching community partners, teachers, administrators, school staff, and families across regions and grade-levels. Since the program’s launch, FEA has trained over 3,400 New Jersey school staff and partners. The Burke Foundation supports the project with the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Princeton Area Community Foundation, and the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund (now sunsetted).

Join our speakers from the NJ Office of Resilience, NJ Department of Education, and the Foundation for Educational Administration to:

• Understand the importance of alignment in early childhood education
• Learn the role of positive childhood experiences in promoting student wellbeing
• Find out more about the Healing Centered Engagement program and Transforming Early Childhood Leadership Institute
• Discuss opportunities to get involved in this work and support the initiatives in your community

Speakers:
Mary M. Reece, Ed.D; Director of Special Projects, NJ Principals & Supervisors Association/Foundation for Educational Administration
Rebecca Bryan, DNP; Executive Director of the Office of Resilience, NJ Department of Children and Families
Dottie Specht, M.S. Ed, Director, K-3 Office of Education/Division of Early Childhood Services, NJ Department of Education
Monica Carmichael, Director of Early Childhood, Trenton (TECLI)
Samantha Lott-Velez, Assistant Superintendent, Newark (TECLI)
Dr. Bobbi Downs, Director of CST, Burlington County Special Services School District (HCE)
Thomas Barclay, retired Assistant Superintendent and current consultant (TECLI & HCE)

Webinar Video

Articles
Rethinking Our Approach to Youth Mental Healthcare
The Surgeon General’s New Mission: Adolescent Mental Health
8-Year-Olds in Despair: The Mental Health Crisis Is Getting Younger

CNJG is pleased to partner with the Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth (OCIG) within the National Telecommunications and Information Administration at the U.S. Department of Commerce on this series to help the funding community know about the federal government’s investment into broadband access, and how communities, residents and organizations can take advantage of these funding opportunities.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the New Jersey Office of Broadband Connectivity are hosting a series of public virtual roundtable meetings, which will take place once per month from February through July 2023.  Join us to learn more about Internet for all, Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) and the Digital Equity Grant funding planning in New Jersey. 

These meetings are intended to create open communication and collaboration on BEAD and DE projects.  This first meeting is an introduction to these programs, explains the coordination between NTIA and the NJ Office of Broadband Connectivity, and outlines upcoming important upcoming dates.

Event Recording

Paterson One Square Mile is a hyper-local, place-based, cross-sector initiative with the goal of accelerating the revitalization of a concentrated area in Paterson, New Jersey. Utilizing strategically organized community engagement efforts focused on a bounded area within the city of Paterson, this community-led collective impact initiative aims to improve equitable outcomes in health, education, and economic opportunity for the residents of Paterson.

You will have the opportunity to hear from partners involved in shaping the Paterson One-Square Mile Project including: Jonathan GS Koppell, President, Montclair State University; Bryan Murdock, Montclair University; Malcolm McClain, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation; Amanda Lopez, Transform Consulting Group; Richard Williams, St. Paul’s Community Development Corporation

Following the panel discussion, there will be a bus tour of the Paterson One-Square Mile Project that culminates with a stop to hear from nonprofit organizations that have benefited from this project. Program space is limited to twenty-five people.

Cost: Free for CNJG Members; $50 for Non Member Grantmakers
Continental breakfast and lunch provided.

Webinar Video

"The most populous city in New Jersey has launched a pilot program to give guaranteed income to some residents, as the pandemic has exacerbated the racial wealth gap and exposed the economic vulnerabilities millions of Americans face.

Experts say success in Newark, New Jersey, a neighbor of New York City, could set a precedent for other communities around the country to follow suit as the nation seeks to equitably recover from the economic devastation wrought by COVID-19.

“We must emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic with new purpose, new vision and new ideas to transform our community and truly improve the quality of life of our residents,” Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, a Democrat, said in a statement earlier this week. “Here, we have an opportunity to directly empower and strengthen hundreds of lives immediately, while also demonstrating how to do so to the entire nation.”

The Newark Movement for Economic Equity, launched by Baraka on Monday, is a two-year research study that will give unconditional cash payments to economically vulnerable residents. The pilot program is starting with just 30 residents, but is set to expand to 400 residents in the fall. To qualify, participants must be Newark residents who are at least 18 and have income levels at or below 200% of the federal poverty threshold.

To start, participants will receive $6,000 per year — with half receiving payments on a bi-weekly basis and half receiving payments twice yearly.

Some $2.2 million to date in private funds from local philanthropic groups and beyond have been raised to support the pilot program, and a statement from the mayor’s office said they are continuing to seek donors for the initiative.

If it is successful, the group has said on its website it anticipates it will be funded through state or federal money."


Related article: Free Money In Newark: City Experiments With 'Guaranteed Income'
Related article: Some Newarkers will get $500 a month - no strings attached - in pilot income program

2025 CNJG Membership Renewal

Thank you for your membership investment with CNJG!

We continue using our contactless renewal process for the 2025 membership year. We no longer mail renewal notices. The “primary contact” for each member will receive the renewal notification by email in mid-October, 2024

“[CNJG has] done an amazing job of meeting people where they need to be in terms of providing additional resources and access to people in the know to help us navigate through very unchartered waters.”
-Margarethe Laurenzi, Maher Charitable Foundation

The dues investment for 2025 includes a Board-approved 3% increase. Members should base their 2025 dues on either:
   1.  Your 2024 giving or
   2.  An average of the past three years in giving (2022, 2023, 2024).

The chart of dues, based on your annual giving is below:

The membership period begins January 1, 2024 and runs through December 31, 2025.

Some members choose to make all or a portion of their dues in the form of a grant. For tax purposes, all dues in excess of $770 may be reasonably reported as a grant.

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Government Agency members and Associate members (CDFIs and Philanthropic Advisors) each have a different dues calculation. Government Agencies dues are a percentage of your administrative budget, and associate members are a flat rate for dues. Please click on the appropriate renewal button below to renew.

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For additional criteria for dues calculations (ie. sun-setting foundations, those headquartered outside the state, and other special circumstances), please visit the Membership Policies section of our join page.

Renewal notices are due annually by March 31 with payments due by June 30. You can complete the renewal form today and wait to pay any time before June 30. If you need to pay after June 30, please note the alternate payment date on the renewal form. Please contact Craig Weinrich, Director of Member Services at 609-414-7110 x802 to make payment arrangements by check, EFT, or credit card (CNJG will add a 3% fee for memberships paid by credit card).

Leadership Gifts

“Engagement with other COVID funds throughout the state as we think about how to be most strategic have been really helpful to understand what others are doing and the implications of how we do our grantmaking activities.”
-Andy Fraizer, Community Foundation of South Jersey

Some members include an additional gift to help cover the costs of CNJG’s operations. Membership dues cover about 40% of our operations. These welcomed and unrestricted funds help underwrite the many programs and services that CNJG provides to our members and the philanthropic sector.

Please indicate your additional leadership gift on the renewal form when you complete it.

2025 Renewal Timeline

• Mid-October 2024 – CNJG membership renewal notices are emailed to the designated “primary” contact;
• March 31, 2025 – CNJG membership renewal commitments due (payment can be received later)
• June 30, 2025 – Dues should be paid by this date. Some members pay in the second half of the year, and CNJG appreciates knowing before then that you are renewing. Members that have not paid by this date, or indicated to CNJG that payment is forthcoming by this date, will be considered lapsed and removed as members.
• Mid-October, 2025 – Renewals for 2026 will be emailed.

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2025 Member Renewal Process

1. The link to our online renewal notice will be emailed to your designated “primary contact” in mid-October. In subsequent reminders, the invoices will be emailed to both the "primary contact" and the "billing contacts" at the organization. If you have not received any renewal notice, please let Craig know. You can complete the renewal notice here.
2. Complete and return the renewal notice with either:
   The amount of dues you are paying (based on your giving outlined above) and when CNJG can anticipate the payment.
   or
   Your pledge to pay at a later point in the year. Payment should be received by CNJG before June 30. Please contact Craig if an alternate payment date is needed.
3. Submit the renewal notice/invoice with payment or your pledge to renew by March 31.
4. Update your contact information by having one of your “administrative contacts” update this information on the website. There are tutorials on our website about this process, or contact Craig with questions.

Looking Ahead to 2026

Our expectation is that for 2026, we’ll ask members to base their giving on your past three years average, or on your 2025 giving. We will also include the annual CNJG board-approved 3% increase in dues. CNJG has mapped out the dues rates for the next several years, so members can budget accordingly.

Thank you for being a part of the CNJG membership as we support and elevate New Jersey’s philanthropic community through shared learning, collaborative and trusting relationships, network building, and leadership.

As we witness the initial impact of Hurricane Dorian, we are reminded that many of our communities are still targets for further devastation from this storm over the next few days.

While we recognize that many of us have survived recent hurricanes like Sandy and Maria, we also know that the struggle continues, and we need to do our best to help meet the needs of current victims caught in the wake of the storm.

In light of this situation, we are providing our membership with the latest information to help you determine how your organization might engage in response and recovery efforts.

Resources

• The Center for Disaster Philanthropy has created a Hurricane Dorian disaster profile, which provides updates on the storm as well as information on the areas of greatest need


• The Center for Disaster Philanthropy has also launched the CDP 2019 Atlantic Hurricane Season Recovery Fund to support communities that will be affected by Hurricane Dorian. This fund focuses on medium- and long-term recovery, with the understanding that individuals and communities will need the support of private philanthropy for months and years to come as they navigate the road to recovery. 


• The Disaster Philanthropy Playbook is a comprehensive handbook outlining best practices and innovative approaches that the philanthropic community can adopt in addressing recovery after natural disasters. CNJG’s lessons learned in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy helped lead the creation of this Playbook.


• Locally in Florida, the Miami Foundation for a Greater Miami created a Hurricane Dorian resource page. 


• The Jessie Ball duPont Fund resource Creating Order from Chaos: Roles for Philanthropy in Disaster Planning and Response provides a framework for steps that can be taken for philanthropy to respond to disasters.


• The New York Times has released an article sharing multiple ways to help Hurricane Dorian survivors in the Bahamas.


• Charity Navigator has created a list of high-rated organizations providing aid and relief for Hurricane Dorian for both short-term and long-term relief.


• Sadly, CNJG’s post Sandy work and the briefings hosted and compiled by CNJG still hold lessons for today. You can review the briefings from Series 1 and Series 2 in either audio or written format. The briefings provide timely, relevant information about how grantmakers can help in the aftermath of a major storm.

Finally, if you think it would be useful, we’ll convene an open-forum conference call for CNJG members to share how your organization might be thinking about your own response efforts. If you’re interested in connecting with your colleagues for this kind of discussion, please contact me, and we will set up a call. 

Yours in solidarity, 

Maria Vizcarrondo, President and CEO
Council of New Jersey Grantmakers

This weekly conference call series welcomed New Jersey-based grantmakers along with national funders and provided an opportunity for grantmakers to hear from a wide range of experts in the field of disaster philanthropy. This series started on November 5, 2012, one week after Sandy struck New Jersey, and continued through March 25, 2013. The written summaries of each recording are listed below.