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In late 2020, the Council on Foundations (the Council) launched the Values-Aligned Philanthropy project to continue to build on their previous efforts within the philanthropic sector to respond to growing concern about the issue of funding hate and extremism. The Council took this step recognizing that while there is significant work being done by grantmakers and social sector leaders across the country to prevent hate funding, there has not been a comprehensive analysis of what has been done and who is doing what from the perspective of philanthropy. The Council believes that mapping the eco-system will provide a baseline for identifying gaps, best practices, and next steps to addressing this problem. Research and writing for the project have been provided by Roey Thorpe, an independent consultant, with guidance from Council staff.
A total of $29,000 has been donated by Kearny Bank to the scholarship funds of 26 high schools, one local board of education, and two educational support organizations in nine New Jersey counties. The funds represent the latest contributions in a long-standing, annual scholarship program managed by the KearnyBank Foundation.
“We’re quite proud of our annual high school scholarship program, which highlights Kearny Bank’s deep commitment to supporting education throughout New Jersey,” says Kearny Bank President and CEO Craig Montanaro. “High school was anything but conventional for members of the class of 2021. We’re hoping our scholarship donations will play a part in enabling these students to have spectacular, post-pandemic collegiate experiences.”
Kessler Foundation said Wednesday that in 2022 it approved approximately $1 million in grants to support initiatives that promote the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workplace.
The majority of the funding was allocated into two categories: Signature Employment Grants and Community Employment Grants. The remaining funds were awarded to Foundation Directed Grants, Special Initiative Grants and Emergency Relief Grants.
“In our society, work often defines who we are, and how we are perceived by others,” Elaine Katz, senior vice president for grants and communications at Kessler Foundation, said. “Because participating in the workplace has many benefits, both tangible and intangible, Kessler Foundation focuses its grantmaking on expanding employment opportunities for people with disabilities, and addresses employment outcomes through its rehabilitation research.”
Today the Regional Foundation announced $4,750,000 in Implementation Grants to seven organizations throughout Eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. The Neighborhood Implementation Grants program supports comprehensive community development plans that target specific neighborhoods, are resident-driven, and equity focused. The multi-year funding is designed to assist the foundation’s grantee partners to start or sustain momentum in their comprehensive neighborhood revitalization initiatives.
“The grants we announced today are an exciting next step in the journey of the Regional Foundation,” stated Kevin Dow, Executive Director of the foundation. “These community investments will further the success of organizations leading resident engaged, neighborhood revitalization efforts with stable funding for at least five years. Three of the grants represent new implementation investments while four of the seven sustain long standing partnerships.”
The New Jersey Council for the Humanities (NJCH) has announced $272,408 in grant funding to 22 organizations across the state for Spring 2023.
The awards are split between 11 Incubation Grants and 11 Action Grants. Incubation Grants help organizations plan, research, develop, and prototype public humanities projects and events. Action Grants help organizations implement a wide array of humanities-based projects, including public programs, exhibitions, installations, tours and discussion groups.
“This grant funding represents support for a mixture of new projects and ongoing, important work,” said Carin Berkowitz, Ph.D., executive director of NJCH. “In that way, it mirrors the fundamental purpose of the humanities, examining our history and culture in ways that shape our current understanding of the world.”
The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey (HFNJ) is pleased to announce that it has awarded $2,802,521 to twenty New Jersey nonprofit organizations in its third quarter grant cycle of 2023. The total includes renewal funding for 15 projects that had previously been awarded grants from HFNJ, and first-time funding for five new projects.
The projects reflect the many diverse areas in which HFNJ works to fulfill its mission of improving the health and well-being of individuals in Newark and its environs and the Jewish community of Greater MetroWest, NJ. Programs providing vision care for children; dental care for veterans; care for individuals experiencing homelessness; the provision of healthy foods; and more will be supported by the grants awarded this quarter.
Panasonic today announced the Panasonic Foundation, in partnership with the Community Foundation of New Jersey (CFNJ), has allocated four $25,000 Challenge Grants to nonprofit organizations dedicated to advancing STEAM education in Newark, NJ. The select recipients of this funding are After School All Stars, the Trust for Public Land, Students 2 Science, and Liberty Science Center.
With funding from the Challenge Grants, the select nonprofit partners will continue to advance and develop accessible STEAM education programs with the goal of improving education and workforce outcomes for Newark students.
“We are thrilled to award Challenge Grants to nonprofits dedicated to inspiring and preparing the next generation of leaders. These grants underscore our commitment to fostering accessible STEAM education, propelling Newark students toward brighter educational and workforce opportunities,” said Alejandra Ceja, Vice President of Social Impact and Inclusion at Panasonic.
Looking to improve the collection and sharing of philanthropic data, the Foundation Center and the United Philanthropy Forum (of which CNJG is a member) have entered into a partnership. The partnership will establish platforms and systems for collecting data contributed by CNJG members and other foundations throughout the country to aggregate and report on the philanthropic sector. Plans include ways to standardize and centralize giving data, reporting on funding patterns, and data visualization tools to better communication the sector’s impact. This partnership will give us better ways of illustrating the value of philanthropy in our regions and help us to inform funding decisions and track trends.
For more information, please visit the United Philanthropy Forum website.
The F.M. Kirby Foundation in Morristown, New Jersey, has announced that it awarded 266 grants totaling more than $16.8 million in 2024, an increase of over 9 percent year-over-year.
Grants were awarded to organizations working in the areas of education ($4.4 million), human services ($4 million), health ($2.7 million), arts, culture, and humanities ($2.4 million), environment and animals ($1.7 million), public affairs ($1.2 million), and religion ($127,500). More than half the grants (56 percent) were provided as general operating support, and 108 grants (40.6 percent) were awarded to organizations that have been Kirby’s funding partners for more than 25 years. Grants awarded in New Jersey and North Carolina—the foundation’s primary geographic areas of interest—accounted for $10 million in support, nearly 60 percent of all funding
Liberation Ventures and the Blueprint Steering Committee released the Reparations Grantmaking Blueprint — a 10-year funding vision and strategy to make reparations common sense and common place in America. Co-created by movement leaders from across the country, this Blueprint represents the collective wisdom, dreams, and strategic insights of dozens of activists who have dedicated their lives to advancing racial repair in America.
This work is a joint project of Bridgespan Social Impact, the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), PolicyLink, and CapEQ.
Since the social unrest over racial injustice in the summer of 2020, philanthropists, corporations, and impact investors across the United States pledged to invest billions of dollars to advance racial equity. However, recent scrutiny of those commitments reveals that the majority of those dollars remain on the sidelines.
A common hypothesis for the shortfall is the lack of investable “shovel-ready” opportunities. But Bridgespan Social Impact has formally and informally advised organizations seeking to invest for racial equity over the years, and found that hypothesis to be patently untrue. To make the case, Bridgespan is publishing this list of racial-equity funds that emerged from our experience, at the request of multiple funds and potential investors, and alongside the launch of a new racial-equity theme in the IRIS+ family of impact measurement and management guides. It comprises more than 160 funds that explicitly seek to improve the livelihoods of individuals who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) and their communities. And we’re not done yet.
What is racial-equity investing?
In putting together this list, we chose to characterize “racial-equity investing” as directing capital toward creating equitable opportunities for BIPOC individuals and communities. That often requires shifting decision-making power and redefining risk so that capital flows more freely in service of those opportunities.
Sourcing these funds, we uncovered dozens of creative financing vehicles aimed at building power, creating economic opportunity, and improving livelihoods for communities of color.
A new pilot study from The Conference Board and the Impact Genome Project® (IGP) introduces standardized social outcomes to help measure and compare the performance of societal investments. The standardized outcomes allow for benchmark metrics, including efficacy rates and cost per outcome. The study used data from 16 companies whose funding contributed to nearly 650 nonprofit programs. The benchmarks provide new insights into the effectiveness of corporate societal investments.
Attention to the role of gender is most useful with programs that seek to change unhealthy behaviors, such as reproductive health and teen pregnancy, gender-based violence, substance abuse and educational under-achievement. This guide suggests that funders can work to improve program outcomes by helping the funding community and grantees recognize how men and women are affected by disparities in social expectations, such as codes of manhood and womanhood.
In its most recent round of giving, the KearnyBank Foundation donated a total of $170,300 to five New Jersey-based charitable organizations.
“Our success enables us to help support those communities in which we conduct business, and we’re grateful for that,” says Craig Montanaro, Kearny Bank President and CEO. “And it’s gratifying that our contributions are made to a range of different organizations. I believe this variety ensures that a broader range of people will ultimately benefit from the funds we share.”
The Montclair Foundation (TMF) has awarded $65,000 in grant funding to 17 diverse nonprofits dedicated to making a positive difference in the Montclair community and its environs.
“We are proud to partner with these outstanding nonprofits to address the challenges and opportunities in our community,” said Peggy Deehan, Trustee and Grants Committee Chair. “We had over 30 applications, which was the most we’ve ever received. The grant review process was incredibly difficult because many worthy organizations applied.”
This position is responsible for developing programs that enhance and support the Corporate Social Responsibility team’s vision, strategic planning, financial management and funding operations that support the overall objectives of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey. This positon will oversee the Horizon Cares programs, Horizon’s internal platform of benefits that support employees’ charitable interests, to encourage employee engagement and maximize partnership opportunities and company reputation.