Site Search

The New Jersey Cultural Trust Board approved a total of $1,040,935 in grants to 29 nonprofit arts organizations in 14 counties during an open public meeting held virtually on Jan. 15. With the Fiscal Year 2025 grant awards, the Cultural Trust has awarded over $11.4 million in funding for financial stabilization and historic preservation projects across New Jersey since Fiscal Year 2004.

The IFS Arts grants were recommended to the Cultural Trust by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. The more than $1 million in awards represents the largest total dollar amount the Board has approved in grant awards in a single fiscal year in the Trust’s history.

“These grants are a historic investment in New Jersey’s cultural community that will resonate for years to come,” Lieutenant Governor Tahesha Way said. “The Cultural Trust’s unique grant programs support projects that strengthen the foundations of our state’s cultural organizations — organizations that in turn anchor local economies, improve the health and vitality of our communities, and contribute immeasurably to New Jerseyans’ wellbeing and quality of life.”

"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

The 2023 New Jersey Philanthropy Benefits & Salary Summary Report provides a valuable benchmarking resource for CNJG members on the benefits offered to employees and trustees and salaries for employees. Developed and compiled exclusively for CNJG members, the report presents comprehensive benefits data specific to New Jersey's grantmaking community, alongside data from the Council on Foundations' annual salary survey. Produced every three years, this benchmarking report is a highly anticipated and valued benefit of your CNJG membership.

The first section, 2023 CNJG Benefits Summary Report, includes benefits data for the 2023 calendar year and covers employment numbers, leave benefits, insurance benefits, and more. Within this section, we are pleased to also present demographic data on the board and staff of those that responded. Thank you to the members that completed our benefits survey earlier this year enabling us to produce this report.

The second section, 2023 Grantmaker Salary Tables: National, Mid-Atlantic and New Jersey provides data on compensation across a wide range of positions and grantmaking entities. Thank you to the CNJG members that completed the Council on Foundations’ annual survey on salaries that enabled us to produce this section of the report. Thank you to the Council on Foundations for compiling and sharing this data with us for free to use our report.

CNJG’s Finance and Investment Affinity Group exists to keep foundation executives informed as they manage the investment of their corpus. Growth of foundation assets and the active exchange of sound investment strategies is the focus of each program.

We are pleased to welcome Ethan Harris, head of Global Economics Research at Bank of America Global Research to lead our breakfast that kicks off the new year with a Market Outlook for 2023. Mr. Harris will give us his insights on:

• Inflation
• Potential for continued interest rate hikes and where might they pause
• Labor market impact on the Fed’s direction
• Impact of Fed moves
• Expectations for US economy and other economies around the world
• Growth and recession risks, and
• Some discussion of the big global issues

Agenda
8:30 a.m. - Breakfast
9:00 a.m. - Program begins
10:00 a.m. - Meeting concludes

Cost: $35 for CNJG Members; $70 for Non Member Grantmakers (includes full breakfast)

COVID-19 Safety and Information
CNJG will follow all health and safety guidelines and recommendations outlined in our COVID-19 Liability Waiver for in-person programs and events. 

Please do not attend the program if you are ill, exposed to the COVID-19 virus within 14 days prior to the program, or exhibit any symptoms of the COVID-19 virus prior to the program.

These are the protocols as of June 6, 2022. We will continue to monitor the health and safety protocols and will be sure to communicate if these change prior to the program.