Site Search
- resource provided by the Forum Network Knowledgebase.
Search Tip: Search with " " to find exact matches.
The WSFS CARES Foundation, the charitable giving arm of WSFS Bank (Nasdaq: WSFS), announced it has provided grants to four organizations as part of its continuing series of philanthropic activities by WSFS and the Foundation. The grants were approved in the fourth quarter by the WSFS CARES Foundation board.
n addition, WSFS Bank provided $5,000 to Literacy Delaware in a year-end grant at the recommendation of WSFS’ Board of Directors. WSFS Bank also provided $5,000 grants to the Chester County Food Bank and Family Support Line, and $2,500 to Mother’s Home at the recommendation of WSFS’ Pennsylvania and New Jersey Advisory Boards.
“We are deeply committed to creating meaningful impacts in our communities by supporting programs that promote economic development, advance education, and encourage leadership," said Patrick J. Ward, Executive Vice President, Pennsylvania Market President at WSFS Bank and Chairman of the WSFS CARES Foundation. "It’s a privilege to join forces with such inspiring organizations, and we look forward to expanding our efforts together."
The Princeton Area Community Foundation has awarded $2.4 million in Community Impact Grants to more than 50 local nonprofits working to address community needs, including education and workforce development, food security homelessness and mental health.
“We are grateful to our nonprofit partners for their tireless commitment to the region’s neighbors and communities,” Nelida Valentin, Community Foundation vice president of Grants and Programs, said. “As we work to deepen our focus on strengthening the philanthropic impact we can make, we hope these grants provide meaningful support and encourage greater collaboration and partnerships, so that everyone can thrive.”
The Burke Foundation and J&J have partnered with the Community Foundation to provide Community Impact Grants, which support local nonprofits to improve the lives of people living in poverty in the Greater Mercer County region. The grants are also funded by generous contributions from local donors who want to make an impact in our region.
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.”
Kearny Bank said Wednesday that it gifted $590,385 in 2024 to charities in New Jersey and New York. The donations were made through the KearnyBank Foundation and went to community, education, housing, and quality of life organizations.
Kearny Bank’s 2024 contributions were: $272,885 to community; $142,885 to education; $92,500 to quality of life; and $80,000 to housing.
During 2024, the largest single donation was to Junior Achievement of New Jersey, which received $65,000. In addition, the 55 Kip Center of Rutherford received $50,000. Also included among recipients was the Essex County chapter of the National Council of Jewish Women, which received $18,000. The Robeson Classic High School Football All-Star Game and HABcore, Inc. each received $15,000, while $12,000 was contributed to the Student/Partner Alliance.
“We’re delighted that our success enables us to donate to a range of programs and organizations that help communities in which we conduct business,” says Craig Montanaro, Kearny Bank president and CEO. “Our company has been committed to charitable giving since it was founded in the 19th century and we continue seeking ways to enhance people’s lives.”
We know that funders face many challenges when attempting to make the case within their institutions for the value and importance of investing in immigrant communities. We also know that moving money to immigrant-led and immigrant-centered organizations can help foundations advance their strategic priorities, whether they relate to immigration explicitly or not.
GCIR has developed a new messaging toolkit (which will be released ahead of the webinar) designed to support funders, especially those who are navigating hostile external environments, as they make the case to their leadership or peer communities for the value of supporting immigrants in their grantmaking strategies. Join GCIR staff for a strategy session in which we will:
Share compelling talking points linked to universal values and shared priorities.
Address common concerns foundation leaders may raise.
Offer concrete guidance on how to bring these messages into everyday philanthropic practice.
At the end of the session, we will have time to explore strategies for using these tools and for participants to share their experiences with making the case for supporting immigrant communities.
Cost: Free
Who may attend:
Staff and board members of foundations, corporate-giving programs, philanthropic consultancies, affinity groups, and invited governmental grantmaking agencies.
Across the country, communities are facing waves of federal immigration enforcement actions featuring unprecedented new tactics, including the deployment of military personnel and other operations that heighten fear, surveillance, and instability. In this moment, philanthropy has a critical role to play, not only by moving quickly to fund rapid response efforts, but also by sustaining community power and safety through legal support and narrative strategies that affirm justice and belonging.
Join us for our upcoming network huddle as we bring together funders who are actively coordinating response strategies in various cities. Speakers will share what they are seeing on the ground, how their institutions are adapting, and what they are learning about how best to support communities in real time while building the long-term infrastructure needed to resist attacks and prevent harm.
Please note that this discussion is intended for our philanthropic colleagues. Participants should come to this session prepared to learn and share details about their work. This session will not be recorded, though transcription will be available after the call.
Cost: Free
Who may attend: Staff and board members of foundations, corporate-giving programs, philanthropic consultancies, affinity groups, and invited governmental grantmaking agencies.
A collection of the President's letters to CNJG Members from the monthly newsletter.
- Working Together (12/5/2025)
- A Historic Week in New Jersey (11/10/2025)
- New Jersey Philanthropy Hub (10/1/2025)
- Call for CNJG Board Nominations (9/5/2025)
- Summer Reading List (8/7/2025)
- Summer Happenings (7/8/2025)
- Spring Conference News (6/4/2025)
- Spring Conference Update (5/8/2025)
- Spring Conference Registration Open (4/2/2025)
- March Updates (3/7/2025)
- Federal Policy Changes (2/7/2025)
- Happy New Year! (1/9/2025)
- Reflect on the Impact We've Made and the Exciting Possibilities Ahead (12/5/2024)
- As We Look to 2025 (11/8/2024)
- CNJG Annual Meeting & Holiday Gathering (10/8/2024)
- Programs Update (9/5/2024)
- Summer Reads (8/7/2024)
- Update on CNJG Programs (7/8/2024)
- Upcoming Colloquium (6/5/2024)
- AI is Changing our World (5/10/2024)
- 2024 Spring Colloquium (4/5/2024)
- Foundations on the Hill 2024 (3/8/2024)
- Sad News (2/8/2024)
- Welcome to the New Year! (1/8/2024)
- Mad Dash to the End of the Year (12/8/2023)
- Collaboration (11/6/2023)
- CNJG Annual Meeting & Holiday Gathering (10/5/2023)
- Welcome Back From the Summer (9/5/2023)
- 2023 New Jersey Philanthropy Benefits & Salary Summary Report (7/5/2023)
You don’t need to be a technologist to understand that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing our world, including philanthropy and the nonprofit sector.
As you attend next month’s CNJG 2024 Spring Colloquium – A Conversation for the Social Sector on June 18, consider what philanthropy does best as the conversation unfolds. Philanthropy takes risks. Philanthropy tests new ideas and concepts, that can then be scaled. Philanthropy drives experimentation. Philanthropy convenes thought leaders, practitioners, and community voices, to engage in full and deliberate conversations.
We’re excited to welcome Jean Westrick, Executive Director of the Technology Association of Grantmakers (TAG), to moderate the morning panel session. TAG and Project Evident recently released their Responsible AI Adoption in Philanthropy framework to help grantmakers adopt AI in a manner that aligns with their mission. Jean will help us dig deeper into the framework during an afternoon session. Not only does the framework provide practical guidance, it is a clarion call for philanthropy to play a crucial role in advancing the responsible use of AI for nonprofit enablement.
Understanding this seminal role, last year, ten major foundations announced a $200 million investment to ensure AI advances the public interest. The investment is centered around five areas of need including: ensuring AI advancements protect democracy and the rights and freedoms of all people, empowering workers to “thrive amid AI-driven changes,” and supporting the development of AI international norms and rules.
Colloquium panelist Don Chen, President and CEO of the Surdna Foundation, recently spoke at the Partnership for AI’s 2024 Philanthropy Forum. There he discussed the importance of working with partners to make investments in responsible infrastructure. He expanded on these ideas, encouraging ongoing AI conversations to be reparative and healing, especially for racial equity and justice.
Governor Murphy created the New Jersey State Office of Innovation in 2018 to "improve the lives of New Jerseyans by solving public problems differently.” Colloquium panelist Dave Cole, Chief Innovation Officer, in a recent StateScoop Priorities Podcast, shared his commitment to solving problems for NJ residents using human-centered design and leveraging AI to improve services. The practical and pragmatic conversations about AI are central to philanthropy’s role in harnessing technology for good.
Our third panelist, Rachel Kimber, joined fellow social sector leaders in calling for philanthropy to move forward with “responsible AI development and adoption.” Published by the Center for Effective Philanthropy, the blog Responsible AI: How Philanthropy Can (and Should) Support the Movement outlines four critical concepts for philanthropy: drive sector-level vision, fund the back-end, develop guidelines, and invest in equitable innovations.
I encourage you to review the resources we’re gathering on the Colloquium web area to further inform your thinking.
While AI and analytical technologies are revolutionary tools reshaping industries, as Vilas Dhar, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, said in an interview with the Chronicle of Philanthropyrecently, “These conversations are very rarely actually about technology.” In the article, How A.I. Could Solve Humanity’s Biggest Problems — If Philanthropy Catches Up, Dhar implores philanthropy to look closely at how AI is changing our world and challenges us to examine how philanthropy must change. Indeed, philanthropy has several roles to play, including fueling the big picture and visionary conversations, and helping to drill down on the more practical applications of AI for grantmakers and nonprofits in support of a just and equitable world.
Join us at the CNJG 2024 Spring Colloquium: A Conversation for the Social Sector - Empowering the Future: Harnessing AI and Data for Philanthropic Social Impact on Tuesday, June 18, to engage in these big, bold, and transformative conversations.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Sincerely,
Theresa Jacks, President and CEO
Council of New Jersey Grantmakers
As artificial intelligence (AI) and technological advances take on an increasingly prominent role in our society, BIPOC and immigrant communities face the threat of biases and outright hostilities being encoded and automated into surveillance, enforcement, and judicial tools. At the same time, creative leaders in the nonprofit sector are leveraging and building new technologies to better deliver culturally responsive services at scale to their communities. In this two-part series on the intersection of AI, technology and immigrant justice, GCIR invites funders to deepen their knowledge in the space as well as gain insights on how philanthropy can deploy investments that build the movement’s capacity to respond to emergent threats and opportunities.
Part 1: The Threat of AI and Technology to Immigrant Justice
As technological innovation accelerates, so too do its potential harms, particularly for immigrant communities. AI and tech tools are increasingly being weaponized in surveillance, enforcement, detention, and court system contexts. Troubling examples of this include DHS’s use of tools to automate decision making on credibility determinations, benefit eligibility, and whether or not individuals should be released from detention. AI and technology tools are also being used to spread mis- and disinformation, not only endangering immigrant communities, but also weakening our ability to function as a society with a shared set of information about the world. In this discussion, funders will learn from immigrant and civil liberties groups at the forefront of the movement to mitigate technologically-driven harms to historically targeted communities.
Speakers:
Tsion Gurmu, Legal Director, Black Alliance for Just Immigration
Rachel Levinson-Waldman, Managing Director, Liberty & National Security, Brennan Center for Justice
Paromita Shah, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Just Futures Law
Cinthya Rodriguez, National Organizer, Mijente
Registration is also open for for the second part of the series, "Tech for Good: Building Innovative Tools to Serve Immigrant Communities," taking place on Thursday, February 13th. Click here to register.