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Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin recently announced that the Juvenile Justice Commission (JJC), in conjunction with the Governor’s Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Committee, has awarded 17 grants totaling more than $369,000 to police departments, schools, and non-profit organizations across the State to expand summer programs for at-risk youth.
The grants provide organizations already operating successful summer programs for at-risk youth with up to $30,000 in additional funding to enhance their programs and/or increase the number of young people they serve.
Due to these new grants, approximately 500 additional youth throughout New Jersey will be able to participate in an array of recreational, educational, and character-building activities being offered in their communities this summer.
“I’m pleased that New Jersey is able to continue its investment in programs that serve our most vulnerable young people,” said Attorney General Platkin. “The funding announced today by the Juvenile Justice Commission is emblematic of the Murphy Administration’s commitment to make sure all of New Jersey’s youth have opportunities to develop new skills, overcome challenges and achieve their optimal potential.”
The FirstEnergy Foundation has donated $25,000 to the American Red Cross to support its efforts to offer disaster assistance to families living in communities served by FirstEnergy Corp. electric company Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L).
The donation comes after the Red Cross provided aid to some of the 5,000 residents who evacuated due to the Jones Road wildfire, which burned through more than 15,000 acres in parts of JCP&L’s Ocean County territory after starting on April 22 at the Greenwood Forest Wildlife Management Area.
“When our crews respond to disasters, both in our territory or as part of mutual aid, it is the American Red Cross that is routinely there, providing the support that sustains communities in the immediate aftermath,” said Doug Mokoid, FirstEnergy’s president, New Jersey. “Last month’s wildfire burned close to home for many of our customers and employees, and once again, the Red Cross stepped up when people needed them most.”
Summer always brings to mind those great “summer reads.” This has been an “occasional series” of CNJG eNews during the summer, over the years. In addition to this year’s curated list – I’m thrilled to share recommendations from a few CNJG Board members and the CNJG team!
CNJG Board of Trustees’ Secretary, Maisha Simmons, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, recommends Heather McGhee’s The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How we can Prosper Together. There’s also a podcast series, and the book has been adapted for young readers.
The Work: My Search for a Life that Matters by Wes Moore is the top pick from Board member, Jasmyne Beckford, The Prudential Foundation. Jasmyne reflects, this book helped her think about how she can live a life that creates impact for generations both personally and professionally.
CNJG Board member Justin Kiczek, F. M. Kirby Foundation, recently read Getting Beyond Better: How Social Entrepreneurship Works. “As our foundation holds both stewardship and entrepreneurship as core values, it helps me understand how social entrepreneurs start their journey and scale their solutions.”
In honor of Black Philanthropy Month this August, I’m excited to feature a few great reads created to inspire and inform your philanthropic journey. Thank you to Manager of Communications Shakirat Odunsi for curating this list:
- Madam C. J. Walker's Gospel of Giving: Black Women's Philanthropy during Jim Crow highlights Walker’s visionary approach to philanthropy and community-building, emphasizing the vital role of Black women’s giving in advancing social justice. Freeman’s work sheds light on how Walker’s philanthropy was an extension of her entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to racial and gender equality.
- Ford Foundation’s Darren Walker reimagines Andrew Carnegie’s vision of philanthropy for the modern era in From Generosity to Justice: A New Gospel of Wealth, urging philanthropists to go beyond charity and address systemic inequalities to foster justice and lasting change.
- Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds encourages readers to embrace adaptability and resilience by using emergent strategies – small-scale actions that create large-scale impact. Author adrienne maree brown challenges traditional models of organizing and invites us to envision a more just and equitable world through collaboration, creativity, and deep connections with others. It’s a guidebook for those seeking to shape the future and navigate the complexities of change.
- Isabel Wilkerson explores how entrenched hierarchies based on race and class impact every aspect of our lives in Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. Through compelling narratives and meticulous research, she reveals how this hidden system continues to perpetuate inequality and injustice, challenging us to confront these deeply rooted structures and work toward true equality.
From the CNJG team, Director of Member Services Craig Weinrich is currently reading How We Give Now: A Philanthropic Guide for the Rest of Us by Lucy Bernholz. This book demonstrates that philanthropy is about much more than money. Bernholz posits that even giving our data willingly to companies is an act of philanthropy. This is a great intersection to the Spring Colloquium conversation around AI, and ongoing discussions about how we can expand our definition of philanthropy as guided by our Strategic Plan.
Chanika Svetvilas, Manager of Programs and Learning recommends Against Technoableism by Ashley Shew and Imagination A Manifesto by Ruha Benjamin. Not too long ago I read Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, which prompted me to really consider what each of us should focus on in our day-to-day work, and what we need to let go. It’s a practical, insightful guide that led to several “aha” moments. All three books challenge us to think very differently about our world and what’s possible.
And finally, a recently discovered read I’ve gifted to family and friends, All the Colors of Life by renowned artist Lisa Aisato; this will lift your spirits as you find yourself paging through it and experiencing it over and over again.
Happy Summer Reading!
On a different note, I hope you will join us at the Summer Joint Policy Forum – Nonprofit and Philanthropic Champions for New Jersey on August 13, at The Heldrich in New Brunswick. I look forward to seeing you there, and hearing what’s on your summer reading list!
Sincerely,
Theresa Jacks, President and CEO
Council of New Jersey Grantmakers
This “How to Collect and Share DEI Data” guide is a resource for the field and has been written with nonprofits who want to start collecting their organization’s data in mind. The questions and choices of answers have been carefully considered with expert partners – CHANGE Philanthropy, Equity in the Center, and RespectAbility.
The legal staff at the Packard Foundation, Gates Foundation, Hewlett Foundation and Moore Foundation developed this free, first-of-its-kind resource, which covers the basic legal rules around what staff are allowed to fund and engage in at a private foundation.
CNJG is pleased to offer this program to family foundation members as part of NCFP's Fundamentals of Family Philanthropy 2023 webinar series, providing guidance on the core tenets of effective family philanthropy.
What are the basic fiduciary duties, governance policies, and legal responsibilities that each family philanthropy board member must understand and abide by? Join this session to better understand the fundamental and nuanced federal and state laws regulating charitable giving, including self-dealing, payout, fiscal agency, excise tax, required filings, and much more. A leading expert on family foundation tax law will make these concepts accessible and enjoyable.
Cost: This event is free for CNJG Members who are family foundations.
Other types of foundations are ineligible to join this webinar.
This program is a CNJG membership benefit for family foundation members, including staff and trustees, in partnership with the National Center for Family Philanthropy.
The rising cost of housing, a limitation on supply of affordable housing stock, and economic shocks and disruptions have led to an increase in homelessness across the United States. Over this time period, the City of Newark has made strides in fostering collaborative and innovative approaches to housing the unhoused. In December, the City released a strategic plan to end chronic homelessness, the first plan of its kind in some time. Specifically, its vision states that “Newark will strive to end chronic homelessness for all individuals over the next three years through collaboration, prevention, and housing.” The vision goes on to state that when it [homelessness] cannot be prevented, it will be a rare, brief, and nonrecurring experience.”
We hope that you will join us as we hear from leaders of this collaborative effort as they discuss how they are working toward their shared vision.
Panelists:
Luis Ulerio, Newark Homelessness Czar, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Homeless Services
Jim Pelliccio, Chair of the City of Newark Commission on the Homeless and President and CEO of Port Newark
Evan Weiss, President and CEO, Newark Alliance
Cost: Free for CNJG Members; $50 for Non Member Grantmakers.
The Disaster Philanthropy Playbook, a comprehensive resource of best practices and innovative approaches to guide the philanthropic community in responding to future disasters, is now available for use at www.disasterphilanthropy.org/disaster-philanthropy-playbook/.
Designed as a multimedia, interactive website, the Playbook will be an “evergreen” resource designed for continued updates and knowledge-building. Community planning, civic rebuilding, legal services, housing, addressing the needs of vulnerable populations, working with local, state and federal government, mitigation and preparedness are some of the common issues faced by communities post disaster that are covered in detail in the Playbook.
The Disaster Philanthropy Playbook is a joint project of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and Council of New Jersey Grantmakers in association with the Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers.
Adopted by CNJG”s Board of Trustees in October 2023, these eight Principles offer philanthropy a source of direction for their own equity journey. Each principle begins with a common understanding followed by developmental steps, and the aspiration for each principle. These principles are intended to promote continuous learning, vulnerability, and reflection for how philanthropy can evolve from its historical roots to a more trusting, accountable, and equitable model.
The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey (HFNJ) has awarded $1,219,591 to 12 New Jersey non-profit organizations in the first quarter of 2022.
All awards given this cycle were in support of new projects, and many awards were given to organizations receiving their first-ever grant from HFNJ. The largest grant of this cycle, a $500,000 gift to Morristown Medical Center, will help the hospital fund an ambitious renovation of its pediatric emergency department, doubling space available for children facing behavioral health crises.
Many grants this cycle embody a “win-win” approach to ameliorating multiple social problems with one project. For instance, a $160,000 grant to Youth Build Newark will allow the group to create a post-secondary career track to healthcare professions for Newark-area youth currently disconnected from school or employment. The project will both help the young people gain a foothold to promising career paths, and help fill regional staffing shortages in the healthcare industry. Likewise, a $50,000 grant to support Newark’s Working Kitchens project will both feed hungry families, and help ensure that restaurants that have seen downturns in business due to the pandemic can continue to remain solvent.
“HFNJ is pleased to end our first quarter of funding in 2022 by providing over $1.2M in funding for critical projects that will support residents in the greater Newark area, especially grants that will help train the next generation of healthcare workers, who are in short supply and are vitally needed as communities recover from the pandemic,” said Michael Schmidt, Executive Director and CEO of the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey.
The FirstEnergy Foundation awarded more than $3.43 million to nearly 100 organizations across its six-state service territory for the final round of "Investing with Purpose," an initiative focused on supporting nonprofit organizations that advance health and safety, workforce development, educational and social justice initiatives. In addition, FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) provided $220,000 to five organizations as part of the initiative. The grants build on $3.3 million in charitable contributions the Foundation awarded in December 2020 as part of the initial round of giving, which has collectively gifted $7 million to nearly 200 nonprofit organizations making a difference in the communities served by FirstEnergy's 10 electric companies.
"Investing with Purpose" was developed in response to the COVID pandemic, which created health, financial and educational hardships for customers across FirstEnergy's footprint, and in response to the events of 2020 that highlighted racial and social injustices impacting our nation. With those issues in mind, the Foundation identified philanthropic opportunities through nonprofit organizations across its service territory that are responding to needs of vulnerable populations. The "Investing with Purpose" initiative represents an additional commitment on top of the company's annual charitable giving, which averages approximately $10 million per year.
"Many of our communities are still facing a significant hardship due to the pandemic. Nonprofit organizations on the frontline of our current health and economic crisis have realigned to support current needs in the community, including housing, workforce development and training, and the continued support of our healthcare workers," said Lorna Wisham, vice president of Corporate Affairs & Community Involvement and president of the FirstEnergy Foundation. "We've witnessed the positive impact these grants made for deserving organizations in 2020, and we look forward to seeing how the second round of contributions will help strengthen the communities we serve."
2023 marked the largest single-year increase in the number of people forcibly displaced worldwide with more than 110 million individuals forced to leave their homes due to persecution, conflict, or human rights violations. Violence has displaced people from Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gaza, Iraq, Myanmar, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, and beyond. Political turmoil and economic instability have forced millions to flee Venezuela and elsewhere. Climate change has been amplifying extreme weather disasters and exacerbating regional conflicts, and the combined effects are estimated to displace nearly 2.5 billion people by 2050.
What do funders need to better understand about the global forces and systems that lead to forced displacement? How are groups responding to these global forces in a liberatory, intersectional, and transnational way? Frontline leaders and movements are, among other things, providing legal assistance and engaging in popular education. Join GCIR and these leaders as they discuss their responses to forced displacement.
Speakers
Tshishiku Henry, Delegate, Refugee Congress
Zaid Hydari, Co-founder and Executive Director, Refugee Solidarity Network
Karen Musalo, Founding Director, Center for Gender and Refugee Studies at UC College of the Law, San Francisco
Moderator
Rana Elmir, Director, RISE Together Fund at Proteus Fund
COST: Free for CNJG Members and Non Member Grantmakers