Philanthropy
"For Nonprofits in a Tough Economy, Marketing Pitch Must be Perfect"
The Forward
By Jacob Berkman
October 16, 2008
Nonprofits should emphasize their emergency, says Gary Tobin, the president of the Institute for Jewish and Community Research in San Francisco, which studies the Jewish nonprofit sector.
"What is going to matter most to people are those programs for the hungry and the poor, people on Medicare and the homeless," Tobin said.
"You have to appeal to a shift in priorities and mission in a time of crisis. JCCs should be emphasizing scholarships, day schools the same," he said. "Everybody needs programs that serve people in need. It's just a matter of how you package it." ...more
Paying It Forward - and Back
The Chronicle of Philanthropy
By Suzanne Perry
September 4, 2008
The Institute for Jewish and Community Research, in San Francisco, conducted a study of more than 8,000 donations of at least $1-million each made from 2001 to 2003. The biggest proportion — 44 percent of total dollars — went to colleges and universities, followed by health and medical institutions (16 percent) and arts and culture groups (12 percent). Groups that provide social services received only 5 percent of the pot."The disparity among nonprofits is so stark that it was inevitable that elected officials would start to to take a look at this," says Gary A. Tobin, the institute's president. ...more
Some Jewish Nonprofit Groups Lay Off Employees and Trim Programs
The Chronicle of Philanthropy
Staff Writer
July 3, 2008
In these tough economic times, some Jewish nonprofit organizations are reducing the size of their staffs and programs, reports The Jewish Week, in New York.
The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, an international relief agency, and the Jewish federation umbrella group United Jewish Communities recently cut dozens of jobs, and several Jewish groups and programs have closed. ...more
Staying Afloat
With Economic Questions Looming, Nonprofits
Weigh Options
The Forward
Anthony Weiss
June 18, 2008
With food and oil prices skyrocketing, the stock and housing markets in tatters, and the threat of a recession looming on the horizon, now is not the easiest time to ask donors to open their checkbooks. Across the country, these economic ills are being felt not only by individuals and families, but also by a whole range of Jewish institutions, from synagogues to food banks to social service not-for-profits that depend upon the generosity of donors to stay afloat. ...more
Growing Share of 'Megagifts' Goes to Colleges, Hospitals, and Museums, Study Finds
The Chronicle of Philanthropy
Debra E. Blum
December 11, 2007
Colleges, hospitals, and museums, long at the top of the list for America’s biggest donors and grant makers, are receiving a growing slice of multimillion-dollar gifts, according to a new study. ...more
Philanthropy's Largest Gifts Go to Colleges and Universities Religion and Human Services Are Almost Shut Out
Institute for Jewish and Community Research
Gary A. Tobin, Ph.D.
December 11, 2007
San Francisco – (December 11, 2007) According to a new study released by the Institute for Jewish & Community Research (IJCR), higher education, health, and cultural arts organizations receive the lion’s share of the largest gifts that individuals, foundations, and corporations contribute to American philanthropy. ...more
Report: A Fifth of Jewish Foundation Dollars Going to Jewish, Israeli Causes
JTA
Jacob Berkman
October 9, 2007
NEW YORK (JTA) -- The country's largest Jewish foundations give about a fifth of their funds to Jewish causes - and that number could fall, according to the researchers behind a report released this week... more
Day Schools Don't Isolate, They Foster Jewish Identity
J, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California
Saul Singer
July 28, 2006
It's too soon to tell. We still have to hold our breath. But the Jewish people may be slowly gearing up to save themselves. About 700 day schools are now in America, enrolling 200,000 students - double the number in 1978. ... more
As Day Schools Rake in Mega-Gifts, Some See a Trend in Jewish Giving
Combined Jewish Philanthropies
Chanan Tigay
May 9, 2006
In February, news broke that the Jim Joseph Foundation would give some $25 million a year to Jewish education.
The previous month, the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, Md., received a $15 million gift from a family foundation. In late 2004, a group of anonymous families made a $45 million donation to three Boston-area day schools. ... more
Only Encouraging Them
Wall Street Journal Op-Ed
James Piereson
November 18, 2005
Students at Yale University's School of Music -- and aspiring musicians hoping to go there someday -- must have been jumping for joy two weeks ago when the school announced that it had received an anonymous $100 million endowment gift that would guarantee them all free tuition. A few days later Tufts University, not to be outdone, announced that it had received its own $100 million gift. This one was from Pierre Omidyar, alumnus and founder of eBay, who did not specify how his money was to be used, only that the principal must be invested in "micro loans" to small business enterprises in poor countries in Asia and Africa... more
Fundraising Just a Mouse Click Away
Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles
Tzvi Kahn, Jewish Telegraphic Agency
July 22,2005
When Carol Vavra, a major and tactical airlift navigator in the U.S. Air Force, returns home from the Middle East at the end of July, her husband will have a surprise waiting for her.
Paul Vavra, a recently retired Air Force major and an avid classic rock fan, bought his wife a pair of tickets to a Rolling Stones concert for $760 on eBay. In the process, he made a substantial donation to the UJA-Federation of New York... more
Wanted: 1 Rich Jew
Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles
Rob Eshman, Editor-in-Chief
June 24, 2005
I have a friend who may come into a large sum of money. Not millions, but tens of millions. Sometimes, she told me, she daydreams about all the charities and causes she'll donate to.
"That's what I want to be, one of those people who sits around all day and gives out money," she said... more
Short News and Commentary
A Giving People
American Enterprise Magazine Online
John R. Lott, Sonya Jones, Mark Steyn, Alan Dowd, Naomi Riley, and Laurie Vuoto
February 4, 2005
Within three weeks of the Asian tsunami disaster, private donors in America had given even more than the $350 million in official assistance pledged by the U.S. government, note researchers Gary Tobin, Alexander Karp, and Aryeh Weinberg in a forthcoming study entitled "American Mega-Giving." With private contributions continuing to pour in, and $6 million per day of relief assistance being carried out by nearly 20,000 U.S. troops, total U.S. aid for this disaster will exceed $1 billion... more
Charity List Shows Community's Fund Raising Generally Is Stable
JTA
Rachel Pomerance
October 31, 2004
A snapshot of some of the largest Jewish charities reveals that Jewish fund raising generally is stable. But nuances in the numbers reveal who's up, who's down and why.... more
Boston Day Schools Get Anonymous $45 Million Gift
Forward
Nathaniel Popper
October 15, 2004
A group of anonymous donors has given $45 million to support Jewish day schools in Boston, the largest one-time donation ever made to the city's Jewish community... more
Prudent Management or Outright Greed? Critics Ask How
Big Endowments Should Be
The Chronicle of Philanthropy Endowments: A Special Supplement
Ben Gose
May 27, 2004
Harvard University is sitting on nearly $20-billion
in cash and wants much more. Guide Dogs for the Blind
has cash reserves of roughly $260-million, nearly 10
times its annual budget. And Shriners Hospitals for Children
maintains an endowment of more than $7-billion, a sum
so vast that it covers 90 percent of the annual operating
costs at the organization's 22 hospitals... more
Archives
May 1, 2003 - The Chronicle
of Philanthropy
Getting
Megagifts to the Neediest Causes
Big gifts from wealthy donors and foundations are made
primarily to a small group of very large charities, with
the result that many causes -- and almost all small and
regional groups -- are cut off from a substantial source
of funds, according to a new study...more
April 17, 2003 - The Chronicle of Philanthropy
Most
Big Gifts Benefit a Handful of Large Charities, Study Finds
Megagifts -- donations of $10-million or more -- are a critical component
of American philanthropy. Such donations accounted for more than $29-billion
of the donations that charities received from 1995 to 2000...more
Apr. 1, 2003 - JTA
Among
the wealthiest Jews in U.S., most give most to non-Jewish
causes
In his 74 years, Arthur Sackler made a fortune in medical book publishing
and amassed a collection of rare art and sculpture. In 1999, his family
foundation gave $100 million to the Smithsonian Institution, where an
Asian art gallery bears Sackler's name....more
Mar. 23, 2003 - San Jose Business Journal
Revealed:
Where the wealthy give away their money
The vast majority of mega-gifts -- gifts of $10 million or more -- are
concentrated in three areas: education, health, and arts/culture, according
to a new study by the Institute for Jewish & Community Research of
San Francisco...more
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