Funding Priorities

The Righteous Persons Foundation is dedicated to supporting efforts that build a diverse and vibrant Jewish community in the United States. While past grants have been made in a number of areas, at this time, the Foundation is directing the majority of its resources towards organizations and projects that:

• Use the arts, culture, and media to engage a broad audience in an examination of what it has meant and can mean to be a Jew today;
• Engage specifically with youth and young adults on issues of Jewish identity and community;
• Promote understanding between Jews and those of other faiths and backgrounds around shared values and common goals;
• Encourage Jews to participate in the work of tikkun olam (social justice) both as a means to strengthen a connection to Jewish values and in order to affect change in the broader society; and/or
• Educate people about the events of the Holocaust (including what Jewish life was like in Europe before WWII) and its lessons for civic responsibility, tolerance, and social action today.

In addition, limited funding will go to organizations and projects that:

• Build a more Jewishly literate community;
• Strengthen and revitalize synagogue life and make Jewish spirituality more accessible.

For examples of grants in each of these areas, please go to Grants Awarded.

Please note that while we wish we could support all of the worthwhile projects in need of assistance, the limited funds available do not allow the Righteous Persons Foundation to fund all programs that fit within the funding priorities.

In addition, funding is generally not provided for the following:

• Direct aid to individuals;
• Individual synagogues or day schools;
• Conferences, seminars, and workshops;
• Capital or building campaigns;
• Scholarships and university programs;
• Programs servicing individuals and communities outside of the United States;
• Fundraising events, dinners and mass mailings;
• Endowment Funds;
• Support to cover an existing deficit.

In addition, in the rare case that the Foundation provides funding to establish an endowment, the Foundation prohibits any deduction from the endowment for overhead, indirect expenses and/or administrative fees.

Apart from the core funding highlighted above, limited funds are also available from the Righteous Persons Foundation's Fund For Co-Existence.