Maimonides Fund Expands Investments in Jewish Leadership, Emerging Technology, and Grantmaking
Maimonides Fund today announced a significant expansion of its North American work, including the formal launch and first dedicated hires of the Maimonides Jewish Leadership Institute (MJLI); the creation of a new Director of Emerging Technologies position; a new Leadership & Gatherings Department; and the addition of two program officers to MF’s grantmaking team.
A Sapir essay imagined ‘Jewish thriving.’ Atlanta’s Dupree built it a home. (eJewish Philanthropy)
“Walk into Atlanta’s Dupree Center and, as community leader Michelle Simon puts it, ‘It’s like “Cheers”; everyone knows your name.’
In his 2023 Sapir essay ‘Three Falsehoods About Antisemitism—and One Truth,’ Bret Stephens drew a distinction between “thriving Jews” who succeed as individuals and the collective flourishing that he referred to as ‘Jewish thriving.’ At Atlanta’s new Jewish education hub, The Dupree — as the locals call it — that idea is coming to life.”
Trump official and Brookings scholar clash over campus antisemitism crackdown (Jewish Insider)
“The debate — sponsored by SAPIR and held at the Israel on Campus Coalition’s National Leadership Summit in Washington — featured Noah Pollak, a senior advisor at the Education Department, who argued that the controversial crackdown is good for the country, and Jonathan Rauch, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and contributing writer for The Atlantic, who made the counterargument.”
Israel Wins 2 Gold Medals at 58th International Chemistry Olympiad in Uzbekistan (Algemeiner)
“Israel’s national chemistry team won two gold and two silver medals at the 58th International Chemistry Olympiad in Uzbekistan, placing the country among the world’s top-performing delegations….
The team is jointly operated by Israel’s Ministry of Education and the Future Scientists Center of the Maimonides Fund.”
Open Position: Leadership & Gatherings Associate
MF seeks to hire a Leadership & Gatherings Associate to support the operational design and execution of our growing suite of programs, with responsibility for logistics, coordination, and execution.
Open Position: Program Associate
Location: New York City (in-person with travel) Reports to: Program Officer (TBD) At a consequential moment in Jewish history, Maimonides Fund (MF) is expanding our grantmaking and programmatic work in service of our mission in North America and Israel. Through strategic investments and targeted initiatives, including SAPIR: Ideas for a Thriving Jewish Future, we support serious ideas, strengthen institutions, […]
Open Position: Program Officer – Jewish Life & Learning
MF seeks to hire a Program Officer to help to build the future of Jewish life and learning in North America, becoming an expert in grantmaking, nonprofit finance, and changemaking, while working with MF staff, philanthropic partners, field experts, practitioners, and thought leaders to identify innovative ideas and interventions to advance this work.
New in SAPIR: The Issue on (Fixing) America
“This issue of SAPIR begins from a simple judgment: America’s institutions are strained, not spent. They are falling short in visible ways — on trust, on speech, on education, on civic formation — but they remain capable of renewal. Repair, not revolution, is the work of the moment.”
On the virtue of not meeting learners where they are, by Mark Charendoff (eJewish Philanthropy)
“Education exists to impart information, shape attitudes and inspire behaviors. It presupposes that there is somewhere worth going, and that the educator has a responsibility — not just a preference — to help get learners there. That’s the work, and it is directional by definition. Of course, educators must be sensitive to who the learner is, but they should not have to choose between fidelity to tradition and responsiveness to students. They have to hold that tension with honesty and integrity.”
Engaging men and boys in Jewish life: What we know, what we don’t know and what we can do, by Zack Wainer, Isaac Kurtz, Doron Kenter (eJewish Philanthropy)
“The changes we’ve seen – and continue to see – at the highest ranks of Jewish organizations are the result of years of people openly advocating for and taking concrete steps towards women’s leadership. Those efforts were, and continue to be, essential. But if we’re more concerned about the gender balance on the panel than in the audience, we’re missing most of the story. It’s time to formulate the same wide-scale response to issues of male representation and participation in Jewish spaces.”