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History | Goals and
Outcomes | Advisory Board
History
Based on successful programs piloted by Jewish Community
Federations in Washington DC and San Diego, among other models,
the EBJCTF has established ground-breaking programming and
its own unique identity in the exciting new field of youth
philanthropy. It has built upon the local model of the "Seventh
Grade Fund" at Brandeis Hillel Day School, Temple Isaiah's
Religious School, Tehiyah Day School and the Gideon Hausner
and Ronald C. Wornick Jewish Day Schools.
The EBJCTF's "pilot" Board was established in the
Spring of 2004, as a program of the San Francisco Jewish Community
Endowment Fund, funded by the Fanny Bess Fund. Over the course
of a six-month process, the founding Board of 22 Jewish youth
learned the ins and outs of Foundation work and philanthropic
giving from a Jewish ethical perspective, and evaluated no
less than thirty grant proposals. In September 2004, the Board
approved the allocation of a total of $11,255 to three
non-profit organizations.
More than doubling the Tzedakah power of EBJCTF, the second
Board managed to raise and distribute a total of $25,000
in grants to six non-profit organizations. The second
board also saw the implementation first Bay Area Teen Philanthropy
Retreat in December, 2004, along with the Peninsula
Jewish Community Teen Foundation. Building on the successes
of the pilot Board, the second Board operated from December
2004 to May 2005, and effectively identified areas for improvement
from the first phase of the project.
The third Board raised and distributed a total of $50,500
in grants to eleven non-profit organizations, again more than
doubling the money raised and granted out from the previous
year.
Now a program of The Jewish
Community Foundation in Oakland, California, the EBJCTF
recently completed its sixth year. Over the school year, the
EBJCTF, whose board was comprised of a select group of 22
East Bay Jewish youth, met monthly to explore Jewish values
and ideas, gain profound leadership skills and experience,
and practice informed, directed philanthropy. They developed
a group funding mission and a Request for Proposal (RFP) that
was sent to dozens of organizations. The board members then
carefully evaluated the grant proposals and invited agency
representatives to make in-person presentations about their
social action projects. After an intense, but highly respectful
and well-planned allocation process, the Board decided how
to distribute the grants.
Goals and Outcomes
The East Bay Jewish Community Teen Foundation provides local
youth with the opportunity to put into practice the Jewish
principles of Tikkun Olam ("repairing the world")
and Tzedakah (the fulfillment of justice through giving)
in a group setting, and to instill within its participants
the skills that may set a life-long pattern of doing and giving:
activism and philanthropy.
 EBJCTF participants engage in an in-depth examination of
social justice issues, profound discussions of Tzedakah
and other Jewish values along with their practical application,
and collective decisions on grantmaking.
Through participation in EBJCTF, our Board members will...
- Develop leadership skills and gain valuable leadership
experience.
- Engage in real-world problem-solving.
- Experience functional group collaboration and learn the
steps of consensus-building.
- Gain an intimate familiarity with Jewish values and their
practical application.
- Build skills in public speaking and effective use of language.
- Develop critical thinking skills through probing grant
proposal evaluation.
- Build confidence and self-esteem
- Bolster math and budget skills through critical budget
evaluation.
Advisory board
The EBJCTF Advisory Board is chaired by a lay leader from
the community and comprised of lay leaders and teen professionals,
including individuals familiar with existing East Bay youth
programs, selected youth representatives of the EBJCTF, and
the Program Director.
Advisory Committee members participate in the interview process
to select Youth Foundation Board members, and advise the Program
Director on outreach and policy issues, as well as potential
sources of additional matching funds.
For more information about the EBJCTF Advisory Board, please
contact Lisa Tabak, Executive Director, The Jewish Community
Foundation, at (510) 433-0134.
The East Bay Jewish Community Teen Foundation is a program of The Jewish Community Foundation, and is part of the larger Youth Philanthropy Initiative of the Jewish Community Endowment Fund of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties.
East Bay program funding this year is provided by The Morton and Amy Friedkin Foundation and The Sandy and Jean Colen Family Foundation, both of which are Supporting Foundations of The Jewish Community Foundation, and the Shoresh Foundation. Support for the larger regional teen philanthropy program is provided by many generous Bay Area funders. Additional grants and contributions are needed to continue this extraordinary program.
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