Our Partnerships The Jewish Federation movement reaches and supports Jews in need around the world, sustaining and rebuilding Jewish communities through the funding of, and strategic collaboration with, these global Jewish organizations:

The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) is a global organization, endowed with unique responsibilities by the State of Israel, in which Jews from Israel and the Diaspora work together to: rescue Jews in distress; promote immigration of Jews and assist in their absorption in Israel; enhance Jewish education; foster relationships between Jewish communities around the world and communities in Israel; and strengthen segments of the Israeli population and areas in the country in need of support. Since its inception in 1929, the Jewish Agency has brought more than 3.3 million new immigrants to Israel. JAFI is governed by an executive assembly composed of elected representatives from both Israel and Diaspora Jewry.

United Israel Appeal (UIA) is responsible for oversight of funds raised by Jewish Federation Annual Campaigns for distribution in Israel. As part of The Jewish Federations of North America, UIA is a principal link between the American Jewish community and the people of Israel. An independent legal entity, UIA secures and monitors U.S. grant-funds for the immigration and absorption of Jewish humanitarian migrants and refugees to Israel. It is with the Jewish Agency as our partner, that UIA assists American Jews to fulfill their ongoing collective commitment to contribute to and participate in the building of the Jewish State of Israel.

Since 1914, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) has given global expression to the principle that all Jews are responsible for one another. Working today in more than 70 countries across the former Soviet Union, Central and Eastern Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America, JDC acts on behalf of North America’s Jewish communities and others to rescue Jews in danger, provide relief to those in distress, revitalize overseas Jewish communities, and help Israel overcome the social challenges of its most vulnerable citizens. In Israel, JDC’s strategic partnerships with the government and local agencies help the Jewish state develop innovative interventions addressing poverty and strengthening its neediest groups, including youth at risk, the elderly, people with disabilities, and new immigrants.

World ORT works for the advancement of the Jewish People through education and training for employment; to provide individuals worldwide with the skills and knowledge necessary to cope with the challenges of their environment; to foster economic self-sufficiency, mobility and a sense of identity through the use of state-of-the-art technology. World ORT works in partnership with The Jewish Federations of North America, the Jewish Agency, JDC, the ENP and many other major Jewish organizations and educational institutions to deliver the best practical education for those who need it.

Overseas Beneficiaries of Elective Funding or Special Campaigns

Ethiopian National Project (ENP)

The Ethiopian National Project (ENP) is a unique endeavor that unites organizations assisting the Ethiopian-Israeli community, in true cooperation and partnership with the Ethiopian community in Israel itself. ENP is a partnership between world Jewry – The Jewish Federations of North America, the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI,) the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee in Israel (JDC-Israel) and Keren Hayesod – representatives of Ethiopian Jewish Community Organizations, and the Government of Israel. ENP’s focus is the teen population. and it offers assistance to about a third of all Ethiopian students in junior and senior high schools in Israel. ENP reaches some 5,500 students and their families. Hundreds more parents and leaders also directly benefited from ENP’s work and evaluations reveal that ENP’s Scholastic Assistance program is likely to make a dramatic effect in just a few years in the rate of quality matriculation achievement, improved tracking placement of students and, ultimately, elite faculty university acceptance. In fact, formal statistical analyses reveal that after only one year of participation in ENP’s programs, a dramatic difference is already being witnessed.

Israel Trauma Coalition (ITC)

The Israel Trauma Coalition was initiated in 2002 by the UJA-Federation of New York, with seven funding organizations, to create coordination between trauma-related interventions at all levels. The ITC ensures a comprehensive view of needs and the delivery of timely services. The ITC brings together Israeli experts from 60 organizations to provide a continuum of trauma care including direct care, training and supervision, and creating preparedness at both the municipal and national levels.

Alliance Partners

Through The Jewish Federations of North America’s National Federation/Agency Alliance (the Alliance), 33 Federations support a network of nine national Jewish agencies that provide local communities with critical services. The Alliance was established in 2007 to allow Federations to collectively evaluate and allocate approximately $7 million for national agencies, engage in national planning with those agencies, and fulfill their collective responsibility toward supporting a national agency system that promotes priorities established by the Federations. The Jewish Federations of North America’s Executive Committee renewed the Alliance in December, 2009. The following agencies receive funding through the Alliance:

Agencies

Association of Jewish Family and Children’s Agencies

The Association of Jewish Family and Children’s Agencies and its 140 member agencies across the United States and Canada provide programs and services that support individuals and families as they face diverse and critical issues. AJFCA members partner with local federations to build communities that enhance the opportunity for each person to live a healthy and meaningful Jewish life.

The Foundation for Jewish Culture

Founded in 1960 to re-establish on American soil the scholarship and scholarly institutions lost in the Holocaust, The Foundation for Jewish Culture supports artists and scholars exploring the Jewish experience, envisioning the Jewish future while honoring its past. The Lynn and Jules Kroll Fund for Jewish Documentary Film have funded numerous projects about and from Israel. The Foundation-sponsored Schusterman Visiting Israeli Artist program places Israeli artists and scholars in communities throughout the country and the Six Points Fellowship program supports several Israeli artists working in New York. The Foundation also works with the Israeli Consulate’s Cultural Division to promote Israeli artists in North America.

Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS)

The Hebrew Immigration Aid Society (HIAS) is the American Jewish community’s international migration agency. Founded in 1881, HIAS assists Jews whose lives and freedom are at risk, through rescue, relocation, family reunification, and resettlement. HIAS’ offices in eight countries, including Israel, provide a wide array of legal and support services. In its Austria office, HIAS assists Jews and other religious minorities who have fled Iran and applied for refugee status in the U.S. As an expression of Jewish ethics and values, HIAS also protects vulnerable non-Jewish refugees in countries such as Chad, where, together with IsraAID, HIAS provides trauma counseling to Darfur survivors of the genocide in Sudan. Since its founding, HIAS has helped more than 4.5 million men, women and children.

Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life

Since an estimated 85 percent of the American Jewish community attends an institution of higher education, Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life is well-positioned to influence young Jews at a time they are making critical decisions about family, faith, and their future. Hillel’s mission is to enrich the lives of Jewish undergraduate and graduate students so that they may enrich the Jewish people and the world. Hillel welcomes Jews of all backgrounds to its 251 affiliated foundations, program centers and Jewish student organizations on 513 campuses throughout North America. Hillel foundations are also located in Israel, South America, and the Former Soviet Union.

Jewish Community Centers Association of North America

The JCC Association is the service organization for JCCs, YM-YWHAs, and camps at more than 350 sites across North America, serving more than two million people annually. It represents the largest network of Jewish camps and early childhood programs in North America. The JCC Association aims to help JCCs, YM-YWHAs, and camps fulfill their mission of building community, transmitting Jewish heritage, teaching children, caring for the elderly, helping immigrants, and providing a warm, fun place to spend time and make friends.

Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA)

As the community relations arm of the organized Jewish community, the JCPA represents 14 national agencies and 125 local communities. Under the JCPA’s umbrella, these organizations meet to shape consensus and inspire grassroots action around the globe on the most essential issues of interest to the Jewish community. The JCPA is committed to safeguarding the rights of Jews worldwide and promotes a just, democratic and pluralistic U.S. society.

Jewish Educational Service of North America (JESNA)

JESNA was created as a service agency for the federated system, and this connection to the Federations is central to its identity. Today, JESNA is a community-focused agency that works with local and national partners to facilitate and promote the delivery of engaging, inspiring Jewish education across the denominational spectrum and in many settings, for learners of any age. JESNA’s board is drawn from the leadership of local Federations, central agencies, and other educational institutions in communities across North America and JESNA is proud of the integral part it plays with partners to constitute the Jewish educational “system” in North America and Israel.

JTA: The Global News Service of the Jewish People

JTA is the definitive, trusted global source of breaking news, in-depth analysis, opinion and features on current events and issues of interest to the Jewish People. JTA is the only agency in the organized Jewish community dedicated exclusively to providing Jewish leadership, opinion-makers and activists with the information and analysis needed to make decisions and take action on behalf of the Jewish People.

NCSJ: Advocates on Behalf of Jews in Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States & Eurasia

When Soviet Jews were at risk and desperate to move to Israel, the American Jewish community rallied behind NCSJ to help Soviet Jews gain their freedom. Today, NCSJ helps to secure the well-being of over one million Jews who are rebuilding Jewish life in the former Soviet Union. Supporting nearly 50 organizations including Federations, community councils, and committees, NCSJ works to ensure that political conditions in the Former Soviet Union allow Jews to live freely.

Federations Participating in the National Federation/Agency Alliance: