January 25, 2017
As we close out the first month of this New Year, we are proud to share a few highlights of our fundholders’ extraordinary philanthropic impact across New Jersey in 2016. The numbers tell the story.
$108 million into philanthropic funds at the Community Foundation, the largest one-year commitment to the current needs and future causes of our communities.
- $4 million into legacy funds through which donors have asked the Community Foundation to honor and implement their charitable goals.
- $56 million in grants to mission-driven nonprofit organizations across New Jersey ($36.5 million) and beyond ($19.6 million), including to deepen the interest of students from urban areas in science, technology, engineering, and math.
- 5,718 unique grants processed with speed and precision by our philanthropic professionals on our fundholders’ behalf.
- 72 new funds created at the Community Foundation (1,050 total), including donor advised funds, legacy funds, scholarship funds, business advised funds, designated agency funds, agency endowment funds, and special project funds.
- $1.2 million in scholarships, helping 557 young people achieve their dreams of a college education (with nearly 90% of recipients graduating within four years).
- 819 young people brought to the National Winter Activity Center in Vernon, New Jersey to experience the thrill of downhill skiing and learn about healthy living thanks to the Warm Jacket Fund.
- 65,696 students (grades 5 through 12) who participated in a comprehensive civics curriculum and critical thinking workshops in the lead-up to the 2016 election.
- 83 school field trips made possible through our new Field Trip New Jersey fund, with many more on the way this spring (and a full $1 million endowed exclusively for Newark students).
- Six more months of funding for the NJ Connect for Recovery hotline for addicts and their families, which would have been shuttered if not for our Leadership Committee’s quick and critical grant.
- One Bachelor of Arts degree for the first graduate of our New Paths Newark program designed to support laid off civil service employees of the Newark Public Schools system.
- Twice as many child refugees fleeing Central American gang violence receiving legal representation in family and immigration court as compared to 2015, with a plan to increase the amount represented dramatically.
We look forward to accomplishing even more with you in 2017.