Jewish Youth Philanthropy Institute

Philanthropic opportunities for teens have been building steam over the last five years, and Jewish Youth Philanthropy Institute (JYPI) has been at the forefront of the movement. Among 50 teen philanthropy programs across the country, it is the only independent 501(c)(3), and it has been able to combine philanthropy and civic engagement. Teens from public, private and parochial schools contribute their own funds, which are then matched by JYPI, and pursue a two-year collective grantmaking and volunteer process. Participants learn about their local areas’ needs as well as those of Israel and global Jewry, and then make joint decisions to allocate funds. 

Originally devised for 8th and 9th graders, participants who were aging out asked to continue, so a 10th through 12th grade program was established. In total, JYPI operates eight groups in Washington, DC, Maryland and Virginia. In addition to these youth philanthropy circles, JYPI coordinates monthly community service opportunities, summer community service camp, and an annual service learning trip in conjunction with American Jewish World Service. 

Funders at the Grinspoon, Mayerson, Sierra, and Rose Community Foundations have worked closely on their own models as well as with JYPI funders to organize a national youth philanthropy conference and a national Jewish youth philanthropy website, and to launch the Jewish Teen Funders Network, housed at the Jewish Funders Network. While hardly alone in the youth philanthropy sphere, one partner attests that JYPI “serves as a wonderful model for others to follow and is helping to inform the field.”