The Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago (JWF) has awarded $397,500 to 21 exceptional projects that improve the lives of Jewish women and girls in Chicago and around the world.

The grants fund strategic projects that create social change at the individual, communal and institutional levels. The total includes the Foundation’s multi-year grant and grants from The Ellie Fund at the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago (see sidebar).

One renewal grant supports The Jewish Community Against Sex Trafficking (JCAST) Chicago which works to eradicate sex trafficking in the Chicagoland area through public awareness, community engagement, and advocacy at local, state and national levels. Inspired by Jewish values, JCAST partners with interfaith and human rights groups, non-profit organizations, government officials, and law enforcement agencies. By serving as the Jewish voice against sex trafficking in Chicago, JCAST seeks to ensure that the Jewish community understands how sex trafficking affects our community, and recognize how we as Jews, have a moral imperative to advocate for policies, services for victims, and greater awareness. Using a gender lens, JCAST empowers Jewish women and girls to help end violence against women by taking a leadership role in advocating for systemic change in the way the law and our culture treats female victims of sex trafficking, and the way our culture views prostitution as acceptable and a ‘rite of passage’ for men.

“While there is much work to be done, JCAST seeks to effect a cultural change in perspective and behavior toward purchased sex as socially acceptable and a ‘victimless crime’,” JWF Grants Chair Shari Slavin said. “JWF is proud to be part of JCAST’s efforts to increase awareness and knowledge among the Jewish community about sex trafficking and the role Jews can play in preventing it.”

Established in 1997, JWF is the largest Jewish Women’s Foundation in the United States. With more than 315 trustees and a pledged endowment of over $8.8 million, JWF has awarded more than $3.2 million to 155 projects to improve opportunities in all aspects of Jewish women’s and girls’ lives.

“JWF trustees are engaged in dynamic, collaborative philanthropy through our hands-on grant making process,” said JWF Chair Gerri Kahnweiler. “Our trustees invest countless hours on every proposal JWF receives by researching, doing site visits and evaluating a potential grant’s impact on positive social change for Jewish women and girls in our community and across the globe.”

JWF awarded new grants to: Mavoi Satum: Supreme Court Appeals Department: Advancing Change in the Realm of Personal Status in the State of Israel ; American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee: Kanfei Yonah Girls School and Educational Project ; Yeshivat Maharat; and Bishvilaych Women’s Health Organization: Your Health is in Your Hands: Breast Health Awareness .

“Several of these new grantees focus on providing educational opportunities and legal advocacy for Jewish women experiencing discrimination and poverty,” said JWF Grants Chair Shari Slavin.

JWF’s renewal grants include: ATZUM: Task Force on Human Trafficking ; National Council of Jewish Women Chicago North Shore Section: Jewish Community Against Sex Trafficking Coalition Chicago ; Roger Baldwin Foundation of ACLU, Inc.: Reproductive Rights Project ; Adva Center: Community Empowerment to Improve the Lives of Women and Girls ; Eden Center: Crisis and Health Intervention Training for Israeli Mikvah Attendants ; Shalom Bait, Asociacion Civil de Prevencion de la Violencia Familiar: Pursuing Justice, the Law as a Tool of Change ; and SHALVA: Legal Liaison Program .

“These grantees concentrate on creating partnerships and programs locally and internationally to address issues including domestic violence, sexual exploitation, and sexual assault prevention. We are so pleased to support our grantee partners impacting social change in Tunisia, Israel, Argentina, New York, and the Chicagoland community through our grant making,” Slavin said.

Additional grants through the Ellie Fund at the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago include: Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation (CAASE): Empowering Young Men to End Sexual Exploitation Program ; Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women’s Network: Medical Response Collaborative ; Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago: Ma’yan Research Training Internship; Leo Baeck Israel Education Center: University Leadership Training Program ; Olim Beyahad: Employment, Empowerment, and Leadership for Excelling Ethiopian Israeli Women ; Paamonim: Economic Empowerment for Single Mothers ; University of Chicago (Ci3 ): Evaluating an Interactive Sexual Assault Bystander Intervention ; The Voices and Faces Project: The Stories We Tell ; and Women Moving Millions: Leadership Curriculum .

Following are the 2015 JWF grants:

Economic Security/Legal Reform for Women & Girls

ATZUM: Task Force on Human Trafficking Working on the grassroots level with other NGOs, this project employs a multi-pronged approach which includes lobbying for reform in the areas of prevention, border closure, services for victims, and prosecution of traffickers, pimps, and johns. TFHT is at the forefront of efforts to ensure that the currently seated Knesset legislate a Nordic Model law, designed to criminalize the purchase of sexual services and protect the prostituted person. Renewal Grant Amount: $21,100

Center for Women‘s Justice (CWJ) : The Public Interest Litigation Project This project files precedent-setting lawsuits in civil courts across Israel to address discriminatory decisions and policies decided by Israel’s rabbinic courts. Ge t refusal (husbands who refuse to grant their wives a divorce) is among the top priorities of these lawsuits. Renewal Grant Amount: $20,000

Mavoi Satum : Supreme Court Appeals Department: Advancing Change in the Realm of Personal Status in the State of Israel Twenty percent of Israeli men going through a divorce abuse the law to try to blackmail their wives in exchange for a get . By creating a department that specializes in Supreme Court appeals, Mavoi Satum will establish new precedents that will create positive, long-lasting change and expose this injustice within the Chief Rabbinate. Grant Amount: $20,000

National Council of Jewish Women Chicago North Shore Section : Jewish Community Against Sex Trafficking Coalition Chicago (JCAST) Inspired by Jewish values, JCAST partners with interfaith and human rights groups, non-profit organizations, government officials, and law enforcement agencies to eradicate sex-trafficking in Chicago. JCAST seeks to ensure that the Jewish community understands how sex trafficking affects the community, and recognizes how Jews have a moral imperative to engage in advocacy, services for victims, and greater awareness. Renewal Grant Amount: $25,000

Roger Baldwin Foundation of ACLU, Inc. : Reproductive Rights Project Using the full force of the ACLU’s integrated advocacy efforts, this project seeks to ensure that women in Illinois can access the reproductive health care and information they need regardless of the religious beliefs of their employers and health care providers. Renewal Grant Amount: $23,180

Education/Leadership Development for Women & Girls

Adva Center : Community Empowerment to Improve the Lives of Women and Girls This grassroots community organizing project is designed to give Israeli women the tools they need to become politically active in both formal and informal settings throughout their community. The program aims to increase women’s political and economic power by providing them with knowledge about their economy and society and about the inner workings of their local and national governments, empowering women in communities throughout Israel to effect change in their local municipalities. Renewal Grant Amount: $20,000

American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee : Kanfei Yonah Girls School and Educational Project Within the Jewish community of Djerba, Tunisia, most girls grow up to live a domestic life without considering possibilities for employment outside the home. Since 2011, Kanfei Yonah has been working within the scope of this highly traditional community and subtly broadening the mindset of its members by offering women basic education in subjects such as English and computer science, which are essential for developing potential careers beyond motherhood. The school itself hires teachers from within the community, offering a unique opportunity for some women to work outside the home while remaining within the framework of their ancestral community. In doing so, these teachers provide a model of working mothers, both to the community at large and to the young girls they teach. Grant Amount: $14,720

Yeshivat Maharat: Yeshivat Maharat is the first yeshiva in the United States to ordain women as Orthodox clergy. Founded in 2009 in New York, Yeshivat Maharat provides a credentialed pathway for women to serve in rabbinic positions. Grant Amount: $16,000

Health & Well-Being for Women & Girls

Bishvilaych Women‘s Health Organization : Your Health is in Your Hands: Breast Health Awareness Due to cultural insulation and modesty laws, Orthodox women in Israel tend to be uninformed of the importance of self-breast exams, clinical breast exams, mammography, and the possibility of genetic testing to determine their genetic risk for breast cancer. Women will receive informative, practical workshops on breast cancer, genetic testing, and breast self-exam training. Participants will be provided with a private clinical breast exam and consultation with a skilled physician immediately following each workshop. Grant Amount: $14,000

Eden Center : Crisis and Health Intervention Training for Israeli Mikvah Attendants This project seeks to transform the objective of mikvah (ritual bath) attendants from performance of the mikvah ritual to becoming an advocate for women’s health and well-being. Through a series of educational programs, Israeli mikvah attendants will address pressing issues such as domestic violence, post-partum depression, and breast health. This project seeks to shift individual and community behavior by educating and empowering mikvah attendants to recognize, inform, and advocate for the myriad of women with whom they interface on a regular basis. Renewa l Grant Amount: $20,000

Shalom Bait, Asociacion Civil de Prevencion de la Violencia Familiar : Pursuing Justice, the Law as a Tool of Change Located in Buenos Aires, Shalom Bait is the only Jewish organization working directly to meet the needs of Jewish victims of domestic violence in Argentina, providing them with legal counseling and representation as they engage in legal battles against their abusers. Shalom Bait also works to increase public awareness, train professionals in the community on how to intervene in cases involving domestic violence, and engage in advocacy efforts to enforce and strengthen the domestic violence laws in Argentina. Renewal Grant Amount: $21,000

SHALVA : Legal Liaison Program SHALVA, the oldest independent Jewish domestic violence agency in the United States, works to address domestic abuse in Chicago Jewish homes and families. To better assist clients, SHALVA’s Legal Liaison Program will hire attorneys to provide legal information and support to women who are engaged in lengthy legal battles with the men who abused them. The program will also educate divorce attorneys and judges on the differences between and the complexities of a divorce where there has been abuse versus a contentious divorce-and to create awareness of how abusers use the legal system to further the abuse, reassert control and wear down their partners. The Legal Liaison helps SHALVA’s clients better understand the complicated legal process and facilitates communication with their attorneys. Additionally, the Legal Liaison works to identify and recruit attorneys who will provide pro bono legal representation for SHALVA’s clients. Renewal Grant Amount: Second installment of $25,000 per year for three years ($75,000 total)

The Ellie Fund of the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago

Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation (CAASE) : Empowering Young Men to End Sexual Exploitation Program This school-based prevention program engages young men in high school as allies in efforts to address and prevent sexual violence and exploitation. Through a series of workshops, young men learn about the violent and exploitative dynamic that accompanies the sex trade to deter their involvement as potential consumers and facilitate understanding of how sexual violence and exploitation affects them and their communities. This understanding effects change in young men’s relationships with women and empowers them to become part of the effort to end sexual violence and exploitation. Companion sessions are also held with high school aged young women. Renewal Grant Amount: $12,500

Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women‘s Network (CMBWN) : Medical Response Collaborative (MRC) CMBWN created the MRC to shift the medical system’s response to domestic violence. Bringing together member service providers in partnership with hospitals, Medical Response teams advocate for doctors and nurses to treat domestic violence as a public health issue where they play a proactive role in reducing future violence and help those in crisis by properly screening and referring victims. Grant Amount: $25,000

Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago : Ma’yan Research Training Internship This internship program for high school students provides a girls-only space where participants engage in serious inquiry about the topics that matter most to them. Over the course of a school year, girls develop critical thinking and research skills and engage in feminist discussions during bi-monthly meetings. RTI interns produce new, well-researched evidence of the needs and experiences of Jewish teen girls, which can be used by community professionals to improve existing programs. This project is a partnership between the New York-based Ma’yan, the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, and DePaul University’s Beck Research Initiative for Women, Gender and Community. Renewal Grant Amount $20,000

Leo Baeck Israel Education Center : University Leadership Training Program (ULTP) In response to discrimination against Ethiopian women in Israel today, Leo Baeck established ULTP to provide female Ethiopian university students with leadership skills and opportunities to succeed in the face of inequality and take an active role in becoming the next generation of Ethiopian-Israeli leaders. Participants gain an expanded sense of social and community responsibility, reinforced self-esteem, leadership and entrepreneurial skills, upward mobility in the workforce and the financial means to complete their university studies. Grant Amount: $10,000

Olim Beyahad : Employment, Empowerment, and Leadership for Excelling Ethiopian Israeli Women This program helps excelling Ethiopian Jewish university graduates and students in their final year of studies find suitable employment opportunities and properly integrate into their new jobs and Israel’s workforce, striving to give the underprivileged Ethiopian Israeli population a second chance at successful and permanent absorption into society. Through this project, excelling university graduates will serve as role models in their communities and inspire hope, belief, and motivation – especially amongst youth. Grant Amount: $15,000

Paamonim : Economic Empowerment for Single Mothers Paamonim aims to increase the financial literacy of single mothers in Israel by teaching them how to change their consumer habits, handle their debts, balance their budgets, improve their value in the job market, and manage their household finances. Women participate in group economic recovery workshops and receive individual economic recovery coaching. Through this project, they acquire the tools and knowledge to exit the cycle of poverty and change their lives and those of their children. Grant Amount $15,000

University of Chicago (Ci3) : Evaluating an Interactive Sexual Assault Bystander Intervention The University of Chicago’s Center for Interdisciplinary, Inquiry, and Innovation in Sexual and Reproductive Health (Ci3) is a campus-wide initiative committed to empowering young people, conducting innovative research, and uncovering opportunities for policy and systems change to advance the sexual and reproductive health of youth. The Ci3 GCC Design Lab developed Bystander , a web-based, interactive narrative that explores the responsibility of witnesses to sexual harassment and violence. The project aims to increase sexual violence awareness, diminish myths about sexual violence and sexual assault victims, and ultimately invoke intervening behaviors for sexual assault situations. By partnering with Response in implementing the intervention, they will “train the trainers” to use a game-based approach to prevention education and evaluate its feasibility and efficacy in a non-school setting. Grant Amount: $25,000

The Voices and Faces Project : The Stories We Tell This award-winning, Chicago-based storytelling initiative explores how public testimony can be used as a tool for social change and brings the testimonies of Jewish survivors of sexual violence to the public sphere, providing survivors with an opportunity to give voice to their experiences and reflect how those experiences place an explicit demand on the standards of justice in our culture. Renewal Grant Amount: $25,000

Women Moving Millions (WMM) : Leadership Curriculum WMM is a community of individuals who have made gifts and pledges of one million dollars or more to organizations and initiatives promoting the advancement and empowerment of women and girls. This community believes that women and girls are the single best investment towards creating healthy societies, economic growth, and global stabilization. WMM is committed to funding systemic change and building a peaceful and equitable world. The WMM Leadership Curriculum program will support women’s social impact leadership development across various issue areas by using varied platforms. The goal is to deliver experiences that will enable the WMM community to reach their full potential as leaders and funders. Grant Amount: $10,000

About The Ellie Fund at the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago

Ellen H. Block, a founding trustee of The Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago and its first “Women Moving Millions” member, established the Ellie Fund at the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago in 2013 with the first $100,000 of her multi-year Women Moving Millions pledge to JWF. The Ellie Fund at the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago supports causes, issues, initiatives, and programs that promote safety, security, equal rights, equal voice and equal opportunity for girls and women. This year the Ellie Fund awarded $157,500 in grants.

Women Moving Millions is a diverse community of trailblazing philanthropists committed to mobilizing resources to support the advancement of women and girls around the globe. To date, 240 donors have pledged over $500 million to organizations and initiatives of their choosing.

Christine Sierocki Lupella is the JUF Senior Marketing Communications Manager and A JUF News staff writer. Sara Kalish is the Senior Program Officer of the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago.