As our family packs their suitcases for our humid summer living experience in my hometown of NYC, I’m thinking back to the truly amazing school year that just ended. I’m thrilled to present you with this summary of JGSI’s accomplishments over the past academic year! In 2022-23, JGSI experienced a year of record growth and evolution. Demand for our programs skyrocketed and so we focused on building infrastructure to be able meet our student’s needs for years to come. Thanks to your participation and support, JGSI continues to develop into one of the most important and dynamic Jewish nonprofits today!

Here’s what you helped us achieve in 2022-2023:

• We organized Jewish programming at 130 grad campuses
• We trained 475 grad student leaders
• We ran 603 events and programs
• We engaged 710 executive community mentors with grad students
• We brought the Jewish holidays to 5,989 individual grad students
• We facilitated 8,300 hours of Jewish learning
• We welcomed 9,204 individual participants,
• We reached 15,340 in total attendance at JGSI programs!

Some exciting highlights from this past Spring Semester since January 2023:

• JGSI’s On-Campus Events run by our volunteer student representatives helped build welcoming and fun Jewish grad communities throughout North America! Extra creative programs included: Ski Shabbat (Berkeley Law), Purim Speakeasy (Penn State Law), Sushi Seder (UConn Law), Israeli Wine Tasting (Stanford Business) and Passover x Ramadan x Easter (Georgia State).
• Our Scott & Ashley Cohen Shabbat Dinner Series brought a whopping 277 inspiring Shabbat and holiday programs to grad campuses around the country!
• In commemoration of Yom HaShoah, JGSI brought 18 Holocaust survivors to share their stories at graduate schools, including at an event held by Duke Fuqua that drew over 200 participants.
• We had our largest Sloan Fellowship ever, with 130 Fellows taking a deep dive into study of Jewish ethics and leadership. In addition to our in-person LA cohort and online cohort, we introduced a brand-new, in-person cohort in New York, demonstrating both our increased reach and demand in the Big Apple! Special thanks to the Sloan and Sagansky Families and the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles for their ongoing support of this program.
• We have converted our signature James B. Freedman Executive Speaker Series into a dynamic podcast called The Schmooze, offering insights into career, industry, culture, and Judaism! Guests since launching have included: David Rubin (CMO; The New York Times), Andrew Silverman (Head of Americas Operations; Pimco), Joshua Ratner (Chief Revenue Officer; American Airlines), Steven Freidkin (CEO; Ntiva), Dr. Ralph Snyderman (Chancellor Emeritus; Duke University), and Vivian Riefberg (Former Senior Partner; McKinsey). Subscribe on Spotify here
• We completed another great season of Redstone Family JELCON (Jewish Executive Leadership Conference), held in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Our student audience welcomed keynotes from Doug Shulman (Chairman; OneMain Financial), Steve Isakowitz (CEO & President; Aerospace), Modi Wiczyk (Co-Founder; Media Rights Capital), and Seth Jaffe (Chief Legal Officer; Levi Strauss) and panelists such as Kate Rubenstein (COO; Blackstone Credit), and Julie Swidler (General Counsel; Sony Music Entertainment).

Fundraising Update - As of June 19, 2023, we have raised $1,801,061 (90.5%) toward our 2022-23 budget of $2 million. We have another $198,938 left to raise by August 31, 2023. Please consider helping us meet our goal! Tax-deductible donations are quick, easy and secure here: thejgsi.org/donate

Together with you, JGSI is cultivating tomorrow’s Jewish leaders and building a network where every Jewish grad student has the ability to explore their heritage in an accessible and resonant way. We are proud of this amazing organization and so excited for what’s yet to come!