View this email in your browser 

Good Wednesday morning!

In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we examine this year’s Chronicle of Philanthropy top 50 donors list, which was topped by Michael Bloomberg. We report on the Canvas funders collaborative’s grants for arts and culture programs and on a Trump administration official’s proposal of using the tax code to combat antisemitism in higher education.We feature an opinion piece by Rabbi Tracy Kaplowitz about forging resonant connections between America’s Reform Jews and Israel; one by Greg Feitel about the problems posed by allowing a shorthand term — like Jewish camp — to stand in for a set of communal institutions; and one by IDF Maj. Gen. (res.) Nadav Padan about philanthropy’s role in supporting Israel’s soldiers, on and off the battlefield. Also in this issue: Erica Brown, Rabbi Gesa Ederberg and Rabbi Laura Duhan-Kaplan.

Spread the word! Invite your friends to sign up.👇

For the third year in a row, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg topped The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s list of top philanthropists, having donated $4.3 billion in 2025 — though his No. 1 spot was largely based on a technicality. As the outlet noted, Michael and Susan Dell would have taken the lead had their $6.25 billion pledge to put $250 in 25 million children’s investment accounts been included in their tally. 

However, since it is not yet clear if the donation will be given to a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, The Chronicle of Philanthropy said that it could not count the commitment as a philanthropic donation. Instead, the Dells ranked fifth for $975 million in recognized charitable donations. The Chronicle also did not include MacKenzie Scott, who issued $7 billion in grants last year — which would have ranked her second after the Dells — as she did not release her giving records to the outlet. For similar procedural reasons, a number of major donors did not make the list. Additionally, The Chronicle only counts multiyear gifts in the year they are announced, not in the years that they are actually allocated, which can also throw off statistics.

All of this pushed Bloomberg to the lead. In 2025, the former mayor gave $4.3 billion to support arts, education, public health and programs to improve city government, expanding his lifetime charitable contributions to $25.4 billion, personally and through his Bloomberg Philanthropies. Bloomberg, who has served as the United Nations secretary-general’s special envoy on climate ambition and solutions since 2021, allocated $27.8 million to rebuild Israel’s north last year, but this year, he focused much of his philanthropy on combating climate change, especially after the Trump administration pulled out of the Paris climate agreement.

Overall, the top 50 U.S. philanthropists gave a total of $22.4 billion to charity in 2025, up 35% above an inflation-adjusted $16.6 billion in 2024. The vast majority of donors earned their wealth through finance, with 20 donors giving $4.1 billion, followed by technology, with 12 donors giving $10 billion, and real estate, with four donors giving a total of $466.7 million. Out of all donations, $12 billion went to foundations, $2.5 billion to colleges and universities and $1.2 billion to hospitals and medical centers. The median gift size was $105 million.

Following Bloomberg on the list, Bill Gates came in second, giving $3.7 billion through the Gates Foundation to support gender equality, health, global development and U.S. education. Gates’ Microsoft co-founder, Paul Allen, who died in 2018, came in at third, giving $3.1 billion towards science and technology research collaborations focused on health care and medicine, the food system and agriculture and long-term solutions to environmental problems. 

Read the rest of ‘What You Should Know’ here.

On the first weekend of May, Black and Jewish Baltimorians are expected to flock to a formerly Orthodox synagogue-turned-community center, located in what is now a predominantly Black neighborhood, to absorb one another’s stories on the stage. The performance is part of the Inheritance Theater Project’s Baltimore Place Project, which uses collaborative playmaking to build relationships between Black, Jewish and Black-Jewish communities, and is funded by Canvas, a collaborative fund dedicated to supporting Jewish arts and culture organizations. In January, Canvas announced more than $900,000 in grants, including $450,000 for its inaugural Amplify Grants program, which uses art to bridge communities, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Jay Deitcher.

Soft power: Canvas was organized by the Jewish Funders Network to assemble donors to pool funds into the arts, based on the knowledge that the Jewish community yearns for arts and culture programs but struggles to fund them. It is estimated by Canvas that Jewish philanthropy gives 4% to arts and culture causes, but less than 0.3% to Jewish arts and culture. “For the past 25 years, there has been a growing community of Jewish artists all across North America doing cutting-edge work, and yet not a lot of investment from the Jewish philanthropic sector,” Sarah Burford, Canvas’ chief operating officer, told eJP. “There’s an opportunity for art and culture to play a very important role in terms of soft diplomacy and fostering opportunities for cross-cultural understanding and connection.”

Read the full report here.

The next frontier for the Trump administration’s war with higher education might be the U.S. tax code, a senior Education Department official said on Tuesday. Speaking at a conference about antisemitism organized by the Republican Jewish Coalition and National Review, Noah Pollak, a senior advisor to Education Secretary Linda McMahon, said that making changes to American tax policy could be a useful vehicle to fight antisemitism on campuses, reports Gabby Deutch for eJewishPhilanthropy’s sister publication Jewish Insider. 

Pollak’s position: Pollak’s argument was a wonky one, suggesting that changes to IRS rules regulating nonprofits could increase transparency — and require the organizations fomenting antisemitism at U.S. universities to reveal much more information about their operations and staff. Pollak called for the federal government to create limits on fiscal sponsorship, a tool by which an existing nonprofit incubates a new one. This allows a new nonprofit organization to launch quickly, with donations passing through a larger, more established organization. The idea is that once the new nonprofit has a steadier foundation, it will eventually incorporate as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with the IRS, after which point it must meet certain federal requirements and make information about its finances and activities publicly available. 

Read the full report here and sign up for Jewish Insider’s Daily Kickoff here.

“Spend enough time in Jewish spaces, and you will hear both narratives repeated as fact: Liberal Jews are distancing themselves from Israel, and Reform Jews are uncomfortable with Zionism,” writes Rabbi Tracy Kaplowitz, director of Amplify Israel at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in Manhattan, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. “There is truth here, but only partial truth — and partial truths, when left unexamined, harden into assumptions that distort our decision-making and weaken our communal future.”

Ready and willing: “What liberal Jews want is honest engagement. They want moral seriousness, complexity and relationship — not slogans or litmus tests. They want to encounter an Israel that reflects their values as well as their questions. And when that Israel is made visible, they show up. … Over time, the movement’s absence [as a Birthright trip provider] reinforced a false binary: that one must choose between being pro-Israel or progressive, committed or critical, engaged or ethical. But in the intervening years, we at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue believed that there was still a hunger for Israel experiences among liberal Jews. So, we decided to test our theory.”

Read the full piece here.

“In articles, reports and social media posts, the language is consistent: Investments are described as strengthening ‘Jewish camping.’ Incentive programs are credited with expanding access to ‘Jewish camps.’ Evaluations conclude that these efforts have had a meaningful impact on ‘Jewish camping as a whole.’ The phrasing is steady, well-supported by data and rarely questioned,” writes Greg Feitel, director of a Jewish day camp in Northern Virginia, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy.

Placeholder problem: “‘Jewish camp’ has come to function as a convenient shorthand that allows multiple forms of Jewish camping — sleepaway camps, day camps, other local institutions — to sit inside a single narrative frame, even when only one type of camp is actually being referenced. And over time, the repetition does something subtle: the phrase begins to function less as a description and more as a placeholder. It moves easily through conversations, carrying approval with it, rarely slowed down long enough to be examined. Each use feels reasonable on its own. And yet, the type of Jewish camp being referenced matters. When a field-level term is used to describe a distinct intervention, it does more than simplify. It shapes how impact is understood, how success is claimed and which forms of work are most readily recognized.”

Read the full piece here.

“In Israel, military service is universal and demanding. Young men and women step forward knowing the risks, trusting that their society will stand behind them during service and long after it ends. That trust is not symbolic; it is operational. It determines whether a military can respond effectively in a crisis and whether a nation can recover when the war ends,” writes IDF Maj. Gen. (res.) Nadav Padan, CEO of Friends of the IDF, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. 

Support our soldiers: “The unmatched spirit of the IDF remains Israel’s greatest strategic advantage, and it is that spirit that continues to protect the nation in its most difficult hours. Essential for addressing these human needs are the philanthropic mechanisms that operate alongside the military. … A country that invests only in weapons pays later in broken soldiers, fractured families and diminished cohesion. A country that treats human readiness as a core defense asset builds endurance — the ability not just to fight but also to recover, adapt and continue. Support for soldiers and their families is not optional. It is a moral duty and a strategic imperative.”

Read the full piece here.

Parental Guidance: In the latest issue of Prizmah’s journal HaYidion, Erica Brown urges parents to behave like collaborative stakeholders in their children’s Jewish education rather than entitled consumers. “When consumers are unhappy with a product, they complain. They return it or exchange it. If they are really unhappy with the service they receive, they write about it on social media outlets, and their review often joins many others as a threat. … Stakeholders behave differently than consumers. Neither churlish critics nor pollyannish cheerleaders, they are thoughtful contributors who praise, who care, who name problems and regard themselves as responsible, in part, for them; they become important partners who seek solutions together with educators. They know that they, too, are accountable for school culture and also feel pride in a school’s accomplishments. They aren’t always looking for a ‘gotcha’ moment. Stakeholders are valued members of a school community who are not only interested in lobbying for the interests of their own children.” [HaYidion]

Partnership 🤝 Independence: In The Times of Israel, Todd Rockoff writes about the JCCs as models of a covenantal community mindset. “We view the JCC as the town square of the Jewish and broader community, a place where collaboration lives and where partners amplify one another. My work with the Southern Arizona Leadership Council and Tucson Young Professionals flows from the same belief: Jewish leadership flourishes when connected to the broader community. This mindset is best described by a simple but profound Hebrew idea: gam v’gam — both/and. We are strong institutions and collaborative partners. We are locally rooted and continentally connected. We are proud of our mission and committed to shared destiny. Partnership is not instead of independence. It is alongside it. Gam v’gam.” [TOI]

Be featured: Email us to sponsor content with the eJP readership of your upcoming event, job opening or other communication.

Police in San Jose, Calif., are investigating a violent attack against two American Israeli men outside an upscale restaurant as an antisemitic hate crime, a spokesperson for the police department confirmed on Tuesday, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports…

The Cornell Chronicle covers a recent conversation at the university between investor Seth Klarman and New York Times columnist Bret Stephens…

Starbucks founder Howard Schultz announced that his family is moving to Florida from Seattle, shortly after Washington state passed a new income tax law… 

A federal judge is weighing whether to force the University of Pennsylvania to turn over records of Jewish students and faculty to the Trump administration as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission attempts to conduct a probe into antisemitism at the Ivy League school…

The Times of Israel interviews Roni Aynsaz, an Iranian-born Jew who pretended to be Muslim in order to secure a position in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps where he helped fellow Jews, before fleeing to Israel where he founded a popular shoe store chain…

Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square filed for an initial public offering to take the hedge fund public in tandem with a new investment fund, Pershing Square USA…

J., The Jewish News of Northern California spotlights the newly formed Garry’s List, the self-described “radically centrist,” nonpartisan group formed by Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan that seeks to influence California state politics and is attracting Jewish and Israeli tech and business professionals…

Police in Teaneck, N.J., arrested a teenager accused of shooting a Jewish man with a gel pellet gun from a car after stopping to ask the man his views on the Israel-Palestinian conflict…

U.K. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood approved a request from London’s Metropolitan Police to ban the annual Al Quds Day march, which had been slated for Saturday and had faced criticism for organizers’ support for assassinated Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei…

Australia assisted two additional members of Iran’s national women’s soccer team in seeking asylum after granting asylum to five of their teammates; one of the women changed her mind and contacted the Iranian Embassy to assist in repatriation efforts, disclosing the team’s location to Iranian officials and prompting those who planned to stay in Australia to have to move… 

Two of New York’s largest Jewish community groups voiced consternation Tuesday night over New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s recent fraternizing with activists who had defended and even advocated violence against Israel, Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports…

Chaim “Chuck” Solomon, one of the founders of the Shalom Hartman Institute, died yesterday…

Harvard Hillel received a $1 million donation to support its Harvard College Israel Trek program; half of the gift has already been paid, the rest will be paid out over the next five years, the organization told eJewishPhilanthropy…

Mark Edelman, through the Mark Edelman Theater Fund at the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Kansas City, donated $1 million to the University of Missouri-Kansas City for its theater programs and to establish a scholarship fund…

Rabbi Gesa Ederberg of Berlin was named the president of the Conservative movement’s Rabbinical Assembly this week; she is the first person who is not from the U.S. or North America to hold the position…

Rabbi Laura Duhan-Kaplan will be named the next dean of the Aleph Jewish Renewal Seminary on Sunday…

COURTESY

Some 100 Jewish day school educators from across North America attend the inaugural “Together We Thrive” conference on Monday, which was held at The Shefa School in Manhattan, focused on including students with learning difficulties in Jewish day schools.

“Learners in our schools have more needs than ever,” Rebecca Ritter, head of teaching and learning at The Shefa School, said in a statement. “This is a moment for us as a community to rise to the occasion and begin to build a ‘field’ for special education in mainstream day schools. Establishing a passionate community of practitioners, researchers and organizations will enable us to build this field together by developing a common language, shared assumptions, recognized expertise, standards for practice, a pipeline and leadership. This will impact the lives of tens of thousands of Jewish students.”

HEATHER DIEHL/GETTY IMAGES

CEO of The Carlyle Group, the world’s sixth-largest private equity firm, Harvey M. Schwartz turns 62…

Pioneering investor in high-tech startups, he was the chairman of Compaq Computer for 18 years, Benjamin "Ben" M. Rosen turns 93… Professor emeritus at Princeton University whose research focused upon the Cairo Geniza and Jewish life in Muslim countries, Mark R. Cohen turns 83… Doctor of nursing practice, Hermine Jan Warren… Film producer, director and writer, Jerry Gordon Zucker turns 76… Retired office administrator at Creative Wealth Management in Islandia, N.Y., Glenda Kresh… Culinary writer, television host and novelist, Steven Raichlen turns 73… Composer and conductor, he has composed the music for nearly 100 feature films, David Louis Newman turns 72… Suzanne Dreyfus… Co-owner of One Oak Vineyard in Sonoma, Calif., Laura Zimmerman… Chairman of Lions Gate Entertainment and head of MHR Fund Management, Mark Rachesky turns 67… President of the United Arab Emirates and the ruler of Abu Dhabi, popularly known by his initials MBZ, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan turns 65… Managing director of Rockefeller Capital Management, Alexandra Lebenthal turns 62… College physician at Stony Brook University, internal medicine specialist, Richard E. Tuckman, MD turns 61… CEO of Weiss Public Affairs, Amy Weiss… President of JCS International, a global media company, she was a journalist for over two decades with Yedioth Ahronoth, Michal Grayevsky… Singer-songwriter, she also promotes an eponymous line of eyeglasses, Lisa Loeb turns 58… Keyboardist for the rock band Foo Fighters, Rami Jaffee turns 57… Technology executive and data scientist, Jon Cohen… CEO of Campus Apartments and a limited partner of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils, David J. Adelman turns 54… Chief of staff at American Friends of Magen David Adom, Daniel Kochavi… United States District Court judge based in Atlanta since 2019, Judge Steven Daniel Grimberg turns 52… Israeli singer-songwriter and pianist who has twice been recognized as Israel's Singer of the Year, Keren Peles Toor turns 47… Film, theater and television actress, Lucy Chet DeVito turns 43… Partner at Ridgewood Energy, an energy-focused private equity firm, Samuel J. Lissner… CEO of Flowcarbon, Dana Stern Gibber… Financial consultant at Wells Fargo Advisors, Lev Beltser… Assistant director of Ramah Sports Academy, Ayala Wasser… Director of the Israel office at Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre, Richard Pater… Principal and chief strategist at MCS Group, Sharon Polansky...