This program was established in 2000 as a partnership with Northern Kentucky University. The purpose is to promote civic awareness and engagement in young adults by providing an opportunity for them to directly make grants in their community. Students assess community needs and organizations that address those needs, and then meet as a Board to make their grant determinations. Approximately 85% of NKU students remain in the surrounding community after graduation, making this an especially efficient investment in the community.

(View: Cincinnati Childrens Site) This Center opened in 2001 at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. The Center brings together under “one roof” a variety of activities centered on the issue of child abuse and neglect. The Center integrates the various legal, medical, law enforcement, and child welfare agencies that converge upon a child when neglect or maltreatment is suspected or is a reality. This integration spares children the trying experience of being interviewed multiple times by multiple strangers representing the various systems. It also improves the integrity of evidence brought to court for prosecution. Additionally, the Center focuses on generating important research of the treatment and prevention of abuse and on providing training on such matters.

(View: Eden Alternative) The Eden Alternative, founded by Dr. Bill Thomas, is an approach towards elder care that aims to de-institutionalize care facilities and present residents with various opportunities to be the givers of care instead of only being recipients. This national program converts the nursing home environment and care style from one that closely resembles a medical facility to one that has greater resemblance to a home setting – complete with plants, pets, and young children. Residents take responsibility for caring for the plants and pets. The Foundation initiated this program at Cedar Village in Cincinnati.

(View: Jewish Cincinnati) The Jewish Information Network (JIN), a partnership between the Foundation and the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, is an information and referral service that is the primary, up-to-date link to all things Jewish in the Cincinnati community. JIN also plays an important role in community outreach to newcomers, newly married couples, parents of young children and unaffiliated Jewish people. Additionally, JIN operates a centralized volunteer job bank, that matches Jewish agencies and other non-profit organizations with people or groups who want a meaningful volunteer experience.

(View: Hebrew Union College) Hebrew Union College/Jewish Institute of Religion, with its center of operations in Cincinnati, Ohio, is the world center for the training of rabbis in the Reform Judaism movement. It also has campuses in New York, Los Angeles, and Jerusalem. The Foundation has provided operating, program, and capital support over the years. Below is a sampling. Mayerson Hall – Used extensively throughout the year for a variety of meetings and programs, this building houses the Center for the Study of Ethics, the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education, and the Skirball Museum. The Mayerson Fieldwork Institute – This is a mentoring program in which senior rabbinical students are paired with congregational rabbis throughout the country to learn about practical issues such as board relations, congregational relations, budget management, and counseling. Distance Learning Department – Multi-year funding has been provided to establish this department which focuses on the use of communication technology to enhance the administrative and educational functions of the college across its various campuses. Florida Atlantic University Extension Programming – The Foundation has worked to establish a partnership with Florida Atlantic University to bring HUC programming to Southeast Florida as a way to increase the presence of the reform movement in this burgeoning Jewish population.

(View: Jewish Cincinnati) The Hebrew Free Loan Fund of Cincinnati, founded in 1986 with a gift from the Foundation, grants interest free mini-loans to members of the Greater Cincinnati Jewish community who are working to establish their self-sufficiency. The fund is administered by the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati. The successful repayment of loans has enabled this program to be self-sustaining. During the term of its existence more than 400 loans, amounting to nearly $1million have been issued with a negligible number of defaults.

(View: CHATline) CHATline, a telephone reassurance network, was developed by the Foundation, in partnership with Cedar Village the primary Jewish senior residence community in Greater Cincinnati. It is a way to create meaning and connection for elders within the residential facility and those living in isolation within the community. Senior residents volunteer on a regular basis to make calls from an on-site phone bank to a list of homebound seniors in the community who have signed up for this free service. Not only do the recipients of these phone calls have the reassurance that someone will be checking in on them, but additionally there is ample opportunity for a friendly chat and a chance to form a special relationship that gives both parties something positive and purposeful to look forward to every day.

The Foundation initiated this project to explore the role psychologists can play in schools beyond the traditional one of direct service provider. Two psychologists worked at the James E. Biggs Early Childhood Center in Covington, Kentucky. They successfully focused on training teachers, parents, and transportation staff in ways of understanding and affecting children’s behaviors.