Minneapolis Jewish Federation
ActivePhilanthropy & VoluntarismMakes PRIs
About Minneapolis Jewish Federation
Support and strengthen the Jewish community through philanthropy, grants, community impact programs, leadership development and crisis response.
Focus Areas
Jewish community supportPhilanthropyGrants and scholarshipsCrisis responseIsrael-related supportLeadership and youth educationCommunity partnerships
Who They Fund
nonprofit organizations (organizational-level/general operating recipients)Jewish community organizations and familiescommunities affected by international crises (Ukraine, Israel)nonprofit staff/leadership (fellowship recipients)
About Minneapolis Jewish Federation
Minneapolis Jewish Federation’s largest recent grants show a clear dual focus: security for Jewish communal institutions and sustained operating support for local Jewish service organizations. In 2025, the federation gave $2,351,470 to Jewish Community Relations Council Mn & Dakotas for security, followed by $1,490,717 to Jewish Family & Childrens Svc - Operating for general operating support. Those awards sit alongside a broader pattern of funding synagogues, schools, and community-service organizations across the Twin Cities area. The federation’s grantmaking also reaches beyond Minneapolis proper. Minnesota Jcc in St Paul received $792,389 in 2025 for general operating support, and Smith Jewish Academy - Sja in St Louis Park received $561,356 that same year. Temple Israel and Minnesota Hillel in Minneapolis, Beth El Synagogue in St Louis Park, and Sha'arim in Golden Valley also appear among the larger recent awards. Across its recent portfolio, the federation supports Jewish community life through grants and scholarships, community partnerships, leadership development, and crisis response. It also makes program-related investments, which places it in a more strategic funding posture than grantmaking alone.
What Minneapolis Jewish Federation Funds
Jewish communal infrastructure is a major theme. The federation gave $529,450 in 2023 to Jewish Community Relations Council Mn & Dakotas for general operating support and security, and $212,418 in 2024 to Beth El Synagogue for security. Those awards show a strong emphasis on keeping Jewish institutions functional and protected. Operating support is another recurring use of funds. Minneapolis Jewish Federation awarded $608,569 in 2024 to Jewish Family & Children's Service for general operating support, and $461,241 in 2025 to Beth El Synagogue for general operating support. Education and leadership also appear in the recent grants. Smith Jewish Academy - Sja received $561,356 in 2025 for general operating support, while Minnesota Hillel received $222,817 in 2023 for general operating support, fellowships, capital campaign, and COVID-19 response. The federation also funded Talmud Torah of Minneapolis multiple times for general operating support.
How Minneapolis Jewish Federation Gives
Typical awards cluster around a mid-sized core, with p25 at $9,720, a median of $20,000, and p75 at $99,277. The recent grants table also shows much larger institutional awards at the top end, indicating a wide spread between routine community grants and major support for anchor organizations. The pattern is recurring rather than one-off: several recipients appear in multiple years, including Jewish Community Relations Council Mn & Dakotas, Minnesota Jcc, Jewish Family & Children's Service, Torah Academy of Minneapolis, Heilicher Minneapolis Jewish Day School, Minnesota Hillel, Talmud Torah of Minneapolis, Beth El Synagogue, and American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. The federation is a grantmaker, not an individual-giving foundation, and it also makes program-related investments. Public-facing pages for some initiatives indicate that unsolicited applications are not accepted.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$12.8M
Total Assets
$243.6M
Total Revenue
$45.1M
Total Expenses
$26.8M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $10K and $99K, with a median of $20K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$20K
75th Percentile
$99K
Geographic Reach
Regional22 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
JAMES A COHEN
Accepts unsolicited proposals
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