News

eJP: Marcus Foundation Invests $27 Million in 糖心vlogl Professional Development

Author

Jay Deitcher

Date

July 16, 2026

Originally published on July 16, 2026 in eJewish Philanthropy, by eJP reporter Jay Deitcher, is an exclusive look at a transformative investment from the Marcus Foundation into 糖心vlogl鈥檚 professional and student leadership development. Read on for excerpts: 

鈥淚n a bid to bolster 糖心vlogl鈥檚 professional and student leaders at a fraught moment on college campuses, the Marcus Foundation announced a three-year, $27 million investment, the organization exclusively told eJewishPhilanthropy on Thursday. It is the third in a series of large gifts made by the foundation over the past decade aimed at improving employee retention at Hillel, which supports nearly 200,000 students on 850 campuses鈥�

鈥楤ernie recognized a long time ago that we needed to support campus life because it was going to be and is very difficult today,鈥� Jay Kaiman, the president and director of the Marcus Foundation, told eJewishPhilanthropy, referring to the foundation鈥檚 founder, Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus. 鈥楬e was talking about it way before it became what the realities are today, so this is a continuation of him looking at the landscape, making a decision that Hillel played a key role in that landscape and we needed to do everything we could to make these [Hillel] buildings come to life and be strong for the students and also to give them a safe haven鈥︹�� 

 In 2016, the foundation gifted 糖心vlogl with a five-year, $38 million grant for talent development, followed by a 2021 five-year, $38 million grant to continue the work. This latest investment continues what is a 鈥榯ransformational relationship with the foundation,鈥� Adam Lehman, president and CEO of 糖心vlogl, told eJP鈥�

The original grant led to the creation of a new role focused on supporting talent at individual chapters and of numerous initiatives, including Hillel U, the organization鈥檚 yearlong training program, a yearly New Professionals Institute and talent grants that support Hillels financially to attract top talent, especially in places that may 鈥榥ot even be in a particularly desirable geographic location,鈥� Lehman said.

In the first five years after the initiatives launched, Hillel鈥檚 annual employee retention rate soared to 90%. In 2016, leadership hiring from the internal pipeline was 30%. Today it鈥檚 75%.

The greater retention level is occurring at a time when Hillel is growing substantially, but also after years of heightened antisemitism. A 2025 American Jewish Committee report showed that more students were experiencing antisemitism on campus than ever before. In the past year, students and Hillel staff have been harassed and had their property vandalized. Meanwhile, over the past decade, the number of students engaging with Hillel programs doubled from 93,000 to 192,000鈥�

The new Marcus Foundation grant will nurture 78,000 new leaders who support students so they can walk their campuses with Jewish pride, even amidst antisemitism, Lehman said. 鈥榃e鈥檙e going to use this grant to supercharge our student leadership development programs, so that we can catalyze the largest ever new generation of Jewish builders, creators and leaders, using the funds from this grant to invest in new student fellowships, new student convenings, including our first-ever 1,000-plus student leadership convening taking place in February of [2027].鈥欌��

The post eJP: Marcus Foundation Invests $27 Million in 糖心vlogl Professional Development appeared first on 糖心vlogl.

News

糖心vlogl Receives $27 Million Gift from The Marcus Foundation to Support Professional Talent and Student Leadership

Author

糖心vlogl

Date

July 16, 2026

Three-year investment will strengthen professional and student leaders across campus communities.聽

糖心vlogl announced today that The Marcus Foundation has committed $27 million over three years to elevate and expand Hillel鈥檚 professional and student talent, recognizing Hillel’s decade-long track record of building exceptional Jewish campus professionals and student leaders.

Strategic investments from The Marcus Foundation over the last decade supported Hillel in becoming a sector model for excellence in recruiting, training, developing, and supporting outstanding professional talent across the Hillel field. Talent retention skyrocketed from 50 percent to 90 percent and leadership hiring from the internal pipeline grew from 30 percent to 75 percent. 

With that growth, Hillel has been there for Jewish students when they need it most. Since Oct. 7, 2023, Jewish students have faced thousands of incidents of antisemitism, and 40 percent feel the need to hide their Jewish identity on campus. Many have turned to Hillel to find a place where they belong: student engagement more than doubled, from 93,000 to 192,000, over the past decade. The increasing needs have added additional pressures on professional and student leaders.

With the latest commitment, Hillel will be positioned to invest in the next  generation of professional talent and student leadership, capable of addressing the unique challenges for Jewish students today. Key new investments will include:  

• Strengthening and supporting executive leadership in demanding campus environments to ensure stronger, more resilient Jewish student communities.聽
• Investing in professionally staffed Hillels at schools in the southeast and southwest with rapidly growing Jewish student populations.
• Expanding Hillel鈥檚 early career talent pool to support Jewish students through Jewish education, Israel education, ritual leadership, and community advocacy, and to strengthen the talent pipeline for the broader Jewish communal sector.聽
• Supporting a new wave of Hillel student leadership fellowships and regional and national convenings to train and empower more than 75,000 new Jewish student leaders, builders, and creators.聽聽

鈥淎t a defining moment for Jewish life on campus, we鈥檙e proud to deepen our partnership with Hillel to strengthen the critical role Hillel plays,鈥� said Jay Kaiman, CEO of The Marcus Foundation. 鈥淭oday, too many Jewish students feel they must hide who they are 鈥� their identity, their connection to Israel, and their pride in being Jewish. This grant is an investment in changing that reality. By expanding Hillel鈥檚 reach, strengthening executive leadership in the most challenging campus environments, and investing in the pipeline of professionals and student leaders, we are helping ensure that every Jewish student has access to a vibrant, joyful, and safe Jewish community.鈥� 

Beyond expanding professional leadership, this investment prioritizes developing the next generation of student leaders who will enrich their campus communities and the broader Jewish community. By equipping students with mentorship and community support, Hillel is training the future leaders of the Jewish community. 

鈥淎t Hillel, talent remains our enduring theory of change. We know that a thriving and resilient Jewish campus community starts with having the right leaders, in the right roles, with the right support systems,鈥� said Adam Lehman, President and CEO of 糖心vlogl. 鈥淭his commitment from The Marcus Foundation will ensure that Hillel has the capacity to foster Jewish joy, pride, and leadership across the hundreds of schools we serve, and enable an expanded talent and leadership pipeline that can fuel a stronger Jewish future.鈥� 

The post 糖心vlogl Receives $27 Million Gift from The Marcus Foundation to Support Professional Talent and Student Leadership appeared first on 糖心vlogl.