Federation slashes jobs, reduces allocations in face of shortfall
by dan pine, staff writer
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Facing a steep shortfall in fundraising, the S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation and its endowment fund announced this week the elimination of 33 staff positions, across-the-board budget cuts and reduced allocations to grantees.
The JCF staff reductions include 18 layoffs and the elimination of 15 positions that are currently unfilled.
With a preliminary tally of around $18 million as of June 25, the federation’s annual campaign fell short of last year’s $22.8 million total, triggering the cuts and layoffs.
In an open letter to the Jewish community, federation CEO Jennifer Gorovitz said, “We are in a time of extraordinary challenge and change in our Jewish community, our economy and in our major institutions. It is clear that what has worked for the past 100 years of the Federation’s history will not sustain us for the next 100 years.”
She went on to briefly describe the cuts, adding, “Given the reduced allocations we are asking our beneficiary agencies to endure, adjusting our own staffing and budgets is the right thing to do. These cuts reflect an ongoing priority of the Federation to direct as many resources as possible to the community.
”Change of any sort is painful, and never more so than when its impact is on those who have dedicated themselves to sustaining Jewish life. But we believe that these steps are necessary and unavoidable in order to position the organization to meet the inevitable ongoing challenges in the economy, our local community and the world of philanthropy.” – dan pine
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07/10/2010 at 10:33 AM
Sure, part of the reason for declining donations to Federation is the poor condition of the economy.
But it would be pretending away the obvious not to admit that a great deal of the decline is donor loss of confidence in the Federation board. The board’s irresponsible insistence on funding the anti-Israel propaganda of the SF Jewish Film Festival, year after year dismayed many, including me.
Donors give their money to the Federation to address the needs of the Jewish community. Apparently a lot of them felt that there was NOT a shortage of anti-Israel propaganda that they ought to pay to redress.
Years of remonstration, reasoning, pleas, fell on stubbornly deaf ears on the board.
Only with the ousting of the ringleader of the anti-Israel coterie on the board earlier this year did the situation improve even a little. And it remains to be seen whether even that small improvement is lip service or real.
The fact is that the board member who was forced out did not sustain the anti-Israel funding priorities of the board with his single vote. He was the leader of a majority of the Federation board members.
The rest of that majority are still on the board. I think donors will not come back until the rest of that group is off the board.
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