The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore, formerly known as The Associated Jewish Charities of Baltimore, is a nonprofit organization that advocates for the support and protection of Jewish communities in Baltimore, Maryland and around the world, particularly in Israel. The organization is a part of the Jewish Federations of North America and changed its name to The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore in 1990. ¹

The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore receives most of its revenue in the form of contributions and grants from private grantmaking organizations including billionaire George Soros’s Alliance for Open Society International and the Jewish Communal Fund. ^{2 3 4}

Background

The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore is a nonprofit organization that advocates for supporting and protecting Jewish communities in the greater Baltimore area, in Israel, and around the world. It is a part of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), a charity network of 153 federations and organizations raising money for welfare, education, and social services for Jewish communities across the country. ^{5 6}

The organization began when the Federated Jewish Charities and the United Hebrew Charities merged in 1920 to form the Associated Jewish Charities which in its first year launched a fundraising campaign to raise $500,000. ⁷

The Jewish Welfare Fund was created approximately 20 years later to respond to “appeals made by national and overseas organizations, largely due to the Nazi atrocities.” The Jewish Welfare Fund and the Associated Jewish Charities merged in 1969, creating the Associated Jewish Charities of Baltimore (AJCB). ⁸

The AJCB became the “corporate body” that oversaw gifts, endowments, investments, and real estate. The organization changed its name to the Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore in 1990. ⁹

Funding

The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore receives most of its revenue from contributions, gifts, and grants from private grantmaking foundations and organizations. They reported just over $40 million in total revenue in 2017, around $35 million of which came in the form of contributions, gifts, and grants. The total expenses the organization accrued in 2017 amounted to just over $39 million. In total, AJCB had assets with a total worth amounting to approximately $347 million. ¹⁰

The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore’s total revenue amounted to just under $43 million in 2018, slightly less than $39 million in 2019, and just under $40 million in 2020. Its total functional expenses for 2018 amounted to approximately $38.5 million, dropped to around $34 million in 2019, and raised again to $37.6 million in 2020. The organization had a total asset value of approximately $334 million in 2020. ¹¹

Private foundations and organizations that have provided The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore with grants include the Jewish Communal Fund, Alliance for Open Society International, Lerner Family Foundation, and the John J. Leidy foundation.

The Jewish Communal Fund is a community foundation and administrator of donor-advised funds that promotes and facilitates charitable giving within the Jewish community in the Greater New York City area. The organization granted The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore $33,571 in 2015 and another $50,000 in 2017. ^{12 13}

Alliance for Open Society International (AOSI) is the legal operating name for the Open Society Institute Baltimore, a field office of the Open Society Network. Founded in 1998, it is the only U.S. field office for the Open Society Foundations, one of the world’s largest philanthropic groups, and a primary foundation founded by liberal billionaire George Soros. ¹⁴ The Alliance for Open Society International granted the organization $200,000 in 2006 to create an “endowment to provide more opportunities for students in the Baltimore Urban Debate League.” ¹⁵

The John J. Leidy Foundation granted a total of $25,000 to the organization in 2013, and the Lerner Family Foundation provided the organization with a grant of $250,000 in 2018. ^{16 17}

1. “History.” The Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://associated.org/about-us/history-mission/.
2. “Audacious Thinking.” Open Society Foundations. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/uploads/e0f9dbbc-adb4-4334-85d7-80bc45bb975b/audacious_20090522.pdf.
3. “Grants – 2015.” Jewish Communal Fund. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://jcfny.org/app/uploads/2012/04/GRANTS_JCF-15.pdf.
4. “Grants – 2017.” Jewish Communal Fund. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://jcfny.org/app/uploads/2018/08/GRANTS_JCF2017.pdf.
5. “History.” The Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://associated.org/about-us/history-mission/.
6. “About JFNA.” The Jewish Federations of North America. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://www.jewishfederations.org/about-jfna.
7. “History.” The Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://associated.org/about-us/history-mission/.
8. “History.” The Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://associated.org/about-us/history-mission/.
9. “History.” The Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://associated.org/about-us/history-mission/.
10. Suozzo, Andrea. “Associated Jewish Charities Of Baltimore – Nonprofit Explorer.” ProPublica. May 9, 2013. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/526024192.
11. Suozzo, Andrea. “Associated Jewish Charities Of Baltimore – Nonprofit Explorer.” ProPublica. May 9, 2013. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/526024192.
12. “Grants – 2015.” Jewish Communal Fund. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://jcfny.org/app/uploads/2012/04/GRANTS_JCF-15.pdf.
13. “Grants – 2017.” Jewish Communal Fund. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://jcfny.org/app/uploads/2018/08/GRANTS_JCF2017.pdf.
14. Wenger, Yvonne. “Open Society Institute’s social justice laboratory in Baltimore turns 15.” October 28, 2013. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-open-society-institute-box-20131028-story.html.
15. “Audacious Thinking.” Open Society Foundations. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/uploads/e0f9dbbc-adb4-4334-85d7-80bc45bb975b/audacious_20090522.pdf.
16. “Grants – 2013.” John J. Leidy Foundation. Accessed December 5, 2022. http://nebula.wsimg.com/28b99c44298f53a047d6aeaa65732838?AccessKeyId=B4C624155639EABFCDF9&disposition=0&alloworigin=1.
17. “Lerner Family Foundation – Grants – AJCB.” Grantmakers. Accessed December 5, 2022. http://nebula.wsimg.com/28b99c44298f53a047d6aeaa65732838?AccessKeyId=B4C624155639EABFCDF9&disposition=0&alloworigin=1.