In First Quarter 2025 Giving, The Healthcare Foundation of NJ Continues Support for Successful Projects

“One of the ways that The Healthcare Foundation of NJ makes a long-term impact is by cultivating continuing relationships with grantees and funding projects that have proven to be successful for additional years,” said Michael Schmidt, Executive Director/CEO of The Healthcare Foundation of NJ. “This quarter, we are delighted to provide another year of funding for five exemplary projects that have made significant impact in the communities we serve.”

Several of the projects funded this quarter share a theme of strengthening the capacity of nonprofit organizations to address critical needs in the community.

A $100,000 capacity-building grant to Ironbound Community Corporation will help this venerable institution in the Ironbound section of Newark build a strong financial base by expanding its Development Department, including bringing on a grant writer to help it pursue new funding opportunities. A $78,180 grant to JCC of Central New Jersey will fund the expansion of its Inclusion & Support Services Department, which works to ensure that children with physical, emotional and mental disabilities can be fully included in all programming and thrive. This grant will fund a third year of the Inclusion & Support Services Coordinator, who delivers hands-on support for children and specialized consultations with teachers and counselors. It will also add a new position for a part-time Administrative Coordinator.

New Jersey Citizen Action Education Fund will receive $130,000 to support a continued targeted education and outreach project designed to help families access and retain affordable healthcare – whether through NJ Family Care (Medicaid) or other options. Since the end the COVID-era policy of automatic continuous coverage for NJ Family Care, NJCAEF has helped individuals and families work through the redetermination process that requires annual approval to retain medical insurance coverage.

The largest grant of the quarter is a $141,582 award to Family Connections for a final grant to the Pride + program. This program provides peer support and therapy for young people and their families in schools throughout Newark and Essex County.

The first quarter of 2025 marks one year since the first awards were announced in The Healthcare Foundation of NJ’s 2024 initiative to strengthen the behavioral health supports available to adolescents in the Jewish community of Greater MetroWest, NJ. This quarter saw the first of those projects receiving a renewal grant – an $85,000 award to Moving Traditions to continue the MetroWest Student Teacher Wellness and Inclusion Training Program. This targeted training program engages 20-30 teens who serve as student teachers/madrichim at Hebrew schools to develop their capacities to enhance the mental health of the hundreds of young people they will serve. The workshops include skill development to promote personal wellness and resiliency; peer-to-peer teen mental health first aid training; and opportunities to build their knowledge and skills around cultivating healthy cultures.

The full list of the grants awarded in the first quarter of 2025 is as follows: