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History
The
Jerusalem Fund was
founded in 1977. It originally provided
scholarships to Palestinian university students
for study in Israel, the West Bank and abroad.
Between 1978 and 1992, nearly 8,000
scholarships were awarded totaling over $4
million in aid.
The Fund first carried the name the American Palestine Educational Foundation. This was changed in 1981 to better communicate its expanded focus on direct assistance for the educational, cultural, health and community service institutions of Palestinian society.
When Israeli measures to suppress the first intifada in the Palestinian Occupied Territories in the late 1980s and early 1990s led to new suffering by the Palestinian people, The Jerusalem Fund initiated its Emergency Relief Assistance Program to provide Palestinian victims with emergency relief, medical care, rehabilitation, food, and shelter. Hospitals, clinics, schools, orphanages, charitable societies, human rights groups and numerous other non-profit civil society organizations have received Jerusalem Fund emergency grants. This program is now called the Humanitarian Link.
In 1991, the Fund established the Palestine Center, a think tank and resource for objective information and analysis on Palestine. The Center is dedicated to the study of the relationship between the United States and the Middle East, with particular emphasis on Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict. The Center focuses on the implications of specific U.S. policies with regard to Palestine, providing a much-needed Palestinian/Arab perspective to the political, academic and media establishments of Washington, D.C. and the Arab world. It sponsors symposia, conferences, lectures and other events, and invites recognized experts to publish on specific subjects. The Center was initially known as the Center for Policy Analysis in Palestine (CPAP) but was changed to the Palestine Center in 2002.
In 1998, the offices of The Jerusalem Fund were expanded and extensively renovated. A large conference facility, with seating for 150 people and state-of-the-art multimedia equipment, was inaugurated in September 1998. The renovation made possible the establishment of a 3,700-volume library and a gallery for art exhibits.
At the turn of the Millennium, the Fund began to organize cultural events and to sow the seeds of a cultural program. The avid response to the shows and cultural activities called for new investment in this area. Today, The Gallery reaches out beyond its physical space through the Fund's website and unique curricula designed for students throughout the U.S.
Over the past three decades, The Jerusalem Fund has evolved to meet changing needs. From making grants for education and community development it has grown to include an active educational and cultural program in The Jerusalem Fund and at The Gallery. Yet, the Fund continues to pay special attention to emergency relief assistance, education, and community development even as grant funding and public support for these activities shifts elsewhere. Now is not the time to turn away. The Fund remains committed to supporting the steadfastness of the Palestinian people, and to helping them tell their story through words and pictures until a just and comprehensive peace is achieved.
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The Fund first carried the name the American Palestine Educational Foundation. This was changed in 1981 to better communicate its expanded focus on direct assistance for the educational, cultural, health and community service institutions of Palestinian society.
When Israeli measures to suppress the first intifada in the Palestinian Occupied Territories in the late 1980s and early 1990s led to new suffering by the Palestinian people, The Jerusalem Fund initiated its Emergency Relief Assistance Program to provide Palestinian victims with emergency relief, medical care, rehabilitation, food, and shelter. Hospitals, clinics, schools, orphanages, charitable societies, human rights groups and numerous other non-profit civil society organizations have received Jerusalem Fund emergency grants. This program is now called the Humanitarian Link.
In 1991, the Fund established the Palestine Center, a think tank and resource for objective information and analysis on Palestine. The Center is dedicated to the study of the relationship between the United States and the Middle East, with particular emphasis on Palestine and the Arab-Israeli conflict. The Center focuses on the implications of specific U.S. policies with regard to Palestine, providing a much-needed Palestinian/Arab perspective to the political, academic and media establishments of Washington, D.C. and the Arab world. It sponsors symposia, conferences, lectures and other events, and invites recognized experts to publish on specific subjects. The Center was initially known as the Center for Policy Analysis in Palestine (CPAP) but was changed to the Palestine Center in 2002.
In 1998, the offices of The Jerusalem Fund were expanded and extensively renovated. A large conference facility, with seating for 150 people and state-of-the-art multimedia equipment, was inaugurated in September 1998. The renovation made possible the establishment of a 3,700-volume library and a gallery for art exhibits.
At the turn of the Millennium, the Fund began to organize cultural events and to sow the seeds of a cultural program. The avid response to the shows and cultural activities called for new investment in this area. Today, The Gallery reaches out beyond its physical space through the Fund's website and unique curricula designed for students throughout the U.S.
Over the past three decades, The Jerusalem Fund has evolved to meet changing needs. From making grants for education and community development it has grown to include an active educational and cultural program in The Jerusalem Fund and at The Gallery. Yet, the Fund continues to pay special attention to emergency relief assistance, education, and community development even as grant funding and public support for these activities shifts elsewhere. Now is not the time to turn away. The Fund remains committed to supporting the steadfastness of the Palestinian people, and to helping them tell their story through words and pictures until a just and comprehensive peace is achieved.
Back to About Us