“Kehillah funds” are an approach used by some communities to tackle the challenge of Jewish day school affordability.  A newly published “white paper” offers school and community leaders information and analysis of existing Kehillah funds and a step-by-step guide for communities looking to create a Kehillah fund of their own.

The white paper was published by the Jewish Day School Affordability Knowledge Center, a partnership of PEJE and the Orthodox Union. What is a “white paper”?  For the Center’s purposes, a white paper is an in-depth analysis of a particular strategy used by schools or communities trying to solve their particular affordability challenge.  Based on interviews, academic research, and other data, the white papers will help schools and communities think more effectively about what it takes to meet the ongoing challenge of providing an excellent affordable Jewish day school education to the next generation of committed Jewish leaders.

A Kehillah Fund raises money from the general community (the Kehillah) for Jewish day school education and distributes some or all of that money directly to day schools. Five communities with Kehillah funds were interviewed in this process: Chicago, Metro West New Jersey, Montreal, Northern New Jersey, and Pittsburgh. Their experiences and insights were dutifully laid out in the white paper so that communities nationwide can determine whether and how to create their own Kehillah Fund.