Source: Brandeis Genesis Institute
The Genesis Philanthropy Group (GPG), a foundation dedicated to strengthening Jewish identity among Russian-speaking Jews worldwide, has committed up to $10.8 million to Brandeis University to establish the Brandeis Genesis Institute for Russian-speaking Jewry and to provide scholarships at Brandeis for undergraduate and graduate students.
The Genesis grant will fund scholarships for between 36 and 60 undergraduates, 14 master’s degree candidates, six Ph.D. candidates and 132 participants in Brandeis summer programs for high school youth over the next five years, starting in 2009. The Brandeis Genesis Institute will undertake a variety of activities to support Russian- speaking students, including recruitment, extra-curricular and community activities, outreach and organizing conferences, and exchanges with other institutions and groups.
The undergraduate scholarships commit the students to participate in group activities involving community service, cultural programs and projects, mentoring and discussions to develop and enhance Jewish identity.
The graduate scholarships will be awarded to master’s degree candidates in the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program, whose graduates hold leadership positions in major Jewish organizations in the United States and around the world.
Each of Brandeis' two summer programs for high school students: Genesis and the BIMA program in music and the arts will receive 16 scholarships through the new grant in 2009 for participants from Moscow and from Russian-speaking homes in the U.S.