The New Jersey State Bar Foundation is pleased to announce that 35 nonprofit organizations have been awarded grant-based financial support to help reach more communities and broaden public education.
Part of the Foundation’s mission is to foster increased knowledge of the law and the legal system for New Jersey residents. To achieve this mission, the NJSBF offers annual grants to other New Jersey-based nonprofit organizations to support law-related programs for the public, youth, older adults, veterans, immigrants, people with disabilities, victims of domestic violence and more.
NJSBF’s Cosponsorship Program, which began in 1990, is supported with funding from the IOLTA Fund of the State of New Jersey. This year over $600,000 was awarded to 35 nonprofits.
The Foundation is supporting the following nonprofit organizations and programs in fiscal year 2023-2024.
- Alzheimer’s New Jersey: Planning for the Future: Legal and Financial Considerations for Individuals with Dementia (a webinar series)
- Autism New Jersey: Insurance-funded Autism Treatment: The Advocacy Toolkit (an informational toolkit)
- CAIR-NJ: Know Your Rights (trainings for the public)
- Comite en Union para Salvadorenos: Education and outreach on Immigration Laws
- Center for Youth Political Participation, Eagleton Institute of Politics: RU Ready, a civic engagement initiative (for high school students)
- Community Health Law Project: Legal Education to Protect Public Entitlements after the -19 Pandemic (workshop series)
- Covenant House New Jersey: Atlantic City Youth Advocacy Center (legal services for homeless youth)
- Crossroads4Hope: Legal Programs in Spanish for Community Outreach Work (educational sessions)
- Disability Rights New Jersey: Youth in Transition: Navigating NJ Systems with a Goal of Increasing Self-Advocacy and Achieving Competitive, Integrated Employment (educational materials)
- Education Law Center: Translating ELC’s Transition Planning Advocacy Guide (publication)
- Essex County Legal Aid Association: Tackling the Eviction Crisis in Essex County (tenant representation)
- G.I. Go Fund: Veteran Legal Victory Project (legal services for veterans)
- Jewish Federation in the Heart of New Jersey: Rights and Resources for Individuals who are Differently Abled (educational seminar)
- Josephine’s Place: Knowledge is Power (workshop series)
- Kids in Need of Defense: Pro Bono Attorney Engagement in Removal Defense for NJ’s Unaccompanied Immigrant Children (mentorship and legal services)
- Latin American Legal Defense and Education Fund: Advancing Legal Education with Latina Women and Immigrant Families (legal services)
- Legal Aid Society of Monmouth County: Monmouth County Pro Bono Civil Legal Services Program (legal services)
- Literacy Volunteers of Morris County: Civics, Life Skills, and Citizenship Instruction for Adults (civics and citizenship instruction)
- Madison Area YMCA: Youth and Government Program (civics program)
- Make the Road NJ: Safeguarding Immigrant Tenants and Workers: A Legal Rights Education Project (curriculum development and training)
- Morris County Organization for Hispanic Affairs: Keeping our Community Informed and Education (educational material and citizenship classes)
- National Association of Women Judges, NJ Chapter: New Jersey Color of Justice Program (half-day conference)
- NJ Consortium for Immigrant Children: Not a Public Charge! Educating Immigrant Families on Healthcare Rights (legal services for health care rights)
- NJ LEEP: Legal Diversity Pipeline Program (law related education for students)
- Oasis — A Haven for Women and Children: From Surviving to Striving (workshop series)
- Palestinian American Community Center: Citizenship and English courses (courses)
- Planned Lifetime Assistance Network of NJ: Communicating the Need for Legal and Estate Planning for the Future Care of People with Developmental or Psychiatric Disabilities (webinars and educational materials – digital and print)
- Puerto Rican Association for Human Development: Settle In: A series of workshops on Immigrant Rights (workshops)
- Statewide Parent Advocacy Network: Special Education & Health Rights of Children & Youth with Special Needs Involved in Child Protection & Juvenile Justice Training (in-person and virtual workshops)
- The Arc of New Jersey: Equal Justice Talks Webinar Series (webinars)
- Women Aware: Domestic Violence Victims’ Rights: Understanding and Accessing the Protection Afforded by Law Video Series (educational videos)
- Women In Transition: Family Law Series (education workshops)
- YMCA of Metuchen: Youth & Government Program (civics program)
- YWCA Northern New Jersey: Workplace Protection Education Campaign (videos, digital and print materials)
- YMCA Union County: Legal Education Program (domestic violence education)
In addition to providing grant-based financial support, the Foundation works to combine efforts to cosponsor programs and projects with other nonprofit organizations.
For example, the Foundation has partnered with the Community Health Law Project (CHLP) to cosponsor, coordinate and present the Law and Disability Conference. Held annually at the New Jersey Law Center (and virtually), this free, half-day conference focuses on issues impacting people with disabilities, such as health care and housing. Attendees include people with disabilities, family members, service providers and advocates.
“The Foundation has been instrumental in helping us build a network of individuals and organizations who share the goal of bettering lives of individuals who suffer from disabilities and chronic illness. (It) … enables us to serve clients and community members we might not otherwise reach,” said Erika Kerber, president and executive director of CHLP.
NJSBF also works with organizations to publish free booklets explaining aspects of the law to residents of New Jersey, from the Student’s Rights Handbook, developed by the ACLU-NJ and the Foundation’s Disability Law: A Legal Primer was created by the Essex County Bar Association, with financial support from the Foundation.
Learn more about the Foundation’s cosponsorship program: cosponsors.njsbf.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 24, 2023
Contact: Thomas Nobile
Director of Communications
Tel: 732-937-7527
[email protected]