Marcus Foundation Gives $27M to Hillel International

The Marcus Foundation has announced a $27 million gift to Hillel International to support the organization’s effort to train and retain its 78.000 Jewish campus professionals and volunteer student leaders.

The Foundation’s new grant carries on the work of developing leadership in Jewish young people that was an important goal of its late founder, Bernie Marcus, co-founder of The Home Depot. It comes at a time when Jewish students at many colleges and universities are experiencing an increased level of antisemitic incidents.

The organization has reported that during the 2025-2026 academic year, it counted 1,889 incidents of hatred against Jewish students in higher education. The statistics have shown an enormous jump in the six years that they began tracking hate incidents. By comparison, in the 2019-2020 school year, only 179 antisemitic attacks were reported.

“At a defining moment for Jewish life on campus, we’re proud to deepen our partnership with Hillel to strengthen the critical role Hillel plays,” Jay Kaiman, president of The Marcus Foundation, said. “Today, too many Jewish students feel they must hide who they are — their identity, their connection to Israel, and their pride in being Jewish. This grant is an investment in changing that reality.”

The multi-million-dollar grant will be used to strengthen Hillel in the Southeast and Southwest where Jewish student populations have experienced rapid growth.

In Georgia, where there are Hillel chapters in eight colleges and universities serving over 2,000 students, support for the organization is on the rise. Last year, the statewide group launched the Leven-Silberman Leadership Institute to strengthen the training of local student leaders.

The first networking event, which was held in Atlanta in mid-January of this year, helped launch a program that is aimed at helping students develop their leadership skills, carry those skills in their careers after college, and connect alumni, parents, and the larger community. According to Rabbi Larry Sernovitz, Hillels of Georgia has just had its most successful fundraising year.

“I am continually inspired by the passion and resilience of our student leaders and by the generosity of those who invest in their future,” Sernovitz commented. “At a time when Jewish students need community and support more than ever, Hillels of Georgia has remained a place where students can walk in and instantly feel a sense of belonging.”

Over the past decade, the Marcus Foundation has been a generous supporter of both the local Hillel organization and its national program. Before the most recent grant, it had contributed $74 million to the international group for leadership development.

The initiative has helped the organization retain and develop talented professional leaders.

“We know that a thriving and resilient Jewish campus community starts with having the right leaders, in the right roles, with the right support systems,” said Adam Lehman, president and CEO of Hillel International. “This commitment from the Marcus Foundation will ensure that Hillel has the capacity to foster Jewish joy, pride, and leadership across the hundreds of schools we serve, and enable an expanded talent and leadership pipeline that can fuel a stronger Jewish future.”

The new financial support is expected to expand Hillel’s early career talent pool, to support Jewish students through Jewish education, Israel education, ritual leadership, and community advocacy, and to strengthen the talent pipeline for the broader Jewish communal sector.

Supporting a new wave of Hillel student leadership fellowships and regional and national meetings to train and expand the many student leaders that Hillel mentors.

This summer, Sophie Kalmin, a recent Emory University graduate and former president of its Hillel chapter, was recognized by the American Jewish Committee (AJC) at the AJC’s Global Forum in Washington, D.C.

She was one of three student leaders chosen from the many nations where the AJC is active who have worked to combat antisemitism, strengthen Jewish life, and advocate for Israel on campus. In her acceptance speech, she acknowledged the success that Hillel’s student leaders and their supporters have accomplished.

“While it’s been incredibly heartening to see the Jewish community come together in so many ways,” Kalmin said, “what’s been especially empowering is to see how energized students have remained. We are no longer focused solely on fighting detractors but are thriving as Jewish students and leaders in class and beyond.”

Hillel, the world’s largest campus organization, serves more than 192,000 Jewish students each year at more than 850 colleges and universities.