Ally Challenge Grants by
CJP’s Center for Combating Antisemitism (CCA)

Background

CJP’s Center for Combating Antisemitism (CCA) is launching the second year of our Ally Challenge Grants, a competitive grant opportunity to seed or grow grassroots and hyperlocal projects that build cross-community relationships and advance allyship to combat antisemitism. Originally inspired by the 2023 U.S National Strategy to Combat Antisemitism, CCA’s inaugural ally challenge grantees included:

FY26 Grantees

• Concord-Carlisle Against Antisemitism: A grassroots community-based initiative, funding will promote Jewish visibility, education, and community allyship for Concord and Carlisle residents and students through digital outreach, community events, and partnerships with local institutions
  
  
• Lexington United Against Antisemitism: With an interfaith, volunteer-led approach, Lexington United Against Antisemitism (LUAA) advocates for the well-being of Jewish residents through community education, relationship-building, and action. CCA's support will enable LUAA to deepen and broaden its engagement with local and neighboring houses of worship and civic organizations.
  
  
• Newton Interfaith Leaders Association: Funds will support a project to advance allyship training workshops for local interfaith clergy and lay leaders.
  
  
• Parents Diversity Council Bedford: The grant will support a project within the organization to deepen connections and learning between Jewish and non-Jewish Bedford residents through community-wide events that increase awareness and understanding of antisemitism. 
  

FY25 Grantees

• Arts for Social Cohesion: For In Our Words (IOW), a moving multimedia performance of real-world stories, told by community members via theatrical projection, together with live original score and narration crafted by a world-class artistic team. IOW is deepening relationships between members of a Boston-area synagogue and neighboring church through stirring stories around what unites them.
• Lexington United Against Antisemitism (LUAA): For continued growth of an interfaith and cross-community grassroots coalition building relationships through education, action, and reflection. Implemented by local volunteers, LUAA is striving to make Lexington a welcoming, supportive, and safe town for Jewish neighbors.
• Temple Shir Tikva (in partnership with Greater Framingham Community Church): For “Our Civil Rights Story”— programming and dialogues between temple and church communities, building on a history of solidarity and allyship, with a capstone civil rights journey to the South with teen and adult cohorts.

What is CJP’s Center for Combating Antisemitism? 

CJP’s CCA is the Greater Boston community's local hub working to make antisemitism socially and politically unacceptable. We do this by increasing understanding, education, and relationships in civic and private spaces across Greater Boston about Jewish identity and combating antisemitism. In addition to efforts targeting civic leadership across K–12 schools, college campuses, workplaces, and civic spaces in Boston for relationships and action, CCA is working to build up the “grassroots” of this movement. This work includes volunteers and hyperlocal efforts that are working to build understanding across communities and increase education about Jews and antisemitism. Last year, CCA launched the Ally Challenge as well as invested in growing support for Jewish employees, parents, and teachers.

What is the Ally Challenge?

These grants are designed to support hyperlocal projects based in the region that CJP serves that are innovating and incubating new ideas to promote allyship across Jewish and non-Jewish communities locally through relationship building and meaningful action. Please note that the Ally Challenge is a one-time grant for a program or project taking place between September 2025 and June 2026.

For more information on CJP’s CCA, visit our website.