The Marcus Foundation announced today it is investing an additional $60 million in RootOne, an ambitious startup initiative working to radically transform the trajectory of North American Jewry by providing access to high-quality, immersive educational experiences to Israel for North American Jewish teens. This grant – one of the final major gifts directed by Bernie Marcus before his passing in early November – is the largest donation ever made to an organization focused on proactively preparing Jewish high school students to combat antisemitism and anti-Zionism before they step foot on college campuses for the first time. With this grant, The Marcus Foundation is demonstrating its lasting commitment to the future of North American Jewish teens. Even at a time when travel to Israel may seem counterintuitive, The Marcus Foundation is doubling down on its belief that experiencing Israel is one of the most scalable and powerful ways to build Jewish knowledge and pride.
With this investment, the Marcus Foundation has given a total of $140 million in grants to RootOne. Since its founding in 2020, in partnership with dozens of youth-serving organizations, camps and communities, RootOne has made it possible for tens of thousands of teens to experience meaningful, fun and safe travel to Israel. RootOne helps teens cultivate pride in their Jewish identity and deepen their connection to and knowledge of Israel. In addition to The Marcus Foundation, RootOne has a strong, growing network of funders and deep bench of strategic advisors. This additional grant from The Marcus Foundation, along with contributions from additional funding partners, will be used to scale the number of teen participants to 15,000 per summer within the next five years. The initiative aims to be the go-to resource for educational, high-impact teen Israel travel.
While Israel travel programs are still the primary destination for RootOne experiences, the organization is mindful of the realities of the current geopolitical climate. It is expected that in addition to their Israel travel experiences, RootOne will soon announce funding for alternative opportunities, specific to Summer 2025, that enable teens to still have immersive, Jewish identity-building experiences and form lifelong connections with Israeli peers outside of Israel.
Incubated at The Jewish Education Project, RootOne’s innovative and rapidly growing model is maximizing the number of young people participating in immersive travel to Israel. Since 2020, more than 15,000 young people have participated in RootOne-funded trips. After this past summer’s trips, over 70% of participants reported feeling a sense of responsibility to Israel and 83% said that it was very important for them to be involved with Jewish life once they arrived on campus.
Aimed at rising 10th, 11th and 12th graders, RootOne engages teens during their most formative years. The RootOne Teen Experience encompasses approximately 10 hours of pre-trip learning, an immersive and engaging trip to Israel with a RootOne-funded trip provider and a robust set of post-trip engagement opportunities to learn and connect with alumni. The organization provides $3,000 vouchers to subsidize the cost of participation and helps teens find the experience that is best-suited for each of them.
This funding will also help to expand the network and diversity of RootOne-funded trips through partnerships with new providers and incubation of special-interest trips and continue to elevate the educational standards of immersive teen Israel travel through a suite of strategic initiatives, including staff educational training, programming, post-trip engagement programs and more. RootOne is particularly focused on expanding these opportunities to young people who may be less affiliated with Judaism, are not affiliated with a Jewish youth organization or synagogue or who may not otherwise consider travel to Israel.
“The RootOne vision was very close to Bernie Marcus’ heart. He recognized long ago the crisis of antisemitism in America – particularly on college campuses – and was committed to innovative solutions to ensure the safety and future of the young Jewish population. His challenge to us all was to not stand idly by and allow others to define Israel for us, especially for young people,” said Jay Kaiman, President of The Marcus Foundation. “It’s more urgent than ever to bring more teens to Israel and instill in them the knowledge, understanding and pride they need to be confident, unabashed advocates for the State of Israel and Jewish people. By experiencing Israel, alongside a community of their peers, Jewish teens can understand its importance for themselves and be better prepared to handle and combat the antisemitism they could face at home and on campus.”
RootOne invests in educational trip curricula and produces pre- and post-trip educational and engagement content to strengthen participants’ Jewish identities and connections to Israel before they begin college. It is unique in that its network of funded trips are at least three weeks long and include a minimum of eight hours of pre-trip online learning around Jewish history and the State of Israel. The initiative works with trip organizers and providers to ensure that all RootOne-funded trips meet the highest standards of educational content, while incorporating fun activities and catering to and respecting the diversity of thought of trip participants. Additionally, all RootOne-funded trips have Israeli teens join for several days to help create unique bonds between the North American trip participants and their Israeli peers, adding an interpersonal dimension to the experience to complement sightseeing and other immersive activities.
“The rise in outright antisemitic acts is often scary for Jewish teens and their families. Equally scary is the subtle antisemitism and anti-Zionism Jewish teens face every day on social media, in the classroom and in spaces previously thought of as safe,” said Simon Amiel, Executive Director of RootOne. “On top of all the other stresses that come with being a teen in this day and age, Jewish teens consistently find themselves in situations where they must combat the toxic discourse, keep silent or take a position to fit in with their peers. In this post-October 7 reality, it is essential to provide opportunities for teens to strengthen their Jewish roots, foster their Israel-based literacy and pride and build their confidence and sense of independence during this pivotal developmental period in their lives. We strongly believe that immersive teen Israel travel that builds community is the most effective, diversifiable and scalable way to do so. We are grateful to Bernie Marcus and The Marcus Foundation for believing in our mission and making RootOne part of the Marcus legacy.”
RootOne offers a variety of experiences to ensure there are options that appeal to a wide array of teens, including special interest trips focused on areas such as entrepreneurship, technology, sports and more. The initiative works with leading trip providers and tour operators to provide a range of infrastructural support and build a network of RootOne-funded trips. Five leading youth serving organizations – BBYO, USY, Ramah, Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), and NCSY – are partners with RootOne, and the initiative is actively expanding its network and seeking additional partners to make these experiences possible for even more teens.
“We know that Israel is so much more than this war or this moment,” said David Bryfman, CEO of The Jewish Education Project. “It’s culturally rich and vibrant, nuanced and a core part of Jewish history and identity. Not only do these trips showcase the strength of Israel, but they also support the strength of the Jewish community and provide a unique – and fun – opportunity to hone leadership skills and prepare to be active participants in combating antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiments. This grant is allowing RootOne to continue to disrupt the sector and show teens just how incredible Israel is, and we’re confident it will inspire many more life-long, meaningful connections to this important nation.”
RootOne is an innovative, rapidly growing initiative that maximizes the number of North American teens participating in immersive Israel travel experiences and maximizes the life-long impact that those experiences have on the teens themselves. RootOne does so by reducing the cost of participation for teens and by elevating and diversifying Israel experiences to make them more accessible and more impactful to a wider audience of Jewish teens. RootOne is powered by The Marcus Foundation and incubated at The Jewish Education Project. Additional funders include Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, Crown Family Philanthropies, The Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation, Jim Joseph Foundation, Koum Family Foundation, Mosaic United, The Paul E. Singer Foundation, Samueli Foundation, Seed the Dream Foundation, and The Zalik Foundation. Learn more at www.rootone.org.
Founded in 1989, The Marcus Foundation focuses on fulfilling the philanthropic vision, beliefs and values of Bernie Marcus, co-founder of The Home Depot. The Foundation has five key focus areas, all with the goal to save and change lives through entrepreneurial philanthropy: medical research and healthcare; Jewish causes; free enterprise, including veteran initiatives and national security; the health and welfare of children, with an emphasis on civics education; and targeted community support.
