Published
October 21, 2025
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At Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, we mark the end of an era, as we announce that we will close our signature ROI Community program in July 2026. We are incredibly proud of what ROI has accomplished over the past two decades through directly engaging young Jewish and Israeli changemakers from around the world. We also believe the time is right to evolve our approach in Israel, much as we did last year when we announced that we would no longer operate our U.S.-based programs in order to focus on our grantmaking.
Moving forward, we will devote our resources in Israel to our grantmaking, as we strive to add the most value to the fields in which we work. We will also integrate key elements of ROI’s approach to capacity building and leadership development into Schusterman Family Philanthropies–Israel’s activities, so that they can grow and scale. Under the umbrella of our Israel grantmaking, we will continue to invest in Israeli leaders and organizations, building the ties between them and strengthening the fields in which we work in Israel. The knowledge and relationships built within ROI will inform and inspire these investments.
“We are incredibly proud of what ROI accomplished–foremost among these accomplishments is its rapid-response work to support Israel’s recovery in the wake of October 7,” said Stacy Schusterman, Chair, Schusterman Family Philanthropies. “ROI’s reach and impact speak to the success of the program and the talent and resolve of ROI Community members–a true return on our investment. Though our strategy is shifting, our belief in what young leaders can achieve remains core to our work, and we know ROIers will be among those continuing to lead critical change in support of Israel and the Jewish people.”
Lynn Schusterman founded ROI in 2006 because she saw the potential of the next generation of Jewish leaders to create positive change in the Jewish world and beyond. Over two decades, ROI grew to include more than 1,700 Jewish and Israeli leaders from 60 countries around the world. By connecting, supporting and empowering these leaders, ROI helped push the Jewish community to meet the evolving needs of young Jews and embrace newer, more impactful models of leadership development, connection and engagement.
In the past few years, ROI underwent a strategic transformation, shifting from a Community platform to developing Jewish and Israeli leaders working in areas aligned with Schusterman's grantmaking priorities in Israel. This work took on even greater importance after October 7, as ROI supported leaders advancing efforts to strengthen Israeli society and democracy, address trauma and build resilience in the wake of war, combat violence against women, fight antisemitism, and deepen the connection between Jewish communities and Israel.
"We’re very grateful for what this incredible community has achieved,” said Beri Rozenberg and Tamar Gil Menachem, Co-Directors of ROI Community. “For nearly two decades, ROI Community has brought together visionary leaders who turned inspiration into impact—strengthening Israel and Jewish life. Over the past years, and especially since October 7, we have worked to reimagine what leadership programs can be: grounded in reality, focused on impact, and driven by the incredible talent and resilience of our Community."
Schusterman Family Philanthropies remains steadfastly committed to our mission to invest in building more just and inclusive societies in the U.S. and Israel. In the U.S., we work to advance racial, gender and economic equity as well as to foster a more joyful and diverse Jewish community deeply connected to Jewish values and to Israel. In Israel, we invest in strengthening Israel as a secure homeland for the Jewish people, a thriving democracy and an inclusive society that cares for its most vulnerable.
In 2024, our decision to no longer operate REALITY and the Schusterman Fellowship marked our transition away from running programs that directly engage individual leaders in the U.S. to fully focusing on our grantmaking investments in organizations across six core issue areas. We are now extending this approach to our work in Israel as we pursue our Israel-based grantmaking priorities.
We are grateful to our ROI teammates, past and present, who brought our vision to life. We especially want to thank Beri Rozenberg, Tamar Gil Menachem and their team for leading ROI Community through significant growth and an unprecedented period in Israel’s history. We are also immensely grateful to our ROI Community members whose talent, passion and innovative work made ROI a success.
"We’re deeply proud of our members—of their spirit, our shared values and the difference they continue to make," added Beri and Tamar. "As we close this chapter, we do so with gratitude to Lynn and Stacy Schusterman for the opportunity to do this meaningful work on behalf of their philanthropic vision, and with confidence that the ROI spirit will live on through the people who shaped it.”
ROI Community will officially conclude on July 1, 2026. Our programs will gradually wind down, culminating in a final ROI Summit in the spring of 2026. We look forward to sharing more of the work and impact of ROI Community members in the months ahead.
