The journey continues
In March of 2024, we announced that we would fully focus our resources in the U.S. on our existing grantmaking priorities. As part of this shift, REALITY, which has brought more than 3,000 influential leaders to Israel over the past 15 years, officially became part of our longstanding grantee, itrek.
Under itrek, REALITY continues to bring leaders from diverse backgrounds and sectors on formative learning journeys to Israel. The journeys enable participants to build their understanding of Israel and a complex region of the world, enhance their leadership skills and connect with peers from across the globe. itrek also supports REALITY alumni in bringing new understanding, leadership skills and collaborations forged in Israel back to their communities.
Meet Our Partner, itrek
itrek launched in 2011 with a mission to empower leaders to engage their networks in meaningful Israel experiences, fostering an understanding and appreciation of Israel’s unique culture, diversity and complex reality. More than 25,000 graduate students representing 130 nationalities from schools in the US, Canada and Europe have traveled to Israel through itrek. In 2022, itrek expanded beyond graduate school students, piloting offerings to bring more leaders to Israel. In this next chapter, REALITY will become part of itrek’s wide range of offerings and contribute to its ongoing growth. itrek will provide even more leaders from a range of backgrounds with the opportunity to experience Israel and connect with changemakers across the globe.
Quote from Stacy Schusterman
We are incredibly proud of the impact REALITY has had and are thrilled that the program will continue under itrek. itrek has a strong track record of connecting diverse leaders with Israel, and REALITY will enable itrek to expand its reach into new sectors and communities.
Chair of Schusterman Family Philanthropies
looking back
We launched REALITY in 2009 as part of our mission to connect people with Israel and shape a future where the United States and Israel can achieve their highest ideals. For 15 years at Schusterman, REALITY engaged over 3,000 leaders in immersive journeys to Israel and in a vibrant, robust alumni community.
In its first few years, REALITY expanded opportunities for Teach for America corps members to gain firsthand experience of Israel and its surrounding region, gain new leadership skills and build meaningful connections. Recognizing the impact of this model, we quickly grew REALITY to encompass leaders from a wider range of sectors and communities.
Over the course of the last decade and a half, we ran 85 journeys to Israel for influential leaders working at the forefront of societal innovation and who share a commitment to leading positive change. Journeys were curated for people who work in specific sectors and industries—such as media, technology, food, music, design, social impact and more—each itinerary was shaped with opportunities to learn more about these sectors in Israel. Participants included award-winning journalists and storytellers, renowned artists and creators, civic and nonprofit leaders at the forefront of social justice initiatives, business leaders, tech trailblazers, and executives and performers in the music industry.
Later, we built the REALITY alumni community to empower participants to continue applying the skills they gained during their journeys back at home and connect with peers across the globe. Through the alumni network, REALITY participants could continue their learning and leadership development by engaging in educational opportunities, international travel journeys, regional hub communities and microgrants.
Honoring 15 years of REALITY.
95
Journeys since 2009, including 85 Israel journeys and 10 global travel journeys.
3 in 5
Participants experience Israel for the very first time.
96%
Of participants return home from their journey with an increased motivation to repair the world.
Quote from Dom Ard'is (tech '22)
This leadership experience was out of the box. REALITY provided a different and unforeseen lens. It took all of us out of our comfort and pushed the bounds of creativity by being in a country that has had to be innovative and think differently about how to begin to survive, move, create and build relationships within the context that it lives in.
Founder and CEO, ACT House, INC
FEATURED ARTICLE
Wesley Hamilton: Empowering and Celebrating People with Disabilities
Wesley Hamilton, a member of the REALITY alumni community, is on a mission to foster a mindset of courage, competence and confidence in every individual with a disability. This interview explores Wesley’s journey to becoming an advocate for disability justice and his reflections on how all leaders working toward social change can incorporate disability justice into their work.
our grantmaking
While REALITY's chapter at Schusterman has ended, we remain steadfastly committed to our mission to invest in building more just and inclusive societies in the U.S. and Israel.
United States
In U.S., we're making a strategic shift to deepen our impact through grantmaking in six core issue areas: Criminal Justice, Democracy and Voting Rights, K-12 Education, Gender and Reproductive Equity, our Hometown of Tulsa, and the Jewish Community.
Israel
In Israel, we continue to focus on our grantmaking, as well as to operate ROI Community, a global network that connects and mobilizes innovative Jewish and Israeli changemakers to address complex challenges in Jewish communities, Israel and the world.