Youth Convention Subsidies

The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh remains committed to supporting teen leadership development. With the goal of encouraging leadership development for Pittsburgh-based Jewish teens, the Jewish Federation is again offering a limited number of subsidies for attendance at regional or national in-person conventions hosted by national Jewish youth movements. Eligible programs must involve at least two nights away from Pittsburgh in a regional or national event designed to impart leadership development skills, under the rubric of a recognized national Jewish youth movement.

About the Subsidy

• Applicants must apply for a subsidy a minimum of two weeks prior to the start date of the convention.
• In most instances, subsidies will be issued directly to the national youth movement, not to the individual, and it is up to the national youth movement to issue comparable refunds or credits directly to the teen registrant. Subsidies will not be disbursed until after the convention has taken place and the teen's attendance has been confirmed. In the event that a teen does not attend the conference for whatever reason, the Federation is not responsible for issuing the subsidy.
• Applications will be accepted on a rolling, first-come, first-served basis through June 16, 2023, for conventions that will take place prior to August 16, 2023.
• Applicants will be notified of the award decision within two weeks after submission. Teens who receive subsidies will be required to complete a brief post-convention report.
• Subsidies are not need-based and will be issued in two tiers: $100 for 2 nights away; $180 for 3 or more nights away.
• Applicants must reside in the Greater Pittsburgh area covered by the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh.
• Teens are limited to one convention subsidy per academic year.

How to Apply

Start your application on our grant making portal at grantmakingportal.smapply.io.

• Register and create an applicant profile.
• Take the eligibility quiz and select “Jewish Life and Learning Youth Convention Subsidies”. Please follow these steps to access the eligibility quiz.
  • Click on the triangle next to your name in the top right corner and select "My Account." On the left side under Account Settings select "Eligibility." Then click the green box that says Update your eligibility profile.
  • Select “Jewish Life and Learning Youth Convention Subsidies” and enter the access code YCS-2023, then click "Next" followed by "Save my profile."
  • In the box that says, “Jewish Life and Learning Youth Convention Subsidies”, click the green box that says "More,"
    followed by "Apply."
• Complete the application on the portal:
  • Save frequently as you go.
  • When finished answering the questions, click “Submit” on the left side of the Jewish Life and Learning Youth Convention Subsidies task dashboard.