FOOTSTEPS INC
Your life. Your journey. Your choice.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Every year, hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men and women attempt to explore the world beyond their insular communities. These courageous individuals struggle to redefine their lives despite punitive reactions from family and friends, little if any secular education or relevant work history, a lack of experience with modern gender roles, and, in some cases, a limited command of English.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Support Services
Support Services help Footsteps members access critical resources and peer connections so they can be successful and independent in their journeys. These services include: peer support groups, one-to-one counseling with staff social workers, career and educational resources (we run scholarship and internship programs), and family and legal supports for parents (in partnership with the New York Legal Assistance Group) who wish to maintain relationships and access custody/visitation rights with their children. Finally, our cross-cultural and life skills programs close the gap in secular culture and independent living -- including everything from dating, relationships & sexuality workshops to fashion nights to financial management.
Community Engagement
Community Engagement Programs build the strength of our network to ensure that members have friends and allies along their journey. We offer monthly social programs, an overnight camping trip in the summer and holiday celebrations year-round. Our annual event, Footsteps Celebrates, rejoices in the many accomplishments of our members throughout the year. Finally, as our members move on in their transitions, Footsteps has created leadership opportunities for them to give back to new members and the organization via our Membership Advisory Council, Peer Support and Court Companion programs.
Where we work
External reviews
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Footsteps supports and affirms individuals and families who have left, or are contemplating leaving, insular ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities in their quest to lead self-determined lives.\r\n\r\nFootsteps is the only organization in North America assisting people on this journey. Based in New York, Footsteps provides a range of services, including social and emotional support, educational and vocational guidance, workshops and social activities, and access to resources. Thanks to Footsteps, former ultra-Orthodox Jews have a safe, supportive, and flourishing community to turn to as they work to define their own identities, build new connections, and lead productive lives on their own terms.\r\n\r\nUltimately, Footsteps envisions a world in which all who choose to leave insular religious communities are able to lead self-determined lives, have the resources to flourish, and are fully supported in achieving the educational and cultural acclimation necessary for a richly integrated life within mainstream society.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Footsteps meets the needs of its population through a combination of emotional and social support as well as practical services ā everything from academic scholarships to workshops on dating to chulent cook-offs. \r\n\r\nFootsteps' core program has two pillars: \r\n\r\nSupport Services: help members access critical resources to safely and successfully transition to the secular world. This includes peer support groups, 1:1 supportive counseling with social workers, academic and career advising, a summer internship program, academic scholarships, referrals to job readiness training, legal representation for those in custody and divorce disputes, and life skills programs. \r\n\r\nCommunity Engagement: builds the strength of our network to ensure that members have friends and allies along their journey. We offer large social programs, holiday celebrations, an Art Show, camping trip, leadership opportunities for members and, most recently, two new microgrants that enable members to pursue their passions and launch social change initiatives.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Footsteps was founded in 2003 by Malkie Schwartz. Having left a Hasidic community herself, Malkie sought to address the needs of other ultra-Orthodox individuals who similarly wanted to explore life in the secular world. This is one of the key strengths and capabilities of the organization -- it was built by those with firsthand experience. \r\n\r\nTo date, Footsteps has directly served over 1,300 people across its two offices (Manhattan and Rockland). In the last year alone, Footsteps work led to the following: \r\n\r\nIn total, over the last year, Footsteps applauds the following achievements:\r\n-- 21 members started a program to prepare for the High School Equivalency Exam\r\n-- 19 members started college\r\n-- 7 members started advanced degrees\r\n-- 5 earned Associates or Bachelor's degrees\r\n-- 3 earned advanced degrees\r\n-- 12 members secured jobs\r\n-- 3 members received prestigious fellowships, including a single member who received the Diversity Fellowship through Columbia, the Turner fellowship through Stonybrook, and the prestigious NSF graduate fellowship in her studies at the Pure Math PhD program at Columbia University\r\n-- 1 member received a Fulbright award to University of Toronto Law where he will engage in a comparative analysis of real estate law in Jewish, Islamic and secular law.\r\n\r\nBeyond the member outputs, Footsteps has become a thought leader around an issue that continues to gain attention in both the national and Jewish media, making headlines in "The New York Times Magazine" and "Hadassah" alike in 2017. The Orthodox community is the fastest growing segment of the American Jewish community, and Footsteps educates the public and leverages our unique understanding of this community to serve as a cultural translator between the nascent movement of former ultra-Orthodox Jews and the wider Jewish community.\r\n\r\nWe would like to conclude with the testimony of two alumni, who are the best judges of Footsteps capabilities.\r\n\r\nFor many people leaving ultra-Orthodoxy, myself included, Footsteps has served as a safety net. To say that the work Footsteps does is life-saving is an understatement. \r\nā Shulem Deen\r\n\r\nThe Footsteps community is built on a shared experience we all had. The place where the road home is lost and a thousand new roads have just opened up. \r\nā Ushy Katz
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Since our founding in 2003, Footsteps has directly served over 1,300 individuals and we have helped build a network of over 5,000 formerly ultra-Orthodox Jews.\r\n\r\nThe strategic priorities for fiscal years 2017 through 2019, adopted by the board, include:\r\n1) Engage and build community for and with 1,000 formerly ultra-Orthodox individuals in the NYC metro area. \r\n2) Broaden our reach. \r\n3) Serve as a thought leader and movement builder for the formerly ultra-Orthodox, \r\n4) Invest in internal capacity, culture, infrastructure and systems to sustainably achieve aims. \r\n\r\nAt the top of the agenda for the coming year is investing in our community engagement offerings, including a pilot partnership with Moishe House to support informal member-led programming and help Footsteppers connect with progressive Jewish networks. We plan on broadening our reach, by increasing accessibility of services to potential members - near and far - who cannot physically access our space. Finally, we will begin planning for a day-long convening on issues facing members.\r\n\r\nLonger term, Footsteps envisions moving more and more into a thought leadership and convener role and will focus on how to share resources, replicate services and provide capacity building support and potentially fiscal sponsorship to allied groups across the globe.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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FOOTSTEPS INC
Board of directorsas of 03/16/2023
Jamie Hooper
Ann Kirschner
Shelley Fischel
Mark Goldberg
Ann Kirschner
Shelly Kivell
Phin Reisz
Carrie Shapiro
Lani Santo
Merle Woldenberg Wolff
Jonathan Horowitz
Yoseph Horowitz
Ben Linder
Mark Lipton, Ph.D.
Miriam Moster
Ari Rosenberg
Nitza Rubin
Mindy Yeager
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? No -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data