Clal-The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
A LEADING ADVOCATE FOR PLURALISM AND DIVERSITY, CLAL OFFERS JEWISH WISDOM THAT ENHANCES PUBLIC LIFE, DEEPENS CIVIC ENGAGEMENT AND CULTIVATES PERSONAL GROWTH.
- Income
- $5.6 million
- Spending
- $4.2 million
- Spent on programs
- 82%
- Reserves
- 13.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 81%
- Employees
- 10
- Volunteers
- 31
- Highest pay
- $561,151, president
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 88% of charities in its peer group (religion, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 13.6 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 9% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 25% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 25% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1582% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 2 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Good: 75 out of 100. Higher than 51% of charities in its peer group (religion, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2531 of 34 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
0 of 8Reports no written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
0 of 7Reports no written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
0 of 10Did not give the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (4)
- $982,719 spent. Clal's leadership training programs cultivate innovative, spiritually grounded leaders who can guide Jewish life or faith community writ large with creativity, wisdom, and resilience. Through a range of initiatives, Clal equips rabbis, clergy, and Jewish professionals with tools for adaptive leadership, design thinking, and spiritual entrepreneurship. In 2024, these efforts included Leading Through Innovation, an inter-seminary graduate course on innovation and entrepreneurship for rabbinical students; the Leading Through Innovation Alumni Retreat, which deepened connection and learning among emerging rabbinic leaders; LEAP, a collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania's Katz Center linking leading scholars with rabbis to translate cutting-edge Jewish research into communal impact; and The Belonging Project, which trained synagogue teams and clergy to design for belonging and to strengthen community connection. Additional programs included Rabbis Without Borders Alumni Study Group, fostering intellectual and spiritual exchange among Clal's national rabbinic network; Glean Network, a multi-faith incubator training clergy in spiritual innovation; and RabbiCareers.com, Clal's open-access platform supporting rabbinic placement and career growth. Together, these initiatives advanced Clal's mission to nurture visionary leaders capable of renewing Jewish life for the 21st century. (Expenses $ 859,637 including grants of $) Sinai & Synapses - Sinai and Synapses offers people a worldview that is both scientifically grounded and spiritually uplifting. It provides tools and language for learning and living to those who see science as their ally as they pursue personal growth and the repair of our world. We equip scientists, clergy and dedicated laypeople with knowledge and skills to become role models and ambassadors for grappling with the biggest and most important questions we face. We believe that in order to enhance ourselves and our world, we need both religion and science as sources of wisdom, as the spark for new questions, and as inspiration and motivation. Through classes, seminars, lectures, videos, podcasts and writings, it helps create a vision of religion that embraces critical thinking and scientific inquiry, and at the same time, gives meaning to people's lives and helps them make a positive impact on society. It is incubated at Clal - The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, which links Jewish wisdom with innovative scholarship to deepen civic and spiritual participation in American life.
- $819,042 spent. Taking Jewish Wisdom Public -- The Stand and See Fellowship, our newest initiative, uses a deeply Jewish method to nurture and build a larger American religious leadership, which can more deeply love the land of Israel, better appreciate the real value and importance of modern Israel, and more fully understand the lives of a wider range of both Israelis and Palestinians than they would otherwise encounter. Stand and See ultimately nurtures fellows' ability to lead more effectively on any tough issue to lead with greater nuance and sophistication in the face of the too easy, and often dangerous, polarizations which threaten so many parts of our culture, our nation and our world. In a moment of increasing fear and scarcity, at home and abroad, this program builds leaders who nurture clear-eyed hope and genuine possibility for the future. The program has expanded to include US Army Chaplains.
- $759,770 spent. Pluralism - For 50 years, Clal has been defined by the creation, cultivation and dissemination of new ideas always animated by deep pluralism and a fearless embrace of how new realities shape both people's experience of Jewishness, and the resulting opportunities to apply Jewish wisdom to those new realities within Jewish life and beyond. Rabbis Brad Hirschfield, Elan Babchuck, Julia Appel and the entire Clal faculty teach and consult worldwide, offering a rich and pluralist Jewish wisdom that contributes to the public good, addresses our cultural and political polarization, and helps communities and individuals to grow and flourish. Having long embraced new media, Clal faculty and fellows are reaching organizations, think tanks, universities, seminaries, and business, technology, and innovation conferences. (Expenses $ 859,637 including grants of $) Sinai & Synapses - Sinai and Synapses offers people a worldview that is both scientifically grounded and spiritually uplifting. It provides tools and language for learning and living to those who see science as their ally as they pursue personal growth and the repair of our world. We equip scientists, clergy and dedicated laypeople with knowledge and skills to become role models and ambassadors for grappling with the biggest and most important questions we face. We believe that in order to enhance ourselves and our world, we need both religion and science as sources of wisdom, as the spark for new questions, and as inspiration and motivation. Through classes, seminars, lectures, videos, podcasts and writings, it helps create a vision of religion that embraces critical thinking and scientific inquiry, and at the same time, gives meaning to people's lives and helps them make a positive impact on society. It is incubated at Clal - The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, which links Jewish wisdom with innovative scholarship to deepen civic and spiritual participation in American life.
- $859,637 spent. Sinai & Synapses - Sinai and Synapses offers people a worldview that is both scientifically grounded and spiritually uplifting. It provides tools and language for learning and living to those who see science as their ally as they pursue personal growth and the repair of our world. We equip scientists, clergy and dedicated laypeople with knowledge and skills to become role models and ambassadors for grappling with the biggest and most important questions we face. We believe that in order to enhance ourselves and our world, we need both religion and science as sources of wisdom, as the spark for new questions, and as inspiration and motivation. Through classes, seminars, lectures, videos, podcasts and writings, it helps create a vision of religion that embraces critical thinking and scientific inquiry, and at the same time, gives meaning to people's lives and helps them make a positive impact on society. It is incubated at Clal - The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, which links Jewish wisdom with innovative scholarship to deepen civic and spiritual participation in American life.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since August 1974.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.