irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024
What they reported doing
- #1 primary $1.14MEDUCATION & RESEARCH (MAX WEINREICH CENTER) - YIVO'S MAX WEINREICH CENTER FOR ADVANCED JEWISH STUDIES, ESTABLISHED IN 1968, IS DEDICATED TO EDUCATION AND TO THE ADVANCEMENT OF RESEARCH IN THE AREA OF JEWISH LIFE AND CULTURE. NAMED AFTER RENOWNED SCHOLAR AND YIVO FOUNDER MAX WEINREICH, THE CENTER WORKS TO MAKE YIVO'S UNIQUE RESOURCES AND ITS SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE AVAILABLE TO UNIVERSITIES AND OTHER INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING, TO ENCOURAGE STUDY AND PROMOTE RESEARCH CONCERNING THE LIFE AND CULTURE OF EAST EUROPEAN JEWRY AND RELATED TOPICS, TO MARSHAL THE INTELLECTUAL RESOURCES IN THE FIELD OF SCHOLARSHIP, AND TO ASSIST YOUNG SCHOLARS IN QUALIFYING FOR WORK IN THIS FIELD.
- #2 $1.19MTHE BUND ARCHIVES - THE BUND ARCHIVES PROJECT IS A MULTI-YEAR PROJECT TO CONSERVE, PROCESS, AND DIGITIZE THE 3.5 MILLION PAGES OF JEWISH LABOR AND POLITICAL ARCHIVES THAT WERE DONATED TO YIVO BY THE BUND ARCHIVES IN 1992. THESE MATERIALS ARE FROM EASTERN EUROPE AND AMERICA AND COVER MAJOR POLITICAL, LABOR, AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES. AFTER THE PROJECT IS COMPLETE, THESE MATERIALS WILL BE ACCESSIBLE ONLINE FREE-OF-CHARGE. YIVO ESSENTIALLY BEGAN WORKING ON THIS PROJECT IN 2022.
named programs · 5 · from sources
What they call their work
Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Online Collections Project
Digitization initiative to conserve and provide access to pre-WWII YIVO collections from Vilna
Max Weinreich Center for Advanced Jewish Studies
Research and education center supporting advanced scholarship in Jewish studies
Shine Online Educational Series
Virtual lecture and education series on Jewish history and culture
YIVO-Bard Uriel Weinreich Summer Program in Yiddish Language, Literature, and Culture
Intensive summer program teaching Yiddish language and Ashkenazi culture to students and scholars
YIVO-Bard Winter Program on Ashkenazi Civilization
Winter academic program focused on Jewish history, language, and culture
activities · 5 groups
What they do
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Jewish and Cultural Heritage Archives 6 activities
- Capacity building through archival acquisitions and partnershipsExpands research capacity by acquiring significant new collections, such as letters from Sholem Aleichem and Israel Zajd’s Morgnshtern archive, and co-founded the Center for Jewish History to strengthen institutional collaboration in Jewish scholarship.
- Development and maintenance of digital research resources and exhibitionsProduces and maintains digital platforms including The YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe (with over 180,000 annual visitors), the Online Guide to the YIVO Archives, the Milstein Family Jewish Communal Archive Project, and the YIVO Digital Archives on Jewish Life in Poland. Also contributed to external exhibitions such as “From the Bowery to Broadway” at the Museum of the City of New York.
- Digitization of pre-WWII YIVO collections through the Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Online Collections projectLeads the Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Online Collections project, launched in 2015, to conserve, digitize, and reunite online millions of pages of looted and scattered pre-war YIVO documents and books from Lithuania. This includes major digitization initiatives such as the Vilna Collections Project, the Chaim Grade and Nachman Blumental collections, and collaboration with the National Library of Israel.
- Preservation and curation of East European Jewish archives and library collectionsMaintains the world's largest and most comprehensive collection of materials on East European Jewish civilization, including approximately 24 million archival items and nearly 400,000 library volumes, with extensive holdings of Yiddish-language books, manuscripts, photographs, sound recordings, and personal correspondence. Collections are accessible to researchers through the Lillian Goldman Reading Room and receive over 5,000 annual research requests.
- Shine Online Educational SeriesOffers a global online learning program launched in January 2016 that provides access to YIVO’s collections through virtual classes and lectures, engaging over 30,000 students from more than 70 countries.
- YIVO Bruce and Francesca Cernia Slovin Online MuseumOperates a digital museum launched in 2020 that presents East European Jewish history through interactive exhibits using archival materials, making YIVO’s collections accessible to a global online audience.
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Curated Art Exhibitions and Public Displays 1 activity
- On-site gallery exhibitions and public accessOperates free gallery spaces open multiple days per week for the public to view rotating exhibitions such as “Jews Are Magic” and “Psychedelicatessen,” and offers guided tours of the Sima and Ruby Wagner Gallery by appointment.
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Jewish Holiday and Shabbat Community Events 1 activity
- Public programs and cultural eventsHosts 40 to 75 public programs annually, including lectures, conferences, concerts, film screenings, and walking tours, featuring scholars, artists, and writers. Events include the Yiddish-language Passover concert “Music of the Third Seder,” screenings of Holocaust-era films like “Diamonds of the Night,” and tours focused on Yiddish women writers. Receives over 25,000 annual registrations.
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Holocaust and Genocide Remembrance Education 1 activity
- Study tours and educational travel programsOrganizes international study tours focused on Jewish history and culture, including an annual tour of the Balkans, providing immersive educational experiences grounded in archival and historical research.
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Uncategorized 3 activities
- Scholarly research and publication on Yiddish language, literature, and East European Jewish historyConducts and publishes academic research on East European Jewish life, Yiddish language and literature, the Holocaust, and the American Jewish immigrant experience. Key publications include Max Weinreich’s History of the Yiddish Language, the YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe, and scholarly volumes such as Embers Plucked from the Fire and The Last Days of the Jerusalem of Lithuania.
- Uriel Weinreich Program in Yiddish Language, Literature, and CultureOperates the oldest intensive Yiddish language program, held annually since 1968, offering multiple levels of Yiddish instruction and attracting students internationally. In 2025, hosted 74 students from 12 countries. Provides stipends to young scholars to support participation.
- Yiddish language and cultural instructionOffers a range of in-person and online Yiddish language classes and workshops beyond the summer program, including beginner to advanced levels, Alefbeys (alphabet) workshops, and specialized courses on interpreting handwritten Yiddish documents and survivor narratives in literature.
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financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$13.74M
Contributions & grants$9.51M69%
Program service revenue$577K4%
Investment income$3.58M26%
Other revenue$79K
expenses
Total expenses$7.07M
Program expenses72%
Admin / overhead13%
Fundraising16%
Salaries & benefits$4.54M
Grants paid out$51K
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$39.52M
Cash$1.19M
Investments$25.67M
Liabilities$712K
Net assets$38.81M
Liquid reserves45.6 mo
4 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue +129.9%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
paid leadership · 6
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| JONATHAN BRENT | EXEC. DIRECTOR | 40 | $281K |
| MELISSA COHEN | DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT | 40 | $240K |
| ROBERT WAGMAN | CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER | 40 | $204K |
| SHELLY FREEMAN | CHIEF OF STAFF | 40 | $177K |
| KAROLINA RODRIGUES ZIUKOSKI | DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL- CHIEF | 40 | $140K |
| ALEXANDER WEISER | DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROGRAMS | 40 | $111K |
board members · 13
- BRUCE SLOVIN — DIRECTOR
- EDWARD BLANK — DIRECTOR
- ERIC RUBIN — DIRECTOR
- HARRY WAGNER — DIRECTOR
- ILYA PRIZEL — DIRECTOR
- IRENE PLETKA — VICE CHAIR
- JACOB MOROWITZ — DIRECTOR
- JON RICHMOND — DIRECTOR
- LEO MELAMED — DIRECTOR
- LISA NEW — DIRECTOR
- MARTIN FLUMENBAUM — DIRECTOR
- RUTH LEVINE — CHAIRPERSON
- WARREN STERN — DIRECTOR
relationships · 26
Who they work with
- Andrew W. Cassel Partner — Donated letters from Sholem Aleichem and related figures to YIVO.
- Bard College Partner — Co-sponsors the Uriel Weinreich Program in Yiddish Language, Literature, and Culture with YIVO.
- Bard College Partner — Partner in the YIVO-Bard Institute for East European Jewish History and Culture.
- Bloomsbury Partner — Published the Yiddish Voices Series in partnership with YIVO.
- Center for Jewish History Partner — Co-locates exhibitions and shares gallery spaces and reading room facilities
- Center for Jewish History Partner — YIVO is a founding partner of the Center for Jewish History.
- Charity Navigator Government — Rated by Charity Navigator for organizational performance and transparency.
- Chicago YIVO Society Partner — Sister organization that brings Yiddish and Jewish programming to the Chicago area.
- Council of American Jewish Museums Partner — YIVO is affiliated with the Council of American Jewish Museums.
- Digital Public Library of America Partner — Collaborates to provide online access to digital cultural content.
- Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Online Collections project Partner — Collaborative digital initiative to reunite looted and scattered documents and books from YIVO's prewar collections.
- Fundación IWO Partner — Sister organization in Argentina that conducts research, publishing, and public programs on Latin American Jewry.
- Guidestar Government — Profiled on Guidestar with a Platinum Seal of Transparency.
- Hebrewbooks.org Partner — Collaborates on joint projects to digitize rare books and periodicals from the YIVO Library.
- Judaica Europeana Partner — Collaborates to provide online access to content documenting Jewish heritage in European cities.
- Metro Library Council Partner — YIVO is affiliated with the Metro Library Council.
- Museum of the City of New York Partner — Collaborated on the exhibition “From the Bowery to Broadway: New York’s Yiddish Theater.”
- Museums Council of New York Partner — YIVO is affiliated with the Museums Council of New York.
- POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews Partner — Partner in promoting knowledge of Polish Jewish history through educational and exchange programs.
- Smithsonian Institution Network — YIVO is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution and participates in its programs and publications.
- The Lithuanian Central State Archive Partner — Partner in the Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Online Collections project to digitize prewar YIVO collections.
- The National Library of Israel Partner — Partner in a joint project to digitize the archives of Yiddish writer Chaim Grade.
- The National Library of Lithuania Partner — Partner in the Edward Blank YIVO Vilna Online Collections project to digitize prewar YIVO collections.
- Yad Vashem Partner — Partner in digitizing documents for the Vilna Collections Project.
- Yale University Press Partner — Co-published the YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe and Max Weinreich’s History of the Yiddish Language with YIVO.
- reVilna Partner — Collaborated on the creation of a digital map of the Vilna Ghetto.
strategies · 5
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Cultural Preservation Through Scholarly Engagementmethodology: cultural_preservation_and_scholarshipBy preserving and studying East European Jewish history and culture through archival research, education, and public programming, YIVO produces enduring knowledge and transmission of Yiddish heritage because sustained scholarly and public engagement ensures cultural continuity.
- Language Immersion With Cultural Contextmethodology: cultural_immersion_language_learningBy teaching Yiddish through cultural immersion and integrated linguistic instruction, YIVO produces deeper language acquisition and cultural understanding because language learning is more effective when embedded in the lived context of the speech community.
- Primary Source Literacy for Scholarly Accessmethodology: primary_source_literacyBy teaching practical skills to interpret handwritten Yiddish documents and access archival materials, YIVO builds scholarly capacity because direct engagement with primary sources enables authentic, high-quality research in East European Jewish studies.
- Standardization to Sustain Linguistic Integritymethodology: standard_setting_in_yiddish_transliterationBy establishing standardized transliteration rules for Yiddish, YIVO ensures consistency in academic and publishing contexts because shared linguistic norms enable broader collaboration, accessibility, and preservation of orthographic accuracy.
- Translation and Contextualization for Contemporary Relevancemethodology: translation_and_contextualizationBy translating Yiddish literary works into English and pairing them with historian introductions, YIVO makes foundational texts accessible and meaningful to modern audiences because contextualized translation bridges historical distance and fosters ongoing cultural relevance.