JHF Trustees and Staff Set Goals for 2026
Type: News
The JHF Board reviews and discusses the organization's goals and priorities for the upcoming year.
At its first meeting of the year, the Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) Board of Trustees approved a bold set of 2026 organizational goals and strategic priorities building on new initiatives and progress on longstanding projects from 2025.
JHF will continue advancing key initiatives to support healthier communities across Pennsylvania. Its Longevity Hub work will expand through community engagement, planning for a Squirrel Hill location, and improvements to services like home-delivered meals. Efforts to improve healthcare safety will move forward through the Coalition for Advancing Safer Healthcare, including a new white paper, pilot programs, and stronger engagement with healthcare leaders. JHF will also grow its workforce and training programs, including Behavioral Health Fellows, CNA training, and extensive outreach to long-term care facilities through webinars and new behavioral health initiatives.
Across additional focus areas, JHF will strengthen maternal and perinatal health efforts statewide, expand dementia-friendly communities and education, and sustain critical HIV/AIDS services through outreach and workforce training. Youth-focused work will include expanding Teen Safe Spaces, elevating youth voices in mental health advocacy, and supporting immigrant and refugee-serving organizations.
Together, these efforts reflect JHF’s commitment to improving health outcomes, building capacity in the workforce, and fostering safer, more inclusive communities.
The Board received an update on the successful Aging Made Simple Series from President and CEO Karen Wolk Feinstein, PhD, and Trustee and former Board Chair, Debra Caplan, MPA. The Board discussed the vision and continued efforts toward realizing a Longevity Hub in Pittsburgh.
The Board unanimously approved a $250,000 emergency grant to Clalit Health Services, which provides health care for more than half of Israel’s population. The emergency funds will support the development of a new underground hospital for seniors, disabled individuals, mobility-impaired patients, and others unable to safely reach shelter during air raids. JHF has a long-standing relationship with Clalit including leadership visits between Israel and Pittsburgh, infection control training partnerships, and site visits to Clalit hospitals and clinics.
It also approved a $50,000 grant to the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work to support a pilot focused on developing teen safe spaces in partnership with the University of Pittsburgh Community Engagement Center in Homewood. This effort builds on the model established by headspace, UpStreet, and The Beacon, aligning with JHF’s continued commitment to expand youth-centered, community-based supports and safe spaces, as highlighted in its recent Roots publication. The Beacon will play a key role in informing program design and implementation, and JHF will work with Pitt Social Work to help secure additional funding to sustain and grow this work.
Two new Board members were welcomed: Paul Wallach, MD, the new Vice Chancellor for Health Sciences Education, Executive Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and long-time partner to JHF Stuart Fisk, MSN, a 30-year healthcare provider who is currently working as a consultant for the Allegheny Department of Human Services.
