Socrates Sculpture Park in Long Island City, New York.
Photo: Catherine Favorite

Our Programs

In the spirit of our founder Thomas Elmezzi, the Thomas and Jeanne Elmezzi Private Foundation strives to emulate his boundless generosity and selfless acts that continue to serve as models for the Foundation’s promise to provide genuine and holistic support for the community. The Foundation is committed to improving the lives of residents of the Long Island City/Astoria community by funding programs providing support for education attainment, workforce development and career readiness, as well as breakthroughs in medical research at the Elmezzi School for Molecular Medicine at the Feinstein Institute.

The Elmezzi’s believed that supporting these causes served critical functions in helping individuals and families improve their circumstances. During their lives, the Elmezzi’s began developing grassroots initiatives to advance these causes by paying school tuition for students, supporting the local library, and providing health resources. To this day, the Elmezzi’s dedication to the philosophy of “teaching people how to fish” and their zeal for combatting all forms of prejudice inspires the work of the Foundation and the community it serves.

The legacy of their commitment can be witnessed through the work of the Jeanne Elmezzi Adult Learning Center, the Elmezzi Graduate School for Molecular Medicine, and moreover, through the individual lives such initiatives impact. At the Foundation, we hope to continue embodying the spirit of the Elmezzi’s so that people of all ages are on a path to self-improvement and self-sufficiency through educational opportunities, career advancement, and breakthroughs in medical research.

Jobs / Employment / Workforce Development

The Foundation has recently shifted to expand its workforce development focus area in order to more intentionally and strategically lead to greater economic mobility for low income residents of Long Island City (LIC) and Astoria. While some have the resources to seek a college education, others may find that pursuing vocational school or moving directly into the workforce are more advantageous or gratifying paths. To respond to this diversity of choice, the Thomas and Jeanne Elmezzi Private Foundation has made partnerships in the community to help those building careers and seeking employment attain access to job training opportunities, employment networks, and reliable social support. After consultation with experts and study of community need, the Foundation has decided to focus a majority of its grantmaking to workforce development to respond to multiple trends that have emerged over the last few years. Increased development in LIC/Astoria coupled with income stagnation for long-term residents, amplified need for digital literacy skills post-COVID, and the disconnect between employers and local workforce/training organizations have all contributed to generational un/underemployment in our community.

Grants made to strengthen the workforce development network in Western Queens also fund programs that bridge intergenerational relationships as well as provide care for and support the elderly in being self-sufficient. A wide spectrum of sectors and trades are represented within this ever-expanding grant portfolio; these include but are not limited to: construction/green construction, tech, medicine, and solar energy. No matter the circumstances one may find themselves in, it is the belief of the Thomas and Jeanne Elmezzi Private Foundation that everyone deserves the opportunity to obtain gainful employment and financial independence. The Elmezzi Foundation envisions a future LIC + Astoria where local residents have access to training, education, and job opportunities that create long term economic and social mobility in our community. By improving economic mobility for residents of Western Queens through expanding access to and completion of educational/training opportunities, the Foundation seeks to impact career outcomes holistically and sustainably.

Youth and Education

Along with workforce development, a core value and focus of the Foundation remains supporting accessible, quality, results-driven programs for children and young adults in Long Island City and Astoria that improve educational outcomes to ensure that every individual develops skills to support self-sufficiency and independence. Through maintaining long-term grantee relationships (with organizations such as Zone 126), we are able to focus on critical junctures of development through young adulthood. While we rely on evidence, best practices, and the experience of knowledgeable field-tested experts, we keep in mind how a variety of institutional and structural barriers limit the success of students. At this time, the Foundation is not accepting new grant proposals under this program area but for more information on our process, please view our How We Fund page.

The Thomas and Jeanne Elmezzi Private Foundation recognizes successful youth and adult development as a complex, comprehensive endeavor. We are committed to investing in organizations that demonstrate systematic, evidence-based youth intervention strategies designed to realize change in underserved communities. Our vision extends from providing access to in and out of school educational programs to adult literacy programs that engage people with community resources in the hopes that every student develops skills and confidence to support self-sufficiency.

Some of our recent grants include:

Medical Research

The Thomas and Jeanne Elmezzi Private Foundation also supports programs that advance the field of medical research so that we can increase breakthroughs in medicine and healthcare. At present, all of the Foundation’s medical research funding goes towards supporting the Elmezzi Graduate School of Molecular Medicine at the Feinstein Institute at Northshore Long Island Jewish Health System.

The Foundation believes breakthroughs in medical research should be accessible to all especially those who are underserved or bypassed by the healthcare system. In 2019, the Foundation renewed its long-term commitment to the Elmezzi Graduate School of Molecular Medicine. The school offers a unique program that confers a Ph.D. in molecular medicine to highly trained physicians who wish to pursue careers in biomedical research. Unlike the typical graduate program at universities or medical schools, the Elmezzi Graduate School offers an individually tailored, three-year program with a strong emphasis on translational research that allows doctors to apply their learning from the lab to patient bedsides. In the same year, the Elmezzi Graduate School celebrated its 25th anniversary at its Commencement Exercises where they conferred five doctorate degrees and two honorary degrees.