Why Kochvei?

INVESTMENT

In this article, we outline a simple mathematical model that shows how a community that shares in the cost of an individual's education, will also share in its value later on. As shown in the figure below, the average success index (a measure defined in the article that accounts for an individual's personal value and the value of his or her network) of each member of the community increases fastest in a community that shares in the education costs of its newest members.

Note: The model assumes, among other things, that we add 10 fellows a year. For more details, check out this article, where we present this model.

TZEDAKAH (CHARITY)

In his code of Jewish law, Maimonides delineates eight levels of charity. Of these, the highest is giving someone an interest-free loan, a job, or more generally, enabling someone to get up on their feet by their own efforts. In doing so, the recipient is not embarrassed or belittled as may be the case with lower forms of charity, and the donor does not grow as haughty, since, ultimately, the recipient is responsible for his or her growth and success.

JEWISH FUTURE

Applicants to the Kochvei Fellowship are engaged or married individuals who push off starting a family to pursue graduate or professional education, or conversely, individuals who defer or sacrifice further education in order to start a family. Our Fellowships are awarded to those who are most likely to not push off one for the other, given the requisite financial and professional support we offer. Since pushing off starting a family usually means a couple will ultimately have less children, Kochvei Donors support the birth of children who otherwise would not have been born. What is more, these children are born into more educated, successful families, who will have that much more to offer the next generation of Kochvei kids!

COOPERATIVITY

By supporting young families financially and professionally, Kochvei allows the establishment of a close-knit, cooperative community. Instead of being shackled with long term loans, families can invest those same funds in themselves or pay them forward to others. Moreover, the faster economic growth those families will experience will allow them to help other families in the future, which contributes to the effects seen in the above figure.

NETWORKING

Through events such as the annual Thank You Gala, Kochvei promotes the growth of a professional network that may serve the donors in the long term as much as (or even more than) the funds support the young professional couples in the short term. These events also allow donors to meet each other, serving as a platform for successful professionals from different fields to meet and interact. We also support the growth and success of the Kochvei community through professional workshops, lectures, and trips abroad!