Supporting early childhood, neuroscience, and education.

About

For four decades, the Fund has supported early career scientists engaged in basic or clinical neuroscience research. The Fund has also been engaged in the training of independent school teachers and leaders largely through the work of the Klingenstein Center at Teachers College, Columbia University. In recent years, the Fund has added a program in early childhood that focuses on making systemic changes in child care and early childhood mental health.

Our Mission

The EAJK Fund is committed to promoting breakthrough neuroscience research, improving early childhood care and education (particularly among low income children), and enhancing the development of teachers and leaders in independent schools.

History of the Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Fund

The EAJK Fund was established in 1945 by Esther and Joseph Klingenstein. Joe Klingenstein was a co-founder of the investment firm Wertheim and Company.

During their lifetimes, Esther and Joe’s concern for individual human welfare was reflected in contributions they made primarily to institutions in which they were personally involved, mainly in the New York City area. Most of these were Jewish causes, such as the Jewish Home for the Aged, where Esther was very active, and hospitals, especially Mount Sinai, where Joe often volunteered after his workday had ended. Joe led Mount Sinai as its Board Chairman for many years and along with his brother-in-law Milton Steinbach, was instrumental in helping establish its medical school.

When John Klingenstein, Esther and Joe’s son, took the reins of the family’s philanthropy in the early 1970s, he applied his considerable business experience and engineering training toward bringing a more business-like and disciplined approach to philanthropy. To promote neuroscience research, John and his brother Fred established the Klingenstein Fellowship Awards in Neuroscience in 1981. Now called the Klingenstein-Simons Fellowship Awards in Neuroscience, it has helped advance the work of many of the country’s finest neuroscientists.

John also led the effort to establish the Klingenstein Center at Teachers College, Columbia University in 1977, which offers leadership programs and degrees for independent schoolteachers and administrators. After John passed away in August 2018, his bequest to Teachers College permanently endowed the Klingenstein Center.

Andy Klingenstein now leads the EAJK Fund as its President. A lawyer by training, he has managed several of our foundations, and has advised both for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations for many years. Andy, his three siblings and their spouses, and mother Patricia Klingenstein serve as trustees. In 2018, the family welcomed to the Fund’s Board two members of the fourth generation and an outside trustee.

Leadership

Board of Trustees

Al Klingenstein
Al Klingenstein
Trustee
Alan Klingenstein serves as Board Chairman at FilmRise, a film and television distribution company he co-founded in 2010. Prior to FilmRise, he served as President of Filbert Steps Productions where his films won multiple awards including the Audience Award at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival, Best Dramatic Feature at the 2005 Austin Film Festival, and a special 100th anniversary National Board of Review award in 2009. Al began his career as a securities lawyer and an investment banker. He earned his undergraduate degree at Princeton University and a joint JD / MBA at Cornell University.
Andy Klingenstein
Andy Klingenstein
Chairman & CEO
As Chairman and CEO of Klingenstein Philanthropies, Andy guides our work by advising on strategy and direction and helping to carry out all of our collective philanthropies. He is a longtime investor in early stage companies, where he has provided legal and business assistance to companies in the healthcare and technology fields. Previously, he was principal and co-founder of a Virginia-based venture capital firm specializing in the creation and management of companies in those fields. Andy practiced law for several years, both in a commercial law firm and as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia. He holds a B.A. from Yale and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law. He and his wife have four daughters and live in Washington, D.C.
Emma Brownstein
Emma Brownstein
Trustee
Emma Brownstein is the founder and Executive Director of the Greater Brookland Intergenerational Village, a grassroots nonprofit that helps older adults develop the tools and relationships they need to age successfully in their neighborhood. She began her career working in education-related nonprofits in the DC area. Emma earned her Bachelor’s in Political Science at Oberlin College, and her Master’s in Business Administration from Georgetown University, where she studied nonprofit management.
Nancy Klingenstein Simpkins
Nancy Klingenstein Simpkins
Trustee
Nancy Klingenstein Simpkins is a founding Trustee and current Board Chair of The Wild Center, a natural history museum in the Adirondacks. She is Chairman of the Board of Miss Porter’s School and a Trustee of Teachers College, Columbia University. She also serves on the Advisory Board of the Klingenstein Center at Teachers College, Columbia University. She is president of the HABE Foundation and a Trustee of the Esther A and Joseph Klingenstein Fund, the Klingenstein Third Generation Fund and the Sadie and Harry E Davis Fund. She earned her BA from Smith College.
Patricia Davis Klingenstein
Patricia Davis Klingenstein
Trustee
Patricia Klingenstein has been a community leader, volunteer, education advocate, fundraiser, and philanthropist. In partnership with her late husband, John, she helped envision and support the establishment of the Klingenstein Center at Teachers College in 1977. Committed to the preservation of literature and history, she is the longest-serving trustee of the New York Historical Society. In addition, she has maintained a lifetime love of libraries and has served as a trustee of the New York Public Library for many years. Patricia’s leadership on behalf of Smith College, her alma mater, has contributed directly to the strength and vitality of the college today. Patricia earned a bachelor’s degree from Smith in 1951 and was married to John Klingenstein for 66 years. Together, they had four children: Tom, Nancy, Andy, and Sally. She lives in New York City and Greenwich CT.
Sally Klingenstein Martell
Sally Klingenstein Martell
Trustee
From 1994 – 2019 Sally was the Executive Director of The Klingenstein Third Generation Foundation. She earned her BA at Tulane University and MFA at Stony Brook University. Sally has served on the boards of the 92nd Street Y, Emma Willard School, The Town School and Art Start. She is now a full-time novelist.
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Thomas Klingenstein
Trustee
Since 1989, Tom Klingenstein has been the managing partner of Cohen, Klingenstein, LLC, a New York City investment advisor. Before that he was the Chief Executive Officer of a Colorado financial institution, a Wall Street securities analyst and Peace Corps volunteer, teaching agriculture in Swaziland. Tom is a playwright and is closely involved with a number of non-profit organizations.
Julie Klingenstein
Julie Klingenstein
Trustee
Julie was the founding board chair of The Literacy Lab, a non-profit that provides targeted one-on-one literacy instruction for below grade level readers from age three to grade three. She continues her literacy focus by serving as a longtime reading tutor for the District of Columbia Public Schools. She has also served as board chair of a Maryland independent school and a Washington, D.C. charter school. She and her husband, Andy, are members of the Washington Area Women’s Foundations’ Early Care and Education Funders Collaborative.

Staff

Eliot Brenner, Ph.D.
Eliot Brenner, Ph.D.
Executive Director & Trustee
Prior to joining the Klingenstein Philanthropies, Dr. Brenner held leadership positions at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, and the Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut. Dr. Brenner has maintained a small private clinical practice for more than 20 years. He earned his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Yale University and his Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of Chicago.
Kathleen Pomerantz
Kathleen Pomerantz
Chief of Operations & Director of Fellowship Programs
Kathleen has worked for two decades with multiple generations of the Klingenstein family. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Albany and was previously employed by the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Metro New York.

Explore our focus areas

NEUROSCIENCE
EARLY CHILDHOOD
INDEPENDENT EDUCATION