An anonymous donor gave $500,000 to NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study to be applied to a Jewish Studies grant.
Sara Dover reports in the Sara Dover reports in the Washington Square News:

[The grant will] support research and field work related to “Jewish history, culture and thought,” and will be supplied to researchers in grants ranging from $500 to $1,500, said Gallatin interim associate dean David Moore.
“In the tradition of Gallatin education, these enterprises will transcend disciplinary and professional boundaries,” Moore said in an e-mail.
A committee to select grant recipients has yet to be formally set, but it could include students and faculty, Moore said in an interview.
[…]
Rabbi Yehuda Sarna, religious life coordinator at the Bronfman Center, said that although no money has gone into collaboration with the Bronfman Center for Jewish Student Life, the gift is excellent news.
“I think it’s an extremely positive development that Gallatin will be offering courses in Judaism,” he said.

The grant is expected to be given out in increments over several years. One student has recieved money so far to research Jewish ghettos in Italy.
Gallatin students have a reputation of being uniquely inter-discinplinary. Sarna told the WSN:

“I like my Judaism with a Gallatin twist,” he said. “The emphasis on personal exploration, creativity and experience will highlight aspects of our tradition, which students will find enriching.”