A $36 million donation from WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum has helped a Jewish school in Los Angeles expand its facilities, with a new campus opening for high school students on Sunday. Milken Community School, which teaches students from grades 6 to 12, has moved its upper school students to the Jan Koum Campus in Bel Air. With the addition of this property, the school now has 28 acres of land spread across three campuses.According to Jewish Journal, the new campus stands at 15600 Mulholland Drive, a property that previously belonged to American Jewish University. It is about half a mile from Milken’s two other campuses, known as the Ruby Family Campus and Saperstein Campus. Stephen Wise Temple is located across the street.The school marked the opening with a gathering of families, students, donors and community leaders. According to the Jewish Journal, Israeli singer Ishay Ribo performed at the event, his first appearance before the Milken community. Ribo was the first Israeli artist to headline a concert at Madison Square Garden.WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum was born on February 24, 1976, into a Jewish family in Kyiv, Ukraine. When he was 16, he moved to California with his mother and grandmother to escape antisemitism and religious persecution in the former Soviet Union.A June 15, 2022, investigation by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported that his foundation had donated millions of dollars to Jewish organisations, including approximately $17 million to the European Jewish Association during 2019–2020. The report also noted that Koum had maintained a relatively low public profile regarding his Jewish identity, despite his substantial financial support for Jewish causes.
The $36 million donation
The property was not always called the Jan Koum Campus. After Milken School co-founder and trustee Lowell Milken acquired it from American Jewish University, it was known as Milken East Campus. The name changed in June 2026, when the school announced a major contribution from the Koum Family Foundation.In a June 18 announcement, Shulkind confirmed that the foundation had committed $36 million towards the school’s expansion. The contribution increased the total collected through Milken’s capital campaign to $152 million. The school said the fundraising amount was a record in Jewish education.According to Milken Community School’s official website, the Koum Family Foundation supports Jewish education and identity-building, works to strengthen the State of Israel and serves Jewish communities around the world. The school said the donation reflected Koum’s commitment to supporting Jewish education for future generations.
Concerns about antisemitism raised at opening
During the event, Lowell Milken also addressed the difficulties facing Jewish students and teachers, particularly concerns about increasing antisemitism.He recalled that the school had begun work on the campus a year earlier and said the project was intended to achieve more than the construction of modern classrooms.“For we, as Jews, are living in a time of great challenge, when antisemitism has risen in the nation and the world,” he said as quoted by the Jewish Journal.Milken also spoke about threats to the safety, rights and identity of Jewish students and faculty. He also referred to conspiracy theories and false accusations directed at Jews and Israel.“Milken’s vision is not optional, it is essential and critical,” he said. “To be a beacon for Jewish continuity here and abroad,” he added.The programme also allowed students to participate. Freshman Daliya Eigler sang the US national anthem and “Hatikvah”, while the community choir Makelat Hakehillah performed an arrangement of “Sibat Hasibot”.
The expansion of Milken
The school’s decision to increase its space comes as it reports more families applying for admission. Head of the school Sarah Shulkind told those attending the ceremony that the leadership had chosen to prepare for further growth rather than wait for demand to increase.According to Shulkind, applications this year were 40% higher than the previous year’s record figure. She linked this increase to the school’s plans to provide more space for Jewish education.The school currently teaches more than 800 students, according to its website. It is an independent, coeducational Jewish day school, with classes covering both middle school and high school grades.
