Our committed partners include government ministries, foundations, Jewish Federations, hi-tech companies, and private donors in Israel and abroad.
Israeli society has become polarized due to the lack of a shared Jewish language and knowledge base, increased alienation from Jewish roots, and the absence of identification with the collective Jewish story. KIAH has developed an effective response that includes innovative educational models and programs to fostering tolerance by embracing Jewish cultural traditions and promoting social mobility. KIAH operates in the areas of: ‘Jewish Identity’ that increases a sense of personal empowerment, ‘Educational Excellence’ that open the doors for pupils from socio-geographic peripheral regions to a better and brighter future, and ‘Welfare and Social Resilience’ that provides welfare and support for youth at risk. These programs and activities are crucial for underprivileged pupils and students from socio - geographic peripheral regions that require equal opportunities to access high quality education in their areas and benefit greatly from local leadership-led volunteer programs that nurture their communities.
To this end, KIAH is active throughout Israel in over 50 municipalities providing pedagogic support for teachers and operating school programs that promote Zionism, social Jewish values and civic identity in more than 90 schools. KIAH is also active in the broader community accommodating youth at risk, new immigrants, students, and leadership groups enabling them to increase their social and economic integration into society.
The Division of Educational Excellence
Israeli students from peripheral communities deserve equal opportunities to benefit from higher quality education. KIAH offers mentorship and professional internships to pupils and students from disadvantaged communities that will enable them to realize their scholastic potential. It is essential to provide the training that will enable pupils and students to develop their critical thinking, foster their capacity for independent learning and increase their scientific abilities. KIAH’s Division for Educational Excellence operates since 2001 in elementary and secondary schools throughout the socio-geographic periphery of Israel. In order to implement a profound and lasting change, the division uses a holistic approach that addresses all the components involved in the educational process: the management, the pedagogical staff, the students and their parents. We work in cooperation and under the supervision of the Ministry of Education in over 40 schools nationwide and influence the lives of over 23,000 students and 2,000 teachers.
The Division of Social Jewish Education in the Formal Educational System and in the public sphere
KIAH promotes a values-based socially aware Judaism within the formal education system, as well as in the public sphere enabling people to reclaim their Jewish heritage. This tolerant and pluralistic ethos of social justice, Zionism and civic identity coupled with social responsibility contributes to the local community and broader social mobility. KIAH aims for these values to be implemented in daily life and for the State of Israel’s secular and religious education systems to be connected rather than separated from one another. To this end, Kiah offers teachers training as well as workshops for school management and courses for pupils and students. This all-embracing identity will engender a positive educational climate, a sense of belonging, and feelings of capability, personal growth and scholastic achievement. We work in cooperation and under the supervision of the Ministry of Education and municipalities in 59 schools nationwide and influence the lives of over 16,200 principals and teachers, as well as 62,800 pupils, students, parents, community members in community programs, Rabbis, and Magav army police.
The Division of Welfare & Social Resilience
KIAH works to expand the opportunities for youth at risk living in geographic periphery communities by means of various activities aimed at reducing risk situations on the one hand, while helping realize the abilities and potential of each boy and girl to achieve success. This has led Kiah to establish the Division of Welfare & Social Resilience to help youth at risk and Ethiopian, Russian and French children who have immigrated that are impoverished and displaced that could lead to situations of risk. The Division of Welfare & Social Resilience offers youth clubs for both the Jewish and Arab sectors and provides basic resources essential for effective educational development. Children at the youth clubs learn Hebrew in Ulpan, extra-curricular activities, lectures on Israeli society, and receive lessons that support school studies. The Division of Welfare & Social Resilience provides lessons that prepare youth for employment and teaches entrepreneurship. We believe that every individual possesses the right to a respectable quality of life, welfare and equal opportunities. To this end, we operate 8 youth clubs assisting 400 youth at risk.