Congressional Gold Medal honors memory of Anwar Sadat’s peace-making with Israel
History was made in the US Senate when it unanimously passed a bill to honor former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat with the Congressional Gold Medal.
The Sadat Gold Medal Commission launched the effort to award the late President Sadat with the Congressional Gold Medal as a result of a collaborative initiative by prominent American Jewish leaders spearheaded by Ezra Friedlander, CEO of The Friedlander Group, and Shafik Gabr, founder of the Shafik Gabr Foundation whose mission of enhancing critical understanding and cooperation amongst young emerging leaders in the Arab World and the West through global exchanges has earned him the respect of leading American government officials and international leaders across the spectrum. — From the Friedlander Group
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Rachel Kitt new director of community engagement for Honeymoon Israel San Diego
Local Jewish San Diegan, Rachel Kitt, has been hired as the first Director of Community Engagement for Honeymoon Israel San Diego. Honeymoon Israel is a national nonprofit that provides immersive trips to Israel for locally based cohorts of couples that have at least one Jewish partner, early in their committed relationship, creating communities of couples who are building families with deep and meaningful connections to Jewish life and the Jewish people.
Honeymoon Israel currently operates in 19 communities across North America and has been operating successfully in the San Diego community since 2015 – bringing approximately 60 couples on three (3) different trips to Israel so far. Local interest in participating on Honeymoon Israel San Diego has quickly and steadily increased and, to date, more than 200 couples have applied to participate. Given this rise in interest and need, Honeymoon Israel chose to hire the organization’s first-ever staff professional in San Diego. Honeymoon Israel is generously supported by numerous funders across the country and in San Diego in specific, local operations are made possible by the Leichtag Foundation.
“We are thrilled to welcome Rachel to our growing team, and we are deeply appreciative of the generous support from the Leichtag Foundation to make this all possible. We’re confident that, over time, Honeymoon Israel will help engage thousands of San Diego couples in an open-ended exploration of Judaism, developing a connection to Jewish life in whatever way is meaningful for them,” stated Michael Wise, Honeymoon Israel co-CEO.
A Jewish communal professional for many years, Kitt previously worked at the Jewish Federation of San Diego County and is currently involved in the community through her work as a Jewish religious school teacher and Jewish preschool volunteer. Kitt currently lives in Mission Valley with her husband and two young daughters. She can be reached at rachelk@honeymoonisrael.org.
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School at Yenin Orde Youth Village wins a top ranking from Israel’s Ministry of Education
Yemin Orde High School, located inside Yemin Orde Youth Village, has clinched a top rank among outstanding high schools in Israel. The ranking, published by Israel’s Ministry of Education, evaluated high schools according to the academic, social and ethical achievements of their students, and placed Yemin Orde among the top 4.3 percent of all 1,664 high schools across Israel. Most of the 430 at-risk teens who attend Yemin Orde’s high school are first generation Israelis-or their parents are first-generation Israelis- and are from Israel’s lowest socio-economic sectors.
“We are grateful for this recognition by the Ministry of Education and I thank each of our educators and staff members for making a meaningful difference in the lives of our at-risk youth and in their future,” said Shmuli Bing, Director, Yemin Orde Youth Village. “We will continue with our important mission to provide the best education and care for our students and will strive for nothing less than the best in the upcoming year.”
Out of Israel’s 1,664 high schools evaluated, 292 achieved the highest rank from the education ministry. Of these 292 top-ranked high schools, only 72 received the highest exemplary ranking, which included Yemin Orde High School. Educators at Yemin Orde, as well at other top-rated high schools cited by the government, will receive personal cash bonuses from Israel’s Ministry of Education as a reward for their schools’ outstanding achievements.
The Israel-wide evaluation considered the improvements in student achievements compared to the previous school year.
Rated elements of academic achievements are:
- Percentage of children eligible for a Matriculation Certificate. A matriculation certificate in Israel indicates a student’s academic readiness for higher education.
- Percentage of children with outstanding academic achievements (high level of English, mathematics, humanities and science)
Rated elements of social and ethical achievements are:
- Non-dropout rate
- Percent of graduates joining the military, national service or gap-year leadership program (Mechina, in Hebrew)
- Community Service
Yemin Orde Youth Village’s remarkable success at transforming the lives of Israel’s at-risk youth provides a paradigm shift in the educational philosophy for Israel’s growing population of underserved and fragile youth. In 2006, Israel’s Ministry of Education urged Yemin Orde educators to create a blueprint to expand the Village Way methodology to other youth villages and schools, nationwide. Village Way Educational Initiatives (VWEI) launched with this mission in mind.
Today, VWEI serves as Israel’s national resource center for the Village Way methodology. The Village Way Educational Institute is a unique educational think tank that generates and disseminates customized plans to 44 partner educational communities throughout Israel. These partners are youth villages, residential therapeutic communities and public high schools with large populations of at-risk youth, including schools in Arab communities.
VWEI has impacted 14,200 at-risk youth and 1,775 educators in Israel. The goal by 2021 is to partner with 61 educational communities in Israel, thereby impacting 25,000 at-risk youth and 2,800 educators. — From Friends of Yemin Orde