1. The Ethiopian-Israeli story

2. SPACE In Action
     How SPACE Helps    SPACE Results  

3. Staff

4. References

The Ethiopian National Project (Hebrew: הפרויקט הלאומי לקהילה האתיופית בישראל) is a non-governmental organization based in Jerusalem, Israel. The organization was established in 2001 as a partnership between the Jewish Federations of North America, the Government of Israel, representatives of Ethiopian Jewish community organizations, the Jewish Agency for Israel, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee in Israel, and Keren Hayesod-UIA. The mission of ENP is to advance the full and successful integration of Ethiopian-Israelis into Israeli society..^[1]

After extensive research on the programs and support available to the Ethiopian-Israeli community, ENP decided to focus on the youth in the community, centering on 13-18 year olds^[2]. To help with this, in 2004, ENP developed an educational program called SPACE (School Performance and Community Empowerment)^[3]. SPACE promotes academic growth and improvement by providing after-school tutoring to students in small groups no larger than nine students. Alongside its academic components, SPACE uses extra-curricular activities to strengthen students' self-esteem and leadership skills by addressing obstacles to social integration and personal development.^[4]

The Ethiopian-Israeli story

Since about the 4th century, there has been a community of Ethiopians who practice Judaism through customs and tradition. This is the Beta Israel tribe. In the later 20th century, members of the Beta Israel tribe made contacts in Israel and requested the ability to immigrate there. After many Halakhic discussions, Israeli officials decided, in 1977, that the Law of Return applied to Beta Israel and allowed them to begin immigrating to Israel^[5].

Many Ethiopians made the journey to Israel through Sudan, and there was such a large number of them that some died in Sudan due to hunger. Due to famine in Sudan, the Government of Israel conducted the first of two covert military operations^[6] that aided the Ethiopian Jewish community. The first, Operation Moses, took place in 1984^[7]. Operation Moses brought 8,000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel.

However, the struggles did not end once the Ethiopian immigrants arrived in Israel. The society was extremely different in Israel than it was in Ethiopia and many immigrants did not speak Hebrew. Amharic, the language spoken in Ethiopia, is difficult to translate, and thus, many immigrants struggled to learn Hebrew. Due to the language barrier, and the lack of formal education for some Ethiopian immigrants, most newly Ethiopian-Israelis took jobs with low salaries and therefore struggled to assimilate into Israeli society due to socio-economic barriers^[8]. Many of the Ethiopian immigrants were brought to absorption centers in an effort to get them acquainted with Israeli society, Hebrew language, vocational training, and more. Today, there are 17 absorption centers dedicated to the Ethiopian community.^[9] The families are provided with basic necessities, including their first home in Israel. The centers provide preparation for first grade, unfortunately this is typically not enough and the new immigrants struggle to procure adequate employment and education^[10][11][12].

The Government of Israel has made many efforts to make the integration of Ethiopian Jews successful, although problems still exist. {{redacted}}

In 2018, there were over 148,700 Ethiopian-Israelis^[13], with over 107,000 under 40 - a community of young and vibrant people with the power to change society should they have the ability to.

SPACE In Action

How SPACE Helps

Many Israeli parents hire private tutors to help their students in passing their matriculation exams, but Ethiopian-Israeli immigrant families do not always have the capacity or ability to do so, leaving many Ethiopian-Israeli students behind in their studies. By passing their matriculation exams, students receive better positions in the army and have better opportunities in university^[14]. Only 35% of Ethiopian-Israeli students were passing their matriculation exams^[13][15][16]. The need for intervention was critical for this community^[17][18]

SPACE is four hours per week of after-school help. Students study Mathematics, Hebrew Literature, and English - three subjects that are critical to passing the matriculation exams. SPACE sessions are only four to nine students, allowing students to get focused attention from teachers, ask questions they would not ask in regular class, and really dive into difficult problems or issues. Classes in Israeli schools can be up to 30 students, so the ability to have time in a smaller group with their teachers gives students more confidence and more time to go over subjects with which they struggle.

SPACE runs from September-August, giving students a chance both in and out of the classroom to not only grow as students but also as people. Students in SPACE gain confidence in their studies and abilities, but also gain confidence through the extra-curricular activities that SPACE provides. Students go on field trips to university campuses, hear from speakers, and volunteer in their community, all of which help students to feel more comfortable in themselves.

During school breaks (Hanukah, Passover, summer), SPACE offers optional study marathons, which are 3-hour sessions during the break for extra study time. Although SPACE students have time off, many elect to take the time out of their break to go to SPACE and get extra study time. Not only is SPACE helpful to these students, but they are excited to attend.

SPACE Results

When students first start out in ENP's SPACE program, they are sometimes asked what they hope to be when they are older. Many say they will just do what their parents do because they don't know that they have the option to be anything else. After one year of SPACE, many students have changed their minds, and hope to become teachers, doctors, or lawyers. SPACE does not simply change the way students think about school and their studies, but it also changes the way they think about themselves.

Further, ENP does annual external evaluations through the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute^[19]. From the results of these evaluations, ENP learns what is working and what is not and sculpts its program through study of the evaluations and best practices. In these evaluations, many factors are measured including (but not limited to): the number of students who successfully passed the matriculation exams, academic achievements in school outside of the scope of the exams, high level of student attendance and participation in the program^[20]. At the national level, results are shared to board members; at the local level, results are used to sculpt each city's programming to work best.

The 2017-2018 results showed that 82% of Ethiopian-Israeli students in SPACE passed their matriculation exams, which surpasses the national average of 71% of Israeli students in Hebrew speaking schools^[21]. This positive result indicates that ENP is starting to be successful in their goal to assist Ethiopian-Israeli students as much as possible.

Staff

11 of the 15 full-time ENP staff are Ethiopian-Israeli, allowing the community ENP is attempting to affect to have a say in the organization. Further, many of the SPACE counselors are Ethiopian-Israeli, proving to the students that the ability to overcome hardships and adversity and affect the community in an extremely positive way is possible.

References

• Mont Bengoue
• Mont Bengoué
• Montbenoit
• Montberaud
• Montbernard
• Montberon
• Montbert
• Montberthault
• Mont Bessou viewing tower
• Montbeton
• Montbeugny
• Mont Billiat
• Mont Bisanne
• Montbizot
• Montblainville
• Mont blanc
• Mont-Blanc (departement)
• Montblanc (disambiguation)
• Montblanc, Herault
• Mont-Blanc Hockey Club
• Montblanc, Hérault
• Mont Blanc Massif
• Mont-Blanc Massif
• Montblanc (pens)
• Mont Blanc (poem)