Israel's High Schoolers Return to the Classroom; This Year with New American Classmates
by Israel HighWay staff

The new school year is upon us, and students in Israel and the United States are returning to school after a momentous summer. For American students, the fury of Hurricane Katrina closed schools in the south and scattered students to schools around the country. And in Israel, thousands of students who lived in Gaza saw their communities destroyed in the "disengagement" plan. They, too, are scattered around the country.

In Israel, nearly 2 million children and teenagers are heading to the classroom - a two percent increase on last year's figures. These schoolgoers account for almost a third of the total Israeli population.

Many Israeli school children are returning to school under new guidelines. Last May, Israeli Education Minister Limor Livnat announced a major overhaul of the Israeli educational system. About 130,000 children in 36 municipalities will be affected by the reforms. One of the biggest changes is longer school days, with students remaining in school until 4 p.m., rather than 1:00 or 2:00. The longer school day means that parents who until now worked part-time jobs in order to be home when their kids got home from school will now be able to seek full-time employment. In addition, Israeli students will, for the first time, have a two-day weekend just like most students around the world, but in Israel that means no school on Friday and Saturday.

Another change in Israeli schools has been the introduction of a school uniform in the public school system. Now nearly half of all schools have some kind of uniform which has positives aspects, not least the lack of disparity in appearance between children of different socio-economic backgrounds.

Issue of the Week is continued below.

Gaza Pullout Over in Less than 12 Hours by Margot Dudkevitch

The flag lowered and folded at Gaza division headquarters in Gush Katif on Sunday evening, just hours before the area was handed over to the Palestinian Authority, was flying at the Kissufim crossing on Monday morning, just minutes after the army completed its pullout from Gaza. Once the main gateway to Gush Katif, Kissufim was turned overnight into a border crossing. High cement blocks were placed on the Israeli side before the gate, and huge mounds of earth were piled high on the PA side leading to the crossing.

In less than 12 hours, the pullout was complete, four Givati Brigade soldiers shut the gates at 7:04 a.m. and Gaza division commander Brig.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi declared, "The mission has been completed, an era ended."

Unlike the pullout from Lebanon in 2000, where soldiers cheered and waved to the cameras, the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip was a somber affair, executed with military precision. Traveling to attend Sunday's farewell ceremony, one could not ignore the plowed up roads covered in sand. Signposts depicting the names of the settlements had been removed, Israel's presence erased. (Jerusalem Post)

Palestinian School Texts Do Not Recognize Israel, Says Report
by Sheldon Kirshner

Israel is not recognized as a sovereign state in grades 5 and 10 school texts published by the Palestinian Authority, a new report says. According to the Center for Monitoring the Impact of Peace, Israel's name does not appear in the maps of these books. And in some cases, Israel's name is replaced by Palestine. As well, regions, sites and cities within Israel's pre-1967 borders are described as Palestinian.

Nothing is said about the historical, religious and cultural connections of Jews to the city. Peace with Israel is never mentioned in the texts, let alone encouraged. (Canadian Jewish News)

Famous Intifada Victim Makes Aliya by Jason Silberman

Almost five years after Tuvia Grossman was dragged out of a taxi in east Jerusalem and nearly beaten to death by a crowd of Palestinians, he made aliya this week, together with 199 other new immigrants from North America on Nefesh B'Nefesh's final flight of the summer.

"It's a very emotional experience, yet a conflicting experience at the same time. On the one hand I'm leaving something behind, both in terms of my family and the place in which I grew up. But I'm returning to my homeland. What's truly great and uplifting is that I'm doing it with so many other people, all different people but all coming home," said Grossman, upon arrival at Ben Gurion.

At the time of the attack, his story received international media attention, because a photo of a bloody Grossman, taken by a freelance photographer and mislabeled by the Associated Press, said Grossman was a Palestinian being beaten by an Israeli soldier. The caption also mistakenly placed the incident on the Temple Mount, when in fact it was at a gas station outside the Old City.

Grossman, now 25, recently completed a law degree in Chicago, and he worked at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem last summer.

The sixth and final flight of the summer brings the total number of new olim brought by Nefesh B'Nefesh this year, to 1,800. According to the group, the number of North American Jews moving to Israel this year is 3,200. (Jerusalem Post)

U.S.: Let Israel Join Security Council by Itamar Eichner

It is time that Israel is admitted into the U.N. Security Council, newly-appointed American Ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton said this week. "The situation whereby there is a special category in which only one country, despite being a member of the U.N., cannot submit its candidacy to the Security Council, must be eradicated, Bolton said during a meeting with 40 members of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

He added that member countries must constantly scrutinize the organization to determine whether it is managed appropriately and whether it reflects the nations' true viewpoints. "This sort of scrutiny could lead to changes in points of view that have been instilled in the U.N., including those pertaining to anti-Israeli issues that are raised every year," Bolton said. "The U.N. cannot become a bubble that is detached from the rest of the world." (Ynet News)

See last week's Israel Highway The UNeasy Relationship between Israel and the United Nations

The New Troops of Zionism by Hanan Greenberg

Assaf, along with 92 other teens from the United States, Switzerland, Canada and other countries, came to Israel in recent months in order to join the army. "What you are doing is the greatest, most Zionist act possible," Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz told the group in a meeting today. "You constitute a bridge between international Jewry and the state of Israel," he continued. "If you stay here after you are discharged from the army, this will be an even greater contribution."

The teens arrived in Israel in the framework of a program initiated by the Israeli Scouting Movement and the IDF called "Garin Tzabar" which started 15 years ago. Since its inception, about 800 young people came to Israel and joined the army; 70 percent of them remained in Israel after they were discharged and a third brought the rest of their family to the country. (Ynet News)

Stamford Teen Works in Israel at Camp for Terror Victims
by Debbie Levison

The activities sound as if they were hand-picked from any New England summer camp's brochure: swimming, arts and crafts, sports, hiking, drama, music, day trips to water parks and local attractions. But the campers are a far cry from American kids enjoying a typical school vacation.

The place is Camp Koby in Israel, and the 500 campers who attended this summer share one thing in common - all have lost a mother, father or sibling to terror. Named for Koby Mandell, the 13-year-old boy bludgeoned to death by Palestinian terrorists as he was hiking with a friend in the caves near his home outside Jerusalem in 2001, the camp is in an offshoot of the foundation founded in his memory by his American-born parents, Rabbi Seth and Sherri Mandell.

This summer, in addition to its regular summer camp program, Camp Koby added Upstart Activist, an advocacy training program in which students acquire skills to effectively represent Israel in their hometowns. 28 North American high schoolers attended the camp as counselors, including Leah Fried of Stamford. Leah and the other participants were given an intimate look at Israeli society and families struck by terror, and were led through seminars on trauma therapy and its applications, as well as experiential seminars involving extreme sports, art, and dance.

"This was the most amazing summer of my life," said Fried, 16, an 11th-grader at Yeshiva University High School for Girls in Queens. One encounter that Fried remembers vividly involved a youth who walked with metal braces because he had lost the use of his legs in an attack. "We were in the pool and I put him on my shoulders so he could dunk a ball in a hoop and his face just lit up, because he couldn't have done it alone," Fried said. "It doesn't sound like much, but it made me feel really good." (Jewish Ledger)

Jerusalem Hosts 9/11 Memorial Ceremony by Matthew Wagner

Representatives from the three monotheistic religions took part Sunday in a September 11 memorial ceremony in Jerusalem held by the World Union for Progressive Judaism.

Sheikh Abdel el-Salam Manasara, secretary of the Supreme Suffi Committee in Jerusalem and the Holy Land and head of the Qaderite Peace Fraternity in Nazareth said ahead of the ceremony that "Islam values peace, love and mutual existence with other religions. Those who perpetrate terrorist attacks in the name of Islam distort the message of the Koran."

The ceremony, which has taken place every year since the Islamic terrorist attack on the U.S. on September 11, 2001, will also commemorate the recent attacks in Britain and Sharm e-Sheikh.

Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah who has been an outspoken critic of Israel and warm supporter of deceased Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, will represent Christianity. Jewish representative Levi Weiman-Kelman, rabbi of the progressive Kol HaNeshama congregation in Jerusalem and active in the left-wing Rabbis for Human Rights, said he had no qualms participating together with Sabbah in the ceremony. (Jerusalem Post)

Friendship in the Rubble by Rafael D. Frankel

On the bottom floor of a house that no longer exists, two Palestinians and one Israeli shared a meal two weeks ago that they hope will not be their last together.

Ya'akov Abrigil, Tasir Abu Shaluf, and Sabri Sadudi swapped stories, hugs, shed a few tears, and said they would see each other soon, even though that is far from certain. Their friendship, which is more than a decade old, is now in the hands of politicians.

Though Israel's withdrawal from Gaza is being hailed around the world as a courageous step toward peace in this war-torn region, it is also tearing apart relationships between Jews and Arabs here that transcended violence and politics for more than two decades.

Soon after Abrigil, 73, moved to this Jewish town in Gush Katif 18 years ago, he built a series of greenhouses in which he grew cucumbers, tomatoes, and sweet peppers. Throughout the years, Abrigil relied on Palestinian workers to provide most of the labor needed to maintain the greenhouses and grow and harvest the crops.

Over time, the bonds they formed turned into much more than a standard employer-employee relationship.

"They're our family," Abrigil said. "Some of them have worked for us since they were teenagers."

Shaluf and Sadudi both described a relationship with Abrigil in the same terms and took pride in seeing each other's children and grandchildren grow up - though because of security restrictions the children themselves never came to know each other.

"Their house was always open and we never had any problems with money," Shaluf said of Abrigil. (Media Line)

Seeing Blind: Capturing the Spirit in Israel by Miriam Eljas

If you're tired of maneuvering the labyrinths of the New York city subway system, sick of carrying your shopping bags to your fourth floor walkup, and are wary of mastering the two-foot-wide aisles of your local supermarket, then the idea of running up and down the stairs of Tzfat, traipsing around the narrow alleyways of Jerusalem's old city and maneuvering the ruins of Masada won't sound like your most relaxing summer vacation. Now try it blind.

Meet Richard Bernstein, a 31-year-old lawyer who has been blind since birth, who never met a challenge he didn't like. Bernstein teaches at the University of Michigan, hosts a weekly Detroit TV show, pens monthly columns for the Detroit Free Press and Detroit News and trudges weekly between New York City and Detroit to practice law for his father's firm in Manhattan.

When the opportunity arose to visit Israel this summer through Manhattan Jewish Experience (MJE), an organization that sponsors religious, cultural and social events to help young Jews connect, Bernstein had no qualms about saying yes.

"I don't usually ask to go on trips like this because I know how hard it is on the coordinators," explained Bernstein, who moved to Manhattan because of the independence New York City's transportation systems give him. "They have to have someone with me full time. It is so much work. But they [MJE] said, ‘you should do this,' and they asked me to come. It's totally understandable that someone would say, ‘sorry, this is too hard.'"

The sixth annual MJE trip, July 31-August 7, zipped around Israel at a relentless pace, beginning up north in the old cities of Caesaria and Tzfat, followed by a hike in the Golan and a cruise along the Sea of Galilee. The final days of the trip were spent in Jerusalem where the group celebrated Shabbat, including lengthy amounts of time in the old city - and a tour of the unwieldy tunnels by the Western Wall. (NY Blueprint)

Kelly Clarkson's 'Israeli Idol' by David Brinn

Kelly Clarkson may be in the spotlight, but the winner of the 2002 American Idol contest who has been launched into an overnight pop superstar boasts a strong supporting cast. Her band nightly propels her upbeat pop/rock music far beyond the recorded version of the songs on her blockbuster second CD Breakaway. And no small part of the credit goes to guitarist Danny Weissfeld.

The 28-year-old native of Kfar Saba, Israel, is realizing his dreams by performing in Clarkson's band throughout the U.S. this year to sold out arenas filled with fervent fans of all ages, and appearing late last month on the MTV Video Music Awards to a rapturous response.

Slipping out of the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine after the band's soundcheck two hours before showtime, the unassuming Weiss weaves undetected through the growing throng of fans arriving for the show, and warmly greets his visitors on the sidewalk.

"Let's go in here," he says, pointing to one of four custom tour busses lined up at the curb. Settling on a comfortable couch after plucking bottles of mineral water and Coke from the nearby refrigerator, Weissfeld recalls his journey from quiet suburbs of Israel to the bright lights of America's stages.

"It's a dream come true, to be doing this," he says. "I started playing guitar at 14 through a music program at my school in Kfar Saba. The program wasn't anything extraordinary, but it succeeded in getting together a lot of kids that had an interest in music - so we got to share that experience together."

Weissfeld credits his interest in music to his parents. "My mom played The Beatles and Motown around the house and my Dad played Mozart and Beethoven - and they both had an attraction to me and always fascinated me."

Like most Israelis, a three-year stint in the IDF imposed a hiatus on Weissfeld's musical development. A combat soldier at first, Weiss injured his back and eventually settled into a desk job. "I thought I'd probably give up guitar playing after the army but I went back to it," he says. (Israel21c)

Jazz Singer Returns to her Roots by Branching Out by Bob Young

Tami Machnai knows for a fact that you can go home again. But the singer also realizes that she wouldn't be either the person or artist she is today unless she'd left her native Israel 11 years ago. "There's something about being away from home," the 36-year-old Belmont resident said. "For me, I started realizing again how much I love Jewish songs."

That process began while she was pursuing her bachelor's degree in vocal performance at Berklee College of Music, but it really took on another dimension altogether in graduate school at New England Conservatory. That's where she immersed herself in world music and got to work with such people as Hankus Netsky, founder of the Klezmer Conservatory Band.

All of which eventually led to performances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, a first prize win in Billboard magazine's 2004 song competition, and a role in composer Osvaldo Golijov's opera "Aindamar."

Her audiences back in Israeli tend to be smaller, mostly at private events, but the reception she receives there is just as warm as those she's been receiving in concert in Japan, New Zealand, Venezuela and the United States. Now Machnai has a debut album out, "Levante." (Boston Herald)

You Go Girl! by Israel Kasnett

Those who haven't heard of the Israeli Women's Flag Football Team, are missing out on a sensational moment in Israeli sports history. This team, coached by Yona Misha'an, just won the largest, most crucial tournament in Europe. Their victory, 33-32 against the French Pygargues at the Flag Oceane Tournament, qualified them for a spot in the EFAF (European Federation of American Football) Senior Flag Championships, taking place September 16-18 in Helsinki, Finland.

The girls' home is the Kraft Family Stadium, on the northern end of Sacher Park in Jerusalem. Robert Kraft, owner of the NFL champion New England Patriots and whom the field is named after, inaugurated the new $500,000 artificial grass in February at a gala stadium re-dedication, which was attended by then-Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin. The women's national team is sponsored by Myra Kraft, wife of Robert Kraft, and John Gilman, owner of "Fieldturf," which recently installed the synthetic grass at the stadium.

A team practice earlier this week, illustrates what it is that makes this team a success. Quarterback Shana Sprung throws a perfect pass to Esti Bernstein, nicknamed "Baseball." (She was the only girl on an otherwise all-boys baseball team). Baseball, the youngest on the team at age 14, is one of their best receivers and helped bring the team to victory at Le Havre. This girl is all business on the field. To her, besides for winning of course, having plain fun is as important as maintaining a strong connection between the players.

What makes this team special is the fact that they are, for the most part, religiously observant Jews. They keep Shabbat and eat kosher on the road and some of the girls wear self-designed skirts that are as functional as shorts. Incredibly, in just a year's time, these girls have gone from the sidelines, watching their brothers play, to their own team, making their way to the top and earning the chance to win the EFAF European Championships in Helsinki this month. Hard to believe? Watch them play. (Jerusalem Post)

The Durban Strategy by Gerald Steinberg

In addition to the 9/11 terror attacks in the U.S., four years have also passed since Durban – the UN-sponsored World Conference on Racism – which took place in September 2001. And just as Osama bin Laden's ideology was the foundation for al-Qaida, Durban, in a sense, provided the political foundation for a Palestinian onslaught already in progress that claimed 1,000 Israelis lives.

The Durban speeches and resolutions largely ignored the issues for which this conference was ostensibly called, focusing instead on branding Israeli anti-terror responses as "war crimes" and "violations of international law." The Israeli government was unprepared. The defeat was huge, as were the consequences. (Jerusalem Post)

Palestinian State of Nature by Richard Cohen

As a society, the Palestinians have exalted suicide bombings, tolerated senseless and atrocious terrorism, and for years they apathetically supported the kleptomaniacal Yasser Arafat, whose peace plan consisted, basically, of waiting for Israel to evaporate.

Gaza is lawless. Kidnappings are common. Armed gangs roam the streets. Under these conditions, it will be impossible for the Palestinians to secure outside investors. Who's going to put money in a business when there's virtually no rule of law?

Last week in Gaza, former head of Palestinian military intelligence Moussa Arafat (Yasser's cousin) was dragged out into the street and shot. The murder of Moussa Arafat and the ordinary lawlessness of Gaza show that when it comes to enemies, Palestinians don't need Israel. They do just fine on their own. (Washington Post)

The Civil War that Wasn't by Natan Sharansky

Over the past two months, I spent a great deal of time in Gush Katif, both with families in the last minutes of their lives there, as well as with the soldiers and officers. What I saw was not a division into two camps of evacuating soldiers and evacuees. The settlers and the army were of the same camp. Yet an invisible but very tangible border arose; not between soldiers and settlers, but between those who shared the pain of disengagement and those who did not. Our sages tell us that empathy is the ultimate sign of oneness. (Jerusalem Post)

More Innovations

A new type of school, the "Democratic School," seeks to break the regular school mold. Already several dozen democratic schools have been established around Israel with many more under construction. Their students, aged between three and 12, are not separated into classes by age. They are free to pursue their own interests during the day, within a loose framework of available lessons, any only learn what they choose to learn. Parents and educators in the democratic schools sector firmly believe that this encourages children to take responsibility for their actions and for the welfare of others, and to decide to learn through active interest, rather than through a rigid structure of lessons, timetables and homework.

American students, too

This semester sees many programs especially geared towards American students studying in Israel.

Elite Academy One such program is called the "Elite Academy" where the students from all over the world study at local secular and religious Israeli schools, boarding schools or kibbutz regional schools that have been carefully chosen and prepared to run the Elite Academy program. During the first few months in Israel, a major emphasis is put on teaching Hebrew while the regular academic subjects are taught in the mother tongue. At a later stage, the language of instruction changes to Hebrew. Especially important on this program are the "host families" who invite the students for Shabbat and holidays. The families extend a personal, parental-type hospitality to the student. The Elite Academy is affiliated with the Jewish Agency for Israel.

Ramah Another popular program is the Ramah Program - also knows as "USY High." This program is geared for those who wish to spend a short but packed eight weeks learning about Israel and Jewish history in what is the best place possible, "a class without walls." The students live on a special campus in Jerusalem and receive high school credit for their time spent there. Ramah is affiliated with United Synagogue Youth.

NFTY NFTY-Eisendrath International Exchange (EIE) High School in Israel seeks "to provide an opportunity for outstanding high school students to spend a semester in Israel under the sponsorship of the Reform Movement. This experience is intended to develop young leadership and to increase Jewish knowledge and commitment to Jewish life and learning." During these courses students can prepare and take their SAT's and other preparatory exams for after high school. NFTY-EIE is affiliated with the North American Federation of Temple Youth.

AMHSI A long-time favorite for American students has been the Alexander Muss High School in Israel, part of the Institute for Israel Education. This program offers students an interactive experience that blends cultural and academic elements with the lessons of history. In addition to the fully U.S.-accredited high school in Hod Hasharon, the Institute also runs special "Israel Experience" programs with individual Jewish day schools in the U.S.

These and many other programs offer American and international students the opportunity to further their studies while at the same time taking a great step into understanding Israel and Judaism. The students see the country and grapple with the issues that Israeli students grapple with. As Israel introduces new programs and 21st century educational methods, many American students are taking a keen interest. (Israel HighWay)

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