Placing a premium on innovation and willingly embracing risk means that not every investment we make is worth repeating. But there are instances when we succeed beyond our wildest expectations. Here is one of those stories.
Sixteen years ago, in 2001, UJA-Federation decided to invest in the city of Rehovot, home to one of the largest Ethiopian Jewish communities in Israel.
We played an important role in bringing tens of thousands of Ethiopians to Israel during Operation Moses in 1984 and Operation Solomon in 1991. But we knew our responsibility didn’t end at the tarmac. In addition to the services being provided by government, the newly arrived Ethiopian immigrants required significant support, and so in partnership with one of our primary overseas partners, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), we decided to focus principally on children and their parents.
The first step was enrolling every Ethiopian-Israeli child in Rehovot — from birth to age 6 — in a daycare or preschool program, to help close any social and educational gaps between them and their non-Ethiopian-Israeli peers.
Over time, as the children grew, the project significantly expanded, encompassing more than 20 different enrichment and remedial programs, as well as numerous educational classes and family services for parents. When the program was extended through the teenage years, it became known as “Birth to Bagrut.” Bagrut refers to Israel’s challenging high school matriculation exams, something akin to our Regents, and is a necessary step for academic advancement and future opportunity in Israel.
UJA-Federation’s total investment in Birth to Bagrut has been significant — almost $20 million. But, 16 years later, the results have been nothing short of remarkable. Nationally, about 60% of all Israelis, and 50% of Ethiopian-Israelis, pass the Bagrut exam. Among Ethiopian-Israelis in Rehovot today, the passing rate is over 92%.
More fundamentally, what began with a focus on individual children resulted in systemic change, transforming an entire generation of Ethiopian-Israelis in Rehovot.
A few weeks ago, I had the honor of participating in a ceremony marking the extraordinary achievements of Birth to Bagrut, attended by the Mayor of Rehovot, senior leaders of JDC, and over 400 Rehovot residents, mostly Ethiopian-Israeli. (My remarks that evening were in Hebrew — and I hope wouldn’t have embarrassed my day school teachers…)
It was a special and heartwarming evening, led off with musical performances by many of the children of Rehovot, under the tutelage of Sulamot, a JDC music education program for kids at risk across Israel. An unexpected extra: the ceremony was held at the largest local community center in Rehovot — built by UJA’s Women’s campaign in 1984.
Today, dozens of graduates of Birth to Bagrut are teachers and staff for the program, and serve as leaders of the national Ethiopian-Israeli community. Also, as Rehovot’s Ethiopian-Israeli children have matured, so too have our efforts: we’re now focused on programs that help Ethiopian-Israelis succeed in the army, find prestigious jobs, and secure loans to start new businesses.
At a moment of tension between segments of the U.S. Jewish community and the Israeli government, this program serves as a powerful reminder of all we can do together. We cannot disengage from the State of Israel and its people. We cannot withhold funding to support Israelis in need, or programs that help promote the kind of Israel we aspire for it to be. Because only together can we create the future we want for Jews of every color, background, and belief — and an Israel that truly belongs to all of us.
Shabbat shalom