Education is the great mobilizer. It is the cornerstone of social advance and of the ability of each individual to attain to his or her full potential. For millennia, education and intellectual engagement have been a central aspect of Jewish tradition and culture. In the modern age, it has underpinned Israel’s miraculous transformation in six decades from underdeveloped agrarian economy to an OECD country and world-leading hub of R&D, innovation and hi tech. We are excited to be working with local partners, currently in San Diego and Los Angeles, in advancing the cause of education in local communities.
On April 13th at University of California, San Diego, the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles, in partnership with the UCSD Rady School of Management, San Diego County Office of Education, the Anti-Defamation League and the Ken Jewish Community launched the first of five sessions of an innovative Social Entrepreneurship Workshop for Latino and Jewish youth in San Diego. Inspired by the Jewish tradition of "Tikun Olam", this program aims to empower youth and equip them with the necessary tools to turn entrepreneurial vision into realistic social innovations for the benefit of their communities.
Seventeen 11th and 12th graders from the Latino and Jewish communities formed small groups and over the next five weeks will design entrepreneurial projects for their communities, under the instruction of Professor Ayelet Gneezy of the UCSD Rady School of Management. During this period, students were mentored by MBA students from the Rady School. A concluding event was held on June 1st, during which the students presented their projects. The latter was assessed by a professional panel and the top project was awarded a $1,000 award by the Consulate General of Israel in Los Angeles to support the project's implementation.
Why a social-entrepreneurship workshop? A value central to Judaism and to the State of Israel is that of 'Tikun Olam', which is Hebrew for 'repairing the world.' Israel is renowned for technological and social innovation, including in such fields as agriculture and food security, education, health, immigration absorption and many others that have been instrumental in advancing the well-being of countless communities in Israel and around the world. Such innovation begins at home, with individuals who are inspired to make a difference in their communities and in society at large. This workshop is designed to inspire youth with the vision of social improvement and to equip them with the tools needed to translate such vision into effective and practical social innovations.
http://ucsdguardian.org/2014/05/04/rady-school-of-management-launches-entrepreneurship-program/
http://www.sdjewishworld.com/2014/06/02/israel-gives-young-social-entrepreneurs-boost/
The Consulate General of Israel is proud to partner with the AMCFF and Project Grad. At this year's AMCFF Family Breakfast the Consulate awarded five $1000 stipends to scholarship recipients and/or to eligible college or university students, to participate in a college mentorship program at their local high schools. During the 2014-2015 school year, each recipient will be tasked with mentoring a high school student in one of the Northeast San Fernando schools. Under the supervision and guidance of Project Grad, mentors serve as role models, providing support and one-on-one learning opportunities.
The program is modeled after Israel’s “Perach Project,” a mentoring program that has grown to include roughly 20% of all students in Israel’s institutes of higher education. At the brunch, Amos Carmeli, the Director of “Perach International” conducted a training session for the stipend recipients to prepare them for working with the high school students. PERACH-inspired projects operate in almost 20 countries and have impacted the lives of hundreds of thousands of youth around the world.
On Sunday, June 1st the Andrés y María Cárdenas Family Foundation awarded scholarships to college-bound students in the Northeast San Fernando Valley, a community in which only about 50% of students graduate from high school. Nearly 50 high school and college students from 10 local high schools will be recognized for their academic and community service accomplishments with a college scholarship in front of 500 parents, principals, counselors, teachers, community partners, elected officials, and event sponsors. Congressman Tony Cárdenas was among the local elected officials attended to provide remarks.
Since 1997, the Foundation has awarded nearly 1,000 students with college scholarships, an investment in our community youth of over one million dollars. The work of the Foundation would not be possible without the generous support of funders, individuals, and Community Breakfast Sponsors.
https://cardenasfoundation.org/
http://www.projectgradla.org/
Israel Engaged!
One of the Consulate’s main missions is to develop relationships with the communities in our region. Education is a key field in which Israel has acquired expertise which can be beneficial for communities around the world and in the United States. We are eager to engage with different partners on ways to foster closer ties between local communities and Israel. We all have so much to gain by working together in tackling our common challenges, be they in the fields of education, health, water, technology or social advance.