ICEJ Providing Them Computers to Access Remote Classrooms

By: Kayla Muchnik

Moving from your home country to Israel is definitely a challenging feat, but can you imagine how daunting this could be for a child during a world pandemic? Eight-year-old Yirus recently made Aliyah from Ethiopia with her parents and five siblings. As she began school, she was instantly faced with the challenges of the language barrier, cultural differences, and the hardships of distance learning from home due to new COVID-19 governmental restrictions.

There are many children like Yirus, who are arriving in Israel at this particularly difficult time. Currently, almost 600 Ethiopian children and another 370 immigrant children from around the world need extra help as they transition into a new – and now online – educational system. “Foundations” an important educational program seeks to support students 8 years old through 12th grade, by providing the necessary tools needed to attend their classes via Zoom, as well as daily physical interactions with a teacher who can help them with technical difficulties, Hebrew, and other subjects.

The majority of the children needing this program are Ethiopian, but it is open to other immigrant children living in Jewish Agency operated aliyah centers as well. Due to COVID-19, children face incredible difficulties in learning at home because their homes are usually quite small, and some immigrant families cannot afford proper technology to connect to their child’s online classes. In addition, their parents are also just learning the Hebrew language and culture themselves, so they are unable to help their child with any questions they may have.

Two immigrant children from Russia, Sergei (13 years old) and Alisa (11 years old) took part in the Foundations program and received extra help with their language studies. This made all the difference for Sergei, who is showing great progress with Hebrew, is making friends, and enjoys his time at school. Since the coronavirus crisis began, the ICEJ donated games, Hebrew textbooks, school supplies, books, and a tablet to Sergei and Alisa.

Danielle Mor of the Jewish Agency told Nicole Yoder, ICEJ VP for Aid & Aliyah, how grateful they are for the ICEJ’s support of the Foundations program.

“This enabled us to provide such a response in this time of need”, said Mor. “On behalf of Yirus, Sergui, Alisa and the many other families and children who benefit from the ‘Foundations’ program, the Jewish Agency sincerely thanks the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem. Thanks to your support, these children will be supported and aided in their virtual school studies by trained professional staff.”

The generous giving of our Christian friends around the world has made this essential educational support possible and we are deeply grateful. Nevertheless, many additional immigrant and disadvantaged native Israeli children around the country need our help. A gift of $600 will help us purchase a computer or contribute educational support for a child. Join us to ensure a smooth transition and lay a foundation towards a bright future.

Make a difference in a child’s life today!