Since 2024, Menifa’s national Youth Empowerment program to prevent truancy and hidden school dropouts has been run in partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Education’s HEMED (religious schools) division.
We work with their youth-at-risk team to identify students who are struggling to learn for different reasons. Our goal is to prevent them from experiencing crisis and functional failure, that may lead them to disengage from their educational frameworks, and to return them to a path of educational excellence.
Our holistic approach emphasizes the strengths and abilities of each student and coaches them to deal with their challenges and crisis situations. Our program includes education support, skills training, group or individual therapy, and creating success experiences to empower each student and help them return them to full functioning as part of their community. It is headed by a full-time life-skills educator who designs an intensive curriculum for each student and accompanies them on their educational, academic and emotional journey.
Program goals
• To empowering the girls in all areas of their lives through personal encouragement, increasing confidence and self-sufficiency.
• To focus on developing their strengths by providing an emotional and therapeutic environment with personal and group support, and strengthening connections between the student and her family.
• To restore full functioning to each teenager, by coaching her in school and visiting her at home, in order to empower her within a healthy family network.
• To connect the students with their community by finding opportunities for volunteering and encouraging them to use their unique talents to contribute and to help others, boosting their self-esteem and confidence.
• To train the program team and develop their personal strengths, encouraging teamwork and creating a holistic ecosystem.
Number of participants: 250 girls aged 12-16 who are registered in 20 state religious schools nationwide.
