November 2007 – Kislev 5768 YOUTH FUTURES NEWS Trustee Seminar In Nitzana! Some 250 Trustees from over 20 localities in which the Youth Futures program operates, gathered together in the JAFI Nitzana youth village for a unique 3-day seminar. The seminar was kicked off with a discussion panel on "The Periphery and the Center", with former MK Loba Eliav, founder of Nitzana, social activists and journalists. The following days included workshops on listening to children, on dialogues and on the significant adult - the Trustees all took part eagerly, and held peer learning sessions. More... Introduction - Nir Lahav Dear Friends, The Youth Future program has come a long way since its initial stages. The number of localities has risen from 6 to 26 in just 2 years, the number of children and teens participating in the program has long since crossed 5,000, and the program has built up an amazing cadre of Trustees – those idealistic young adults working with the children. The road hasn't been without its ups and downs, but we believe that challenges are its milestones to progress, and have made an effort to make Youth Futures into a dynamic and adapting program: we've gone from "imported" young communities as the basis for our Trustee groups to recruiting local human resources that strengthen their own communities; a more effective plan for entering new localities was formed based on lessons learned; the number of children per Trustee was decreased while their weekly hours were increased in order to make their long term impact more significant; and since internal evaluation finding showed that there is no use in working with a child without creating a difference in his/her environment – the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit has become a valuable partner in developing a "Family Futures" program to accompany the Youth Futures families and others. The Ben Gurion University's Center for Enhancement of Education (CEE) has just recently submitted its first interim evaluation report of the Youth Futures program. The CEE has done a remarkable job in measuring the immeasurable – the impact that the Youth Futures program has on its young participants and their surroundings. The evaluation report has shown that the Youth Futures program has succeeded, in a relatively short time, to significantly influence our children's perception of their futures. These children have increased their confidence in their own abilities and direction for the future, which is evident in their scholastic achievements and improvement in behavior and attendance in class. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the Youth Futures partners for their support and involvement from the overseas Jewish communities through Israeli donors to the local authorities and volunteers – but most especially those overseas partners in the pilot stage who have taken a chance by giving us the chance to create a more equal environment for youth at-risk in the periphery. Without your support and trust, we would never have been able to give these children a very difference future. Nir Lahav, Director of the Youth Futures Division Israel Fundraising Event for Youth Futures Eilat Dozens of Israeli businesspeople, joined by a delegation from the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto, took part in a Tel Aviv fundraising event on behalf of the Youth Futures program in Eilat. The successful event concluded with the Israeli business leaders pledging over $100,000 for Youth Futures Eilat. More... Youth Futures Evaluation Report for 2006-7 School Year Study conducted by Ben Gurion University Center for Enhancement in Education. In the evaluation of the past year we found a program that is well run, in the sense of developing and operating a highly significant program on a very large scale, recruiting and operating high-quality trustees, creating work plans and developing detailed work tools. More... YF Locations View the complete table of all 26 Youth Futures locations implemented in 2007. And we have submitted 7 additional locations for approval by partner communities overseas, to be added during the 2007/8 school year. We expect to implement Youth Futures in 52 different locations by 2010. Recent Highlights   Beit Shean Trustees Salute Sderot Trustees Tiberias Trustees Organize Sukkot Activities Etgarim Association - Recreational Activity for YF Youth in Hatzor Eilat Youth Futures Pupils Raise Funds for Cancer Association Afula Trustees Thank Nazareth Illit Mentors 5th Edition In This Issue… Trustee Seminar In Nitzana! Introduction - Nir Lahav Israel Fundraising Event for Youth Futures Eilat Youth Futures Evaluation Report for 2006-7 School Year YF Locations Recent Highlights Previous Issues… August 2007 – Av 5767 March 2007 – Adar 5767 November 2006 – Heshvan 5766 August 2006 – Av 5766 Visit the Jewish Agency for Israel Web site.

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