CONTENTS

1. AFYBA Young Leaders Meet Elchanan Glatt
2. Yeshivat Hadarom, Rehovot Joins YBA Network
3. Haifa Education Department Thanks YBA
4. Conference Examines YBA Impact on Israeli Society
5. The Academic Tree of Knowledge – Promise and Problems
6. Profile: Harav Rafi Peretz, Chief IDF Chaplain
7. YBA Beit El Celebrates 25th Anniversary
8. YBA Trains Professional School Administrators

AFYBA YOUNG LEADERS
MEET ELCHANAN GLATT

          Elchanan Glatt, Director General of Yeshivot Bnei Akiva, briefed members of the newly formed AFYBA Young Leadership Division (YLD) at a meeting held recently in New York. In the two-hour meeting Elchanan gave an overview of the YBA schools and activities in Israel. The young leaders then engaged him in conversation with questions and suggestions in the area of public relations to their cohort population. The group suggested ideas for future YLD social events to attract more young adults to become involved in supporting YBA.

From left: Michal Harris, Melanie Oakman, Michelle Taitz, Moshe Goldfeder, Elchanan Glatt

YESHIVAT HADAROM, REHOVOT JOINS YBA NETWORK

YBA Hadarom, Rehovot

          YBA recently welcomed Yeshivat Hadarom, one of the oldest and most prestigious religious Zionist yeshivot in Israel, as the 64th school in its network of educational institutions.

          Yeshivat Hadarom was founded in 1947 as a yeshiva gevoha by Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Meltzer, and has been associated with the Rabbinical Council of America (RCA) since its inception. Upon the outbreak of Israel's War of Independence, the yeshiva's students left the Beit Midrash to join the fighting forces defending the nascent Jewish state.

          After the war, Yeshivat Hadarom opened a yeshiva high school track, which quickly earned a reputation for excellence thanks to the high quality of its teachers in both Torah and general studies. During the 1950's and 60's, Yeshiva University regularly sent its rabbinical students to study for a year in Israel at Yeshivat Hadarom.

          Today Yeshivat Hadarom serves over 600 students from Rehovot and the surrounding region, including many from lower socio-economic level families, and teaches a full curriculum of religious and general studies in the spirit of Harav Kook - stressing love for the Nation, the Land and the Torah of Israel.

          "We are witnessing a trend in recent years of established schools with sterling reputations requesting to join the YBA network," says YBA Director General Elchanan Glatt, "Yeshivat Hadarom follows in the footsteps of Yeshivat Yavneh in Haifa, Ulpanat Neve Ruchama in Jerusalem and others."

YBA Growth 1950-2010

HAIFA EDUCATION DEPARTMENT THANKS YBA

          In 2008, at the request of the local parents' committee and the Haifa Municipality, Yeshivat Yavneh, Haifa joined the YBA educational network. Last month Elchanan Glatt, Director General of YBA, received the following letter (translated) from the head of the Haifa Education Department:

Dear Mr. Glatt,
It has been two years now since YBA took over the administration of Yeshivat Yavneh, Haifa on our behalf. During that time you have succeeded in advancing the school in every field:

• Educationally, by upgrading the pedagogic methodology, energizing the teaching staff, improving the learning climate and advancing the students.
• Administratively, by increasing tuition collection, cutting unnecessary expenses and lowering the cost of services.
• Socially, by increasing the amount of informal education activities.
• Physically, by refurbishing the school's appearance and decor, creating special-purpose rooms and improving the learning environment.

For all this we owe you a debt of gratitude and our blessings.
Sincerely,
Rachel Matoki, Head of Education and Culture, Haifa Municipality

CONFERENCE EXAMINES YBA
IMPACT ON ISRAELI SOCIETY

           Bar Ilan University paid tribute to Yeshivot Bnei Akiva on its 70th anniversary by hosting an academic conference examining the past, present and future of YBA and its impact on Israeli society. The conference was organized by the Bar Ilan Institute for the Study of Religious Zionism.

            In his introductory remarks Israel's Minister of Science, Harav Prof. Daniel Hershkowitz, praised the YBA educational network for its influence on every aspect of Israeli society.

            The president of Bar Ilan University, Prof. Moshe Kaveh, greeted the participants and quipped that the university owes much of its reputation to the high quality of students that have come to Bar Ilan after graduating from the many fine YBA schools.

            Harav Chaim Drukman, Chairman of YBA, gave a dvar torah likening the founding of the first Bnei Akiva yeshiva at Kfar Haroeh in 1939 to Rabbi Akiva, who, after losing 24,000 students, immediately started over again to build a yeshiva with only five students.

            Harav Drukman reminisced back to his days as a student of Harav Moshe Zvi Neriya at Yeshivat Kfar Haroeh in the 1940's when it was still the only Bnei Akiva yeshiva in Israel. "At that time, there was tremendous pressure on religious Zionist youths to abandon Torah and mitzvot," he said. "You would rarely see a kipa seruga in the streets like you see in the thousands today! Who could have believed back then that this movement, this youth, this education, would burst forth and have such a profound impact on Israeli society as we know it today?"

            The conference sessions featured academic papers presented by distinguished researchers, professors and rabbis covering the historical development, philosophical underpinnings, pedagogic significance and sociological impact of the YBA yeshivot and ulpanot on Israeli society.

Bar Ilan University

THE ACADEMIC TREE OF KNOWLEDGE – PROMISE AND PROBLEMS

           A well-attended seminar was held recently for the senior students of Hesder yeshivot throughout the country at the Orot Israel College. The subject of the seminar was the preparation of religious students for academic studies, and to provide at least a partial orientation for Hesder yeshiva students towards their studies next year at university and to deal with some of the spiritual challenges that the transition entails…

Orot Israel College

            It seems that this subject will occupy us increasingly in the coming years. Some food for thought and a preliminary sketch of the issue is presented in the article below by the President of the College, Rabbi Prof. Neria Guttel:

Who Needs Academia?
           Academia – the world of universities and colleges – is the “seat of knowledge”. All academic frameworks share a common essence: higher education and research for the sake of promoting human knowledge. Obviously, academia is not the only seat of knowledge. The world of Torah is certainly a seat of knowledge; not only knowledge but also “wisdom, insight and understanding” and – even more importantly – fear of Heaven and faith. However, this in no way negates the assertion that academia is indeed a “seat of knowledge”…

           Click here to read the entire article by Rabbi Prof. Neria Guttel

PROFILE: HARAV RAFI PERETZ,
CHIEF IDF CHAPLAIN

Harav Rafi Peretz

           Rabbi Rafi Peretz, a rosh yeshiva and former resident of Gush Katif, has been selected as the next IDF Chief Rabbi, replacing Brigadier-General Rabbi Avichai Ronsky who will be stepping down after four years in the post. IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-General Gabi Ashkenazi has decided not to extend his tenure for a fifth year as is customary.

            Rabbi Peretz, 54 and the father of 12, served as a helicopter pilot in the air force, holding the rank of lt.-colonel. Upon assuming his new post, his rank will be raised to brigadier-general.
A graduate of Yerushalayim’s Netiv Meir Yeshiva High School and Merkaz HaRav Yeshiva, Rabbi Peretz was among the first frum pilots, a rare find in his day…
           
           Click here to read the entire article by Yechiel Spira World Yeshiva News.

YBA BEIT EL CELEBRATES 25TH ANNIVERSARY

Rosh Yeshiva Pelheimer with alumni

           Hundreds of alumni gathered at Yeshivat Mateh Binyamin in Beit El to join in celebrating the school's 25th anniversary.

            The event began with a general reunion of all the yeshiva's graduates followed by class reunions in each of the school's classrooms, accompanied by one of the school's present rabbis and teachers.

            After dinner, speeches by distinguished guests and awards presentations to the school's former Rosh Yeshiva and Administrative Director, the ceremony concluded with a video about the yeshiva and a performance by singer Aharon Raz-el.

            Yeshivat Mateh Binyamin attracts students from Beit El, the surrounding settlements in the Binyamin Regional Council and from across all of Israel. The school places a special emphasis on instilling its students with Jewish values, and involves the students in a wide range of volunteer chesed activities. The school aims to create a cadre of graduates that leave high school not only with excellent matriculation results, but also with values to live by for the rest of their lives.

            Click here to view the video of YBA Mateh Binyamin (25 minutes, Hebrew)

YBA TRAINS PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS School administrators in training           For the first time in its 70-year history, Yeshivot Bnei Akiva in Israel is offering a vocational training course for high school administrators. The 14-session course will meet two days per month from July through December 2010 at the YBA Ramot Shapira Educational Conference Center. The course curriculum was developed by Shmuel Beiber, Assistant Director General of YBA, who will also direct the program.           "Universities are very good at teaching educational theory," says Beiber, "but there are no training programs that teach the nitty-gritty of daily school administration from a reality-based hands-on approach." The course curriculum covers three broad categories: Employer/Employee Relations (employment law, wages & benefits, pension funds, union agreements, incentives and performance evaluation) Financial Management (financial statements/audits, budget & cash flow planning, purchasing & maintenance, tuition collection and reductions) Manager's Toolbox (time management, marketing, fund raising, negotiations, decision making, delegating authority, and NGO best practices)           Beiber discovered that there is much demand for such a practical "how to" course. Only 36 out of 80 applicants were accepted to the course. The participants are evenly split between new administrators from the YBA network and other school networks. If the pilot course proves to be successful, YBA will consider offering the course on a yearly basis with Ministry of Education accreditation.

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Oz Ben-Shmuel
Director of Public Relations
oz@yba.org.il

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