Source: eJewish Philanthropy
Yoav Rimer, a member of the Jerusalem educator's kibbutz, shares his personal take on Dror Israel’s Educators’ Kibbutzim. Today there are more than 1,000 young adults in Israel, alumni of the HaNoar HaOved VeHaLomed youth movement, who choose to be pioneers in education through reinventing the Kibbutz concept in towns and cities throughout Israel.
He writes:
"Like early members of the kibbutz, we asked ourselves what is the field of activity which would best allow the re-building of an Israeli society with the values of Justice, Freedom and Equality at its core. The old Jewish idea on the equal value of all man had to take new forms. The Educators’ Kibbutz was born as a cooperative community with an educational mission. But what exactly does it mean?
To understand our movement one has to first examine its scope and dimensions. Not that size is everything, but it teaches that we are not dealing with a fringe phenomenon, but with one of the largest social and educational NGO’s in Israel. More than a thousand young men and women in 16 “Educators’ Kibbutzim”, in cities, villages and development towns throughout Israel, operating educational frameworks reaching over 100,000 children and teenagers in both formal and non-formal education. Our work spans the full spectrum of Israeli society – Jews and Arabs, students and youth at risk conditions, army personnel and African refugees. All of our educational work is based on the same core values – and “tailored” in manor to suit the needs and abilities of the population with which we work….
…we feel that we are living out our dreams. The satisfaction gained from our work, and from knowing that we shape a lifestyle not dictated by any but ourselves, is irreplaceable. With an open eyed look at Israeli society – we know our lives’ project is essential for the continuation of the Zionist project, and for the creation of a better place for our generation, and future ones. The Zionist dream is timeless, and the ideas it pronounces have found in the Educators’ Kibbutz, so we believe, their most potent means of actualization for the 21st century."
Read his article at eJewish Philanthropy.