Opportunity in Ramla

On my first day as an Intern at the Ethiopian National Project in Jerusalem, I was given the amazing opportunity to join a visit by the Neveh Shalom Synagogue Community of Portland to Ramla. Ramla is a very multicultural city and has a predominately low socioeconomic class and I was excited to have the chance to go and visit ENP's school-based scholastic assistance program, a free after-school program for Ethiopian-Israeli teens to help them achieve better grades in school. I discovered that for many, this is the only extracurricular activity they can attend due to the expense of other programs. Before the program began, I was able to sit and chat with the teenagers; we talked about their favorite American and Israeli Musicians. They were impressed that I spoke Hebrew and that I could sing along to some of the Israeli songs they had on their cell phones. They then began to explain to me the kind of help that the program gives them - math, English and even the chance to participate in a music activity.

One teenager, Rahl* shared with me, “This program is so important because it is the first time people see us as a face and not as a race.” This almost brought me to tears. At this point I realized how vital this program is to Ethiopian children. The staff truly care about each and every students and inspires them to reach full their potential regardless of race. As I spoke further with Rahel, I discovered that she wants to be a doctor and that she is a fluent-Amharic speaker.

She mentioned that she enjoys learning languages and that the ENP Scholastic Assistance program has helped her greatly with her English. She also shared with me that some of her family who had immigrated to Israel, returned to Ethiopia because they didn’t acclimatize to Israeli society and that they missed Ethiopia. This is why I am glad that the Ethiopian National Projects exists, to empower Ethiopian teenagers to be comfortable in Israeli society and to become citizens that can give back to their country. ENP's activities in Ramla are made possible with the generous support of the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County and the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City.