Stories and Pathways

By Orit Honigsberg ENP Intern, Fall 2014 Student at Bar Ilan University After continued research about ENP’s programs, I’ve come across the organization's plans for expansion. The Government of Israel has recommended that as of the academic year 2015, ENP serve as coordinating body for all educational programs for Ethiopian-Israeli school-aged children nationally. What this means is  that the Program will expand from its current 4000 students (approximately) to  include more than 12,000 students across the country. ENP will also increase the  monitoring of its participants over multi-year periods, as well as after their  graduation from the Program. While reading this information, I felt so grateful that  ENP’s work has gained such significant recognition and acknowledgment by the  Israeli Government, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Finance, and the  Ministry of Immigration. This expansion will take lots of resources and funds and...

By: Michelle Markowitz ENP 2014 Intern Fresh off of a year of volunteering with ENP, I returned to Camp Ramah in the Poconos determined to spread the word to campers and staff members alike. I developed a new curriculum which would introduce groups of campers to untold Jewish narratives from around the world, with the main focus being on Ethiopian Jews. We spent two days talking about the experience of Ethiopian Jews as they left their home and traveled to Israel, and the campers were able to complete activities that allowed them to put themselves in the shoes of a new immigrant in a new land.  We were even able to have a guest speaker talk to the group, as one of the staff members at camp was an Ethiopian-Israeli. On the second day of our class, I told the campers that they would have the opportunity to participate in a Pen-Pal Project, where they would write letters to Ethiopian-Israeli teens and could hear first hand from them what it’s like to grow up as an Ethiopian-Isr...

By Orit Honigsberg ENP Intern, Fall 2014 Student at Bar Ilan University Just successfully completed my second week as an Ethiopian National Project intern! After hours and hours of reading about ENP’s work, and old reports, I can sprout off fun facts about the organization like a pro.  This skill of sounding like a veteran ENP employee is coming in handy. For all of the phone calls I’ve been making-especially those in Hebrew- I am required to sound competent, confident, and well versed in ENP’s work. In any other place, making cold calls might feel a bit like telemarketing. However, Israel, as always, proves it is not like any other country. While targeting some major Israeli corporations, I’ve been transferred a billion times, and have been turned down bluntly once or twice as well (which is to be expected). However, even those who turn me down tell me Kol HaKavod  for trying. When the nice lady at HaMashbir LeTzarchan  (and Israeli department store) told me ENP wa...

By Lisa Raizes ENP Volunteer Summer 2014 Student at Southern Methodist University After serving with The Ethiopian National Project (ENP) whose purpose is to help Ethiopian immigrants and their families succeed in Israel, I asked myself one question: Why do Ethiopian-Israelis have a harder time integrating into Israeli society than other immigrant groups? Coming from a Markets and Culture perspective, I realized that one very influential reason is that there is a huge culture gap between Ethiopian-Israelis and Israelis. Transitioning from a “developing nation with a rural economy” to a “Western country with a high-tech market economy” does not come without its problems (“History”). Israel maintains a very innovative, high-tech economy, having “the highest concentration of engineers and research and development spending in the world” (Senor & Singer, 9). Not only that, but “more Israeli companies are listed on the NASDAQ exchange than all companies from the entire Europea...

By Lisa Raizes ENP Volunteer Summer 2014 Student at Southern Methodist University It’s been a little over a month since I left ENP and came back home to Texas. The last day at my center was very emotional. The staff gave me a picture frame with pictures of the memories I had made at ENP along with a sweet letter. Some of the kids wrote me notes or drew me pictures. There were times I had wondered if I had gotten through to the kids with the language barrier we faced, but in this moment I knew my time at ENP had been meaningful. I could tell that even small things like playing a game of checkers had made an impact on them. Showing genuine passion and care is not something you have to say. I showed it, and I knew the kids had seen it. I still think of the youth and staff at my center frequently. I wonder how the girls nights have gone since I’ve been home, if the kids are improving in their English, if they are happy, if they think of me like I think of them. I don’t just think ab...

By Lisa Raizes ENP Volunteer Summer 2014 Student at Southern Methodist University What does ENP do? A Volunteer’s Perspective Note: Although ENP has multiple programs, I am specifically focusing on their Youth Outreach Centers since that is where I served during my summer with ENP. I recently came across an evaluation study of ENP from the Myers-JDC Brookdale Institute in 2005-2007 and thought it would be helpful to provide their statistics here. The study provides an in depth look at ENP’s youth outreach centers although it is important to keep in mind that the study was done a couple of years ago. The statistics in the study explain overall characteristics of ENP’s youth outreach centers, and not specifically the one I served at.  To understand what ENP’s youth outreach centers do, it is important to understand the general characteristics of the youth that these centers serve. The following statistical characteristics were taken from the Myers-JDC Brookdale Evlauation s...

By Orit Honigsberg ENP Intern, Fall 2014 Student at Bar Ilan University This week, I began an exiting new endeavor as an intern at the Ethiopian National Project. My job is behind-the-scenes, helping out with grant writing and fundraising. When I began this position, it was slightly daunting as this is an area I have no previous experience in. I spent my first day poring over old reports, familiarizing myself with ENP’s work, and trying to gain an understanding for the organization’s focuses and future goals. With each report, I grew increasingly touched and impressed. Touched, because these children, who are so deserving of equal opportunity and the chance at a brighter future, are being provided with the chance to improve. Reading through some of the student’s personal accounts and understanding ENP’s work in-action was incredibly moving, especially the charts which boast the incredible success rate of ENP’s programs. Today, I reflected back on my own educational experience...