Youth

Nir Haemek School and Youth Village, Afula

For over nine decades, WIZO has been home to hundreds of thousands of children, including some of Israel’s least fortunate young citizens. WIZO provides a warm, supportive, and loving environment for children in need, including a home for children who have none. Children living in WIZO’s facilities receive needed support from psychologists, social workers, and educational staff in addition to access to WIZO’s unique programs that ensure students always have a home to live in and a family in which to belong.

WIZO USA proudly sponsors the Nir Haemek High School & Youth Village located in the northern city of Afula. The facility provides residential facilities for about 175 children from troubled households. Those residing in the dormitories are either survivors of abuse and neglect or have immigrated to Israel without relatives to care for them. Many of the children are referred to Nir Haemek by social service agencies.

The WIZO Nir Haemek High School and Youth Village is one of the largest and most modern schools in northern Israel and is recognized for its remarkable success in mainstreaming high risk teens from dysfunctional homes with students from the surrounding neighborhood. Nir Haemek’s facilities are currently home to 200 high risk youth and educate over 1000 students from nearby Afula.

A total of 175 staff and faculty members work at Nir Haemek, ensuring that each child’s educational and emotional needs are met.

WIZO has found that many of the children that reside in Nir Haemek’s dormitories suffer from symptoms that typically accompany Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD) including but not limited to difficulties concentrating, restlessness and impulsivity. The most significant challenge in treatment is that for many the students their difficulties were not identified until they arrived at Nir Haemek in their teens. Research has shown that children suffering from symptoms of ADD/ADHD are able to overcome their difficulties with proper attention and early intervention. However, this intervention is nearly impossible as even the children’s most basic needs were not met in their homes. WIZO provides many therapies that have helped these students thrive.

OMETZ Project

The school offers a range of academic enrichment and remedial education programs for youth who have fallen behind in their studies prior to coming to Nir Haemek. Students in the Ometz program receive 2-3 hours of extra tutoring per week in small classes. Many not only reach the required levels of education but often acquire above average level grades and matriculation exam scores.

Experimental Agricultural Hothouse

Nir Haemek students studying biology participate in an intensive program involving experimental maturation of plants, flowers, vegetables, and fruits. The program focuses on ongoing experiments specifically pertaining to water studies and best conditions in a climate controlled hothouse. A recent project, conducted under the sponsorship of various Israeli agricultural companies, tested the application of organic fertilizers. The findings of the study and the primary research conducted have been widely used by the sponsoring companies as best practices. “Going Green” campaigns are being offered in school projects.

Ivcher Cheese Factory

This pioneering initiative at Nir Haemek is part of the already existing Dairy Farm which now includes a new building and machinery for the elaboration of various cheeses. The objective is to stimulate student participation in creating, and operating a small business. This initiative is offered to students as part of the Agricultural Studies program. The factory also employs students returning from the army who are unable to return home and are living at Nir Haemek full-time. The project is made possible by the Ivcher family.

Police Cadets

Many of Nir Haemek’s dormitory students have been in trouble with the authorities. In response, Nir Haemek has developed a unique program designed to support these students in becoming responsible adults and community members. The students participate in a series of seminars offered by professional police officers. Additionally, each student has the support of a counselor, a house mother and a tutor that assists them with homework and who acts as liaison between teachers, the school and the students. The students who participate in the Cadets Program are considered to be an elite group and they proudly wear their uniforms at school offering inspiration for others to join the program to get their lives back on track.

B’nai Mitzvah Heritage Program

WIZO Nir Haemek offers a wide range of enrichment programs as well as a special Bar/Bat Mitzvah Heritage Program where children from families in distress are able to celebrate their Bar/Bat Mitzvot. Students receive formal religious instruction which culminates in a memorable celebration.

Holocaust Studies Program to Poland

Every year, students in grades 10 and 11 travel on a meaningful trip to Poland after participating in a learning program on the Holocaust to prepare them for this powerful experience

Therapeutic Horseback Riding

Nir Haemek offers an on-site Therapeutic Horseback Riding Center which serves the mentally or physically disabled in the surrounding communities of the north of Israel.

Recently 180 of the young horse riders that frequent the center took part in a Musical Horse performance. The children’s families saw each group perform on horseback to music, showing their achievements. The children who have overcome serious obstacles were so proud and happy and everyone in the Youth Village involved in the project, were able to rejoice in their blessed work and the joy they bring to these children and their families.

The Falic Family Auditorium

This auditorium is the center of the school’s social and cultural activities. Dance and singing groups train and perform here for the Afula community. The venue gives students the opportunity to develop their musical and theatrical talents. The auditorium seats 300 and is equipped with state-of-the-art audiovisual technology

Three dance groups consisting of 45 girls practice with training provided by professional instructors in the auditorium and in other spaces. The groups learn a wide range of dance styles and perform at school ceremonies as well as at various events in the Afula community.

Rohr Family Synagogue

Students who live on campus have shown an increased interest in religion and Jewish heritage. In addition to regular daily and Shabbat prayer, the synagogue is used for Bar/Bat Mitzvah celebrations. During the rest of the week, it serves as a study hall for workshops, cultural presentations and Jewish studies. The Synagogue features torah scrolls, holy books and religious accessories, beautiful stained glass windows, ark accessories and decorative lighting. The synagogue also showcases a Memorial Board with 45 plaques in remembrance of Nir Haemek students who have lost their lives defending Israel.

Mishpachton

For students that require special assistance to progress in their studies and move past their personal issues, Nir Haemek provides a Mishpachton Family Unit. The Mishpachton, Hebrew for nuclear family, is a foster home simulating a family environment where students live as a cohesive family (usually up to 8 children) through their high school years. The “parents” of this family are actually trained social workers who live (often with their own children) in the house and provide the structure, supervision, and nurturing of “typical” parents.

Beit Haboger (House of Graduates)

This residence was built to accommodate a small group of Nir Haemek’s residential students that have enlisted in the IDF but who are unable to return to their parents’ homes either due to family circumstances or they have made Aliyah and don’t have family in Israel. At Beit Haboger, graduates are provided with supportive housing and vocational counseling, helping these graduates live independently and enter civilian society.

Beit Shabbat (The Shabbat House)

WIZO makes it a priority to help children maintain strong positive relationships with their parents and families. If this is not possible, students living in the residential facilities can spend their free time in a WIZO Shabbat House. The Shabbat House is a special place where youth can stay for weekends, holidays, and summer vacations. The house is made to feel like a real home with its cozy, colorful, and nurturing atmosphere.

The apartment style housing is staffed by a House Mother and a counselor. This is one of WIZO’s most successful programs.

David R. Kahn Sports Complex

The state-of-the-art sports complex accommodates 600 sports fans, locker rooms for athletes or performers, an exercise room which also serves as a sealed bomb shelter, and classroom space for after-school classes and offices. The David R. Kahn Sports Complex allows the youth at Nir Haemek to participate in physical education and after school sports programs such as basketball, volleyball and fencing.

The Marjorie Meltzer Science Center

The Marjorie Meltzer Science Center is a dynamic learning environment for the study of biology, physics and chemistry. The Center allows for students at Nir Haemek interested in science to pursue their interest with a variety of different studies and innovative technologies. The Center includes a state-of-the-art science lab within its complex. The science faculty uses a many advanced teaching methods including interactive seminars and group experiments.

Dining Hall

The facility serves 1,500 nutritious and hot meals per day prepared in a modern and recently renovated kitchen. The donors’ Wall of Life is located in the Dining Room.

WIZO Gan Vanof – Social and Emotional Rehabilitation Program for Abandoned Dogs

WIZO California is excited to announce our partnership with WIZO Gan Vanof to support the Social and Emotional Rehabilitation Program for Abandoned Dogs. This program teaches participants practical aspects of dog training and care while rehabilitating abandoned dogs. Participants experience personal growth, leadership development, increased self-confidence, and learn to cope with challenges and frustrations.

Dogs arrive at the youth village scared and frightened due to past abuse and neglect. The children who care for them often share similar experiences, creating a unique bond. As the dogs progress through rehabilitation, the children develop compassion, responsibility, and commitment. This caretaking helps the children focus on something positive, providing them with a sense of unconditional acceptance.

By the end of the dogs’ stay at Gan Vanof, the Canine Center Team facilitates a matching process to find each dog a loving family.

WIZO California is proud to announce the launch of the Laura Stein Girls Leadership Program, furthering our commitment to empowering and supporting the youth in our care.