Jewish education
Jewish educationiStock

The Diaspora Ministry, in cooperation with the Education and Foreign Affairs Ministries and the Pincus Fund, is hosting the first conference for school principals and Jewish pedagogic leaders from the Diaspora.

The conference is attended by more than 150 participants from 31 countries around the world, including the United States, Morocco, Kyrgyzstan, Hong Kong, and Panama.

The purpose of the conference is to create an infrastructure for a worldwide Jewish education network and encourage cooperation among educators around the world. The conference includes lectures, workshops, and tours throughout Israel where participants work to create connections, peer learning, and shared thinking on issues of Jewish identity and connection to Israel among the younger generation in the Diaspora.

Education and Diaspora Affairs Minister Naftali Bennett said, "In my opinion, one of Israel's most important and urgent tasks is to strengthen ties with Diaspora Jewry. For the first time ever I invited school principals and educators from all over the world to think together and formulate a strategy for connecting Jewish communities with the State of Israel, and we thank the educators for the tremendous mission they've undertaken - building bridges between them and us."

The conference helps school principals facing complex challenges, anti-Semitism (France, the former Soviet Union), and educational issues such as building difficulties in building a strong Jewish identity with a connection to Israel.

One conference participant is Sylvie, Jewish school principal in Casablanca, who works among the small community remaining in the area to connect them to their roots - to teach them about Jewish holidays, tradition, and, of course, the Hebrew language.

Eliahu is principal of the largest school in Paris attended by 1,400 students who face anti-Semitism on a daily basis. Eliahu's family immigrated to Israel a few years ago, but he decided to stay in Paris and continue to educate the next generation of Jews in the country.

לחבר את כל היהודים בעולם זו משימת הדוראלירן אהרון