Social Action by Jerusalem High Schoolers to Help Vulnerable Populations - Shalom Hartman Institute

The Shalom Hartman Institute’s two model high schools in Jerusalem, the Midrashiya High School for Girls and the Charles E. Smith High School for Boys, provide over 700 students in grades 7-12 with an education committed to academic excellence, religious depth, democratic values, and respect for the diversity of Israeli society and the Jewish world. Students hail from various socio-economic and cultural backgrounds from religious Zionist families across the Jerusalem area. LEARNING TEXT AND TAKING ACTION One of the central tenets of the schools’ educational vision is the importance of social involvement and volunteerism. Throughout all six years, students are required to dedicate several hours every week to projects that benefit the community. The backdrop of these hands-on voluntary experiences is an educational curriculum of text-based lectures and learning of Jewish textual sources. These texts focus on the values of social awareness, social responsibility, and volunteerism within Israeli society. These lessons expose students to the stark realities of different populations across Jerusalem and Israel and instill within them a deep sense of social awareness and responsibility. These values underscore the schools' tzedakah projects, on behalf of needy residents of Jerusalem and far beyond. Long-Term Projects: Providing Sustenance and Alleviating Hunger and Loneliness among Vulnerable Populations Students from Hartman's high schools together with other local volunteers reach out to isolated elderly residents of Jerusalem, homeless individuals, and lone soldiers. These populations often live without close relations or family nearby, making it all the more meaningful to provide them with freshly cooked hot meals for Shabbat. Each Friday afternoon, students prepare and deliver nutritious warm meals to these individuals, providing an invaluable connection with youth from the community and a sense that they are not alone and that their community cares for them. With the same student volunteer visiting the same individual or family each week, a deep sense of connection emerges, breeding familiarity and friendship. Today, more than 500 student volunteers are involved, assisting hundreds of elderly individuals, families in need, lone soldiers, and the homeless. Emergency Response in Times of Crisis During times of local and national crises, our students feel called to contribute. Students are able to make substantive contributions to support civil society, and this is an essential part of their ability to cope in addition to providing relief to families in need during times of national distress. During crises such as war, pandemic, and even more mundane events like winter storms that trap elderly people in their homes without electricity or heat, our students step up their volunteer efforts, both increasing the magnitude of their existing social action work. All volunteering for special projects is coordinated by students. Recent projects include activities such as: • Hosting weekly events at the Hartman Institute campus for various evacuated communities/families, providing entertainment, engagement, and respite for children and a space for parents to relax and have some moments of much-need relief • Organizing special events with music and food for local families with parents and siblings on IDF reserve duty to offer some levity and distraction during a time of distress Support Appeals from additional needy families, elderly, and community partners continue to increase significantly as more and more families/individuals face increasingly dire economic situations, particularly during the Gaza war, coming on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic and crippling rises in the cost of living. In this context, it is a challenge for the schools to continue to meet the increased appeals for assistance. While the high school volunteers give of their time, the project requires staff supervision, food collection and distribution, transportation, kitchen access, purchasing of supplies, and funding for activities to support the beneficiaries.