CHW Hadassim Children & Youth Village
In Israel, approximately 345,000 youth are categorized at various levels of risk. As a result of personal circumstances, poverty, dysfunction or death in the family, these children often have severe challenges, in addition to behavioral, academic, and social difficulties.
Without WIZO
Without intervention, these lost youth will continue their downward plunge. With no structure, support system or encouragement, they will gravitate toward anyone or anything that makes them feel like they belong.
With WIZO
WIZO’s five youth villages specialize in taking disadvantaged youth, giving them a home and enabling them to learn on par with their peers from normative backgrounds. Each has a unique combination of areas of study and special projects.
WIZO Hadassim Youth Village located north of Tel Aviv has 1,300 studentsand is among the largest youth villages in Israel. WIZO Hadassim runs an excellent school which is attended by local area students, as well as 200 students who reside in the dormitories on campus. These students, from difficult or new immigrant backgrounds, build their future here at WIZO. WIZO Hadassim has been accorded recognition by the Israeli Ministry of Education as an experimental school.
WIZO Hadassim High School offers a full academic course of study in preparation for university enrollment. The youth village also provides a huge range of specialized studies tailored to the interests and needs of outstanding students as well as students who are experiencing difficulties with their studies. Among the subjects offered are:
- Criminology
- Natural sciences
- Agriculture
- Horse breeding
- Therapeutic horse riding
- Art and sculpture
- Photography
There is also a musical group featuring the musical tradition of Ethiopian students called “Ethiopian Sun”. The group performs all over Israel.
Special Projects:
13 WIZO foster family apartments – These facilities provide a warm and supportive home to 85 children aged 6 – 15 from dysfunctional families. The children live with foster parents and receive everything they need to thrive and succeed.
Emergency center for children at high risk – Children aged two to four years old who are removed from their parents’ homes due to neglect and abuse are fostered here temporarily until a more permanent solution is found for them. A team of social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, teachers, therapists and counselors care for each child.
Naaleh – Jewish teens from all over the world come to study in Israel and participate in the Naaleh program, which gives them all they need to integrate and succeed as Israeli citizens. Twenty-five students from France and the Former Soviet Union learn at Hadassim and participate in Naaleh.
Therapeutic Center – The center works with dysfunctional students who are in distress. The staff of social workers and psychologists use various therapies to help each student work through their crises and integrate socially and academically.