Equalizing the Starting Point – Never Never Never Give Up!

Ramat Hadassah Szold Youth village has about 250 students aged 12-20, who arrive with various difficulties in the learning, social or personal sphere, our students suffer from gaps of 4-7 years in their education, and after experiencing failure in 2-4 educational frameworks. 40% of the village’s students are enrolled in special education and diagnosed as having behavioural and emotional difficulties, alongside complex learning disabilities.

In recent years, the majority of the dropouts from the village belong to the higher youth at risk group. It was therefore the reason; the village has taken upon itself to formulate and implement the approach of "expanding the village inclusiveness scope" which was followed by long-term programs leading by senior position holders from the psycho-social aspect, the boarding school perspective, the school point of view who represented the village one stop shop approach.

It is our intention to present 2 pilot initiatives, “identity & belonginess” (N. 50) and “Jumping to the starting point” (N.30) both aimed to give the participants an honest opportunity to be seen as an individual who can do it to highest level of their potential, by providing optimal conditions and tools in a range of spheres, while striving to develop subjective excellence and leadership among them, their families and their staff members through a long process of implementing at them the courage to dream and to break any glass ceiling they meet now or in the future.