By Ilana Gottlieb
Looking back on the last six years, the AMIT family can take great pride in the incredible growth of Midreshet AMIT. Starting with just 18 students in 2007, we are now at full capacity, with nearly 50 students both this past year and registered for the upcoming school year.
This incredible achievement is a testament to our talented administration and faculty, the valuable assistance of AMIT’s professional staff in both New York and Petach Tikvah, and the wonderful support we receive from the AMIT Board of Directors – all of these pieces working harmoniously together have made Midreshet AMIT the success that it is today.
Due to the number and variety of students – coming from 17 different communities across the United States, Canada, and England – we made numerous changes this past year so that all of our students could take full advantage of the “Live Torah, Live Chesed and Live Israel” that Midreshet AMIT is famous for.
Regarding Torah study, our newly expanded academic program now offers classes in each period which allows each student to select the courses that are best suited to her level and interest. Even for required courses, such as Hilchot Shabbat and Women and Jewish Law, we now offer multiple options, which vary in teaching style and rigor.
“I came to Israel with an open-minded attitude and very ready to learn. I wanted to truly understand why I do what Ido. I think I have done just that. With the help of my rabbeim and teachers I feel more confident in what it means to be a Torah observant Jew.” Mimi Boim, Queens, NY
We are also very proud that this past year we launched an “Advanced Track” for more intensive, text-based studies in Talmud and Tanach. In addition to the demanding lectures, these courses also incorporated some chavruta style learning which allowed the students to explore the texts more independently.
These additions to our already dynamic course offerings – all taught by dedicated and talented teachers – enabled our students to immerse themselves in learning in a way that they never did before!
Our increased enrollment also led to our expansion of the important Mechanechet program so that it now includes four teachers who each led a group of 12 students. Each mechanechet met with her entire group once a week for an interactive and creative night seder class on a timely topic. Additionally, every student was required to set up a weekly individual meeting with her mechanechet, either to talk about a personal issue or to learn together.
The chesed program at AMIT continues to be as special and rewarding as ever! With more students working with each foster family, we decided to assign each of our students a “little brother and sister” to ensure that a unique bond between students and children would be created.
Not surprisingly, our students were beloved for their roles as English tutors, and the children of Beit Hayeled waited anxiously for their 3:00 PM meetings with the AMIT students to help them with their English homework. Of course, without even realizing it these young children became the Hebrew tutors for our students, helping them increase their fluency in conversational Hebrew!
“At Beit Hayeled you connect with many kids, and if you make an effort, you have the potential to make an impact on all of the children. Every Midreshet AMIT student came here to make a difference and knowing that we actually made an impact on the children’s lives is remarkable.” Rachel Silver, Los Angeles, CA
With all the changes, however, some things stay the same and as in years past, many of the most special experiences took place during the more informal times spent together, either on Sunday afternoons or on Shabbat spent together at Beit Hayeled.
We continue to make it a priority to develop the connection that our students have with the land and the people of Israel. To accomplish this goal we expanded our program of Shabbatonim to include visits to many communities across the country such as Tzfat, Sederot, Efrat, Kochav Hashachar, Yad Binyamin and of course, the Old City of Yerushalayim. In addition, we have also increased the number of overnight tiyulim and traveled to the Golan, Eilat and the Galil for overnight trips filled with history, inspiration, adventure, and fun!
In addition to all that has already been mentioned, what makes Midreshet AMIT truly unique is that our students feel that they are part of something bigger and which goes beyond their year in Israel– they become part of the AMIT family. Throughout the year our students are educated about the vision and all of the wonderful work of AMIT.
In addition to all that has already been mentioned, what makes Midreshet AMIT truly unique is that our students feel that they are part of something bigger and which goes beyond their year in Israel– they become part of the AMIT family. Throughout the year our students are educated about the vision and all of the wonderful work of AMIT.
With much to be proud of, our energies remain focused on the future as we work to ensure that future students can similarly benefit from Midreshet AMIT’s unique combination of academic excellence and unrivaled chesed, all in an environment of love for and identity with the State of Israel.
We look forward to another amazing year!
Mrs. Ilana Gottlieb has been the Director of Midreshet AMIT since the summer of 2009.Mrs. Gottlieb earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, both with high honors, from Yeshiva University. She currently lives in Ramat Shilo, a suburb of Beit Shemesh, with her husband and four children.
