המכללה האקדמית בית ברל > English > About Us > News > Newsletter > February Newsletter > Beit Berl Students Volunteer with At-Risk Youth and Lone Soldiers

Beit Berl Students Volunteer with At-Risk Youth and Lone Soldiers

20 students in Beit Berl’s Faculty of Education are taking what they’ve learned in the classrooms into the field, volunteering with disadvantaged youth and lone soldiers.

This year, 20 students are volunteering with Achy, a non-profit organization dedicated to nurturing disadvantaged groups such as at-risk youth. These students are helping Achy build a new youth village in Pardes Hanna – painting, cleaning and organizing the new site. They also host groups of at-risk youth who live in boarding schools, spending entire days with the youth, guiding them in various activities and games, as well as working with them on different skills and values. The student-volunteers also meet regularly with lone soldiers, who do not have the support of close family in Israel, helping them with laundry, obtaining donations of furniture, and other assistance. In developing relationships with these lone soldiers, our students are having a real impact on the lives of the soldiers – as well as on their own lives.

The students’ volunteer activities are part of Beit Berl’s Social Activism program, comprised of an academic course on social activism, 60 hours of volunteering, and three writing assignments associated with their volunteer work.

Stav Cohen, a first-year B.Ed. student specializing in Youth Advancement and a volunteer at Achy, says she has been deeply affected by her experience. “I am learning to bring out the best in these youth. It gives me a great deal of satisfaction,” she notes with a smile.

This is the first year Achy is partnering in Beit Berl’s Social Activism program and, according to Program Head Dr. Jacky Zvulun the connection is proving to be very rewarding for everyone involved.