The Death of WUJS Arad; An Educator’s Perspective
by Aubrey Isaacs
The news of the closing of WUJS Arad has caused sorrow to all who have heard of it and maybe to no one more than myself. I served in WUJS for 11 years (1993-2004) as Director of Education, Rabbi, Deputy Director and Director. I guided WUJS through the incredibly difficult years of the second Intifada when buses were blowing up weekly or even daily and spending time in Israel was a hard concept to sell. In those days the going was tough but we struggled on, brought around 65-80 students each year and delivered the best program there was.
Recently I have heard many explanations as to why WUJS is closing, ranging from the influence of MASA, to the financial crisis in the Sochnut, to the devaluation of the dollar and to a claim that Arad is no longer attractive and that the Arad municipality is not supportive. I am sure there is truth in these claims.
Yet the true reason lies in the failure of Young Judaea to recruit students and that failure stems from the fundamental educational mistakes that were made from the day that Young Judea took over in 2004. (more…)
Hadassah, Tipping Into Decline?
Hadassah just concluded their 94th national convention in Los Angeles. And at the closing dinner Tuesday night, a prominent Medical Center board member warned the organization was on “the tipping point” into decline.
Two pertinent facts were stated by Stewart Greenebaum during his remarks: in the past year Hadassah’s membership has declined by 6% and dollar donations have decreased by 20%.
So, it appears that like every other organization with USD revenue and NIS expenses, Hadassah is facing the reality of the current exchange rate due to their vast array of needs in Israel. But unlike many U.S. organizations, including some of the largest Federation’s in the U.S. who are showing fundraising revenue increases for 2007, Hadassah appears to be tracking backwards. I wonder how 2008 is progressing.
As an aside, this begs the question of how the apparent shortfall played into the recent WUJS Arad decision and their attempt to begin anew in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Some other articles of interest the past few days; from Haaretz: (more…)
WUJS Arad, Still Making News
Central New Jersey Jewish federation executive vice president Stanley Stone, who lobbied to prevent WUJS’ departure and the absorption center’s closing, said losing both was a “psychological blow to the morale of Arad and the entire Negev region.”
Stone said he was willing to raise funds to keep WUJS in Arad, but WUJS (Israel) and Hadassah decided to leave nonetheless.
Read the complete story along with more PR spin from Hadassah to “justify” this move. eJP understands that not only was there a specific commitment from Arad’s Partnership 2000 communities, but up until the very last minute, local Federation leaders had promises from the most senior leaders in Hadassah the program would remain in Arad.
For an organization that excels in so much, their belated PR approach (at least coming from their Jerusalem office) is so very lame.
Remembering WUJS and Arad
WUJS Arad was a very special program; not only for me but for the thousands who have paraded through this dessert town since 1968.
This past Sunday morning when I wrote of the Institute’s Arad closing and impending move to Jerusalem, it was out of sadness. To this audience, I assumed newsworthy. But no-way was I prepared for the outpouring of comments from alumni, parents, former staff and others which you can find here (scroll down). I also received a comparable number sent privately.
Arad touched thousands of us in different ways. I know of several who did not have the best of experiences at WUJS, but you wouldn’t know this from their comments. It seems so many share a sense of loss.
There is also an excellent story on present day Arad, Give my regards to Arad (and Amos Oz), in the magazine section of today’s Jerusalem Post by WUJS alumn and noted Israeli columnist Calev Ben-David.
This afternoon it is my pleasure to have a particularly inspiring guest post by Harry Schneider who along with his wife Dianne participated in the August, 1986 machzor. Today they make their home in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Also be sure to check out the promo video at the end from the Arad-iriya on the charms of living there. (the video was added by eJP; it was not part of Harry’s comments).
In 1986 my wife Dianne and I had the great fortune to have three wonderful ulpan families, two of whom were founders of Arad. One of our ulpan fathers, Uzi Haimovitch, had been city manager. He was also our community shaliach in the US and, after shlichut, was responsible for bringing to Arad the family that opened Arad Towels, one of the city’s major employers. Our other ulpan father, Beiga Shochat, was, at the time of our machzor, mayor of Arad. He subsequently became Treasury minister. His wife Tema is the daughter of a former prime minister. Both families told us the story of Arad’s founding as a socially engineered environment. Recruitment was aimed at highly motivated ex-kibbutniks ideologically disposed to pioneering the Negev per BG’s vision and willing to create a community in an isolated development town. And the government, before Likud, provided incentives to get them there. We have a copy of an early pictorial history of the town published around 1970 showing people living in tin roofed buildings. (more…)
JAFI Weighs In on WUJS Arad Doings
Hadassah and Young Judaea Israel are determined to paint JAFI as the ‘bad guy’ here. True, JAFI is closing the absorption center, but not before the end of the year. Not only that, they gave over a years’ notice.
What made Hadassah - Young Judaea pull the plug in Arad early. Why when they have known this for about nine months did they wait until the end of June to make decisions that were effective almost immediately, tell the Fall participants, and fire the Arad staff?
Here is what JAFI had to say this afternoon,
Last year the Jewish Agency announced that it was closing its absorption centers in Lod and Arad at the end of 2008;
Lod-because of the down-scaling of aliyah from Ethiopia
Arad-the location was not attractive to olim making the running of the facility financially unfeasible because of the small numbers staying there.
Nevertheless the Jewish Agency was committed to keeping the Arad facility open until the end of 2008 in order to provide for the WUJS Arad program.
WUJS Arad for its own reasons decided not to continue through 2008.
Seems to me, Hadassah - Young Judaea has failed in marketing the program. Will Jerusalem become their golden bullet if it sells itself?
related posts: WUJS Arad Bites the Dust
all bolding emphasis is mine
The Hadassah PR Team Spin
As a result of a post on this site Sunday, and later picked up as a front page story in yesterday’s Jerusalem Post, the Hadassah Israel PR team has swung into action. Upset by what they considered inaccurate information, they have launched a belated defensive action to spin their side of this particular story.
In a post titled WUJS Arad Bites the Dust, I wrote:
“At a meeting this past Sunday night, the Hadassah WUJS Arad Company voted to permanently close the program in Arad later this summer.
Young Judaea is currently in the process of re-engineering the program to open this September in Jerusalem.”
Neither Hadassah or Young Judaea have disputed these sentences. In fact, they were provided to me the morning following the board meeting by a senior YJ professional, here in Jerusalem, who fully knew they were on the record and for publication.
Even Hadassah’s own press release and WUJS Arad’s letter to the upcoming September participants confirm this.
I then spoke in some detail of the history of the program and the personal sadness of the program’s Arad closing. The thoughts expressed were picked up and amplified by close to 100 alumni who either posted comments, or wrote off-line, about the passing of an era. So true.
And the thousands of page views since Sunday on this specific post indicates the interest in our community on the WUJS Arad program, past, present and future.
The simple fact is, no matter how Hadassah chooses to spin this, WUJS in Arad is not, and can not possibly be, the same as a WUJS Arad program in Jerusalem, or for that matter Tel Aviv. One only needs to read the various comments posted to understand that.
WUJS Jerusalem may become a successful program in its own right, and I and most alumni wish them well, but Hadassah should not be under the illusion that the storied program they took over in 2006 is not now a memory.
The power of the WUJS Arad brand may live on; but not WUJS (in) Arad.
see also: JAFI Weighs in on WUJS Arad Doings
WUJS Arad Bites The Dust
WUJS Arad, established in 1968 to provide a one year pluralistic program in Israel for recent college grads, is now history.
At a meeting this past Sunday night, the Hadassah WUJS Arad Company voted to permanently close the program in Arad later this summer.
Young Judaea is currently in the process of re-engineering the program to open this September in Jerusalem.
WUJS Arad has enjoyed a long history and a sterling reputation. The Ulpan program was continually rated one of the tops in Israel. The feeling of community among the participants and alumni has been first rate. 8000+ participants have passed through the sleepy dessert town of Arad; the best guess is 25% have made Israel their home. WUJS Arad is not only responsible for many marriages, but also boasts several 2nd generation participants. (more…)
