“Mechinah programs are a game-changer for participants. We instill in them the sense of responsibility that comes with being the future leaders of the State of Israel and the Jewish people,” said Dana Zacks, director of the Israeli Society Unit of The Jewish Agency, who oversees the organization’s network of Mechinot.

Mechinot participants in Jerusalem | Aner Tausig for The Jewish Agency for Israel

The Jewish Agency offers several Mechinot for specific groups, ranging from ones catering solely to young women or ultra-Orthodox men, to one that fosters cross-cultural understanding between Jewish and Druze Israelis. Each Mechinah provides Jewish study, workshops, day trips, meetings with prominent social activists and IDF representatives, enrichment activities, physical fitness training, volunteering and much more.

When Niv first visited Mechinah Or Yehuda, near Tel Aviv, she knew immediately she’d found the place for her. Born in Istanbul, Turkey, her family made Aliyah in 2015, settling in Ra’anana, where she interacted mainly with other immigrant kids and not as many Israeli-born peers.

“​​What attracted me most to the Mechinah was the fact that I’d be able to meet teens different from me, including native Israelis. At Mechinah Or Yehuda, I felt like I really belonged, and that it was a place that would help me fully integrate into Israeli society,” reflected Niv.

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To bring together young, diverse Israelis and Jewish young adults from around the world, The Jewish Agency offers a special Mechinah-type experience called Kol Ami, a Jewish Peoplehood Leadership Academy. Nadine, 19, a participant from Oslo, Norway, knows what she learned at Kol Ami will be invaluable when she returns home and helps others in her small community feel connected to Israel.

Nadine (back row, fifth from left) with fellow Kol Ami participants | Image provided by Nadine

“Through Kol Ami, I’m developing a stronger connection to Israel and my Jewish identity,” Nadine shared. “Getting to explore the amazing diversity and cultures in our Jewish State means I can knowledgeably talk to others back home about the realities of Israel.”

Born in Kaabiya, a Bedouin village in the Galilee, Refaa, 21, is an alumna of the historic first mixed Arab-Jewish Mechinah in Kibbutz Harduf. Her experience in the program exposed her to different people and cultures in Israel and changed her life.

“Both cultures stigmatize and stereotype the other, and only when individuals from both cultures meet do they begin to really understand each other,” shared Refaa. “The Arab-Jewish Mechinah gives me great hope. If we can live together with our problems and with the good things, both societies and cultures can coexist.”

After her time at the Mechinah was over, Refaa stayed on as an assistant for a year. Today, she is a student at Tel Aviv University, studying Arab-Jewish culture.

See how our Mechinot are shaping the future of young Israelis and Israeli society at large: