From high risk to high-tech
Bridging educational gaps for disadvantaged youth with Net@
At the forefront of Keren Hayesod- UIA’s mission to bridge educational gaps for disadvantaged youth is Net@ – a program empowering youth from Israel’s geographic and socioeconomic peripheries with high-tech education, personal development and co-existence.
Each year about 1700 children participate in Net@ programs across 21 centres in Israel, learning skills of computer technicians, programming, graphic design and digital marketing. Students also enjoy tech events and mentorships at leading high-tech companies and finish with professional high-tech qualifications.
This program also empowers students socially, emphasising volunteering and community service through FixIT, which gives participants the responsibility of managing community computer labs in their local communities. The skills acquired through this program, coupled with this contribution of leadership in their communities, make participants prime candidates for elite Israeli Defence Forces units and careers in the high-tech job market.
Net@ also instils values of tolerance and pluralism. One of the unique attributes of this program is its emphasis on co-existence among Israel’s diverse populations, including Jews, Christians, Druze and Muslims.
On average, 76 per cent of alumni take the highest maths matriculation exams and 82 per cent take the highest-level English exam. 97 per cent of participants complete their matriculation exams, compared to 89 per cent of their peers.
The curriculum has been developed by Cisco Systems and Microsoft, and is supported by KH-UIA in partnership with the Jewish Agency and Appleseeds Academy.
The prestige of this program has been recognised through The President’s Award for Civic Voluntarism by the late President Shimon Peres. The Net@ model has been so successful that it is expanding its scope internationally.
To learn more about this program, contact UIA Victoria on (03) 9272 5533 or email info@uiavic.org
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