Aardvark Israel Gap Year - Steinsaltz Track

The Steinsaltz Track of the Aardvark Israel Gap Year Program is a dynamic Jewish learning program for recent high school graduates, both men and women, who are seeking a deeper approach to the study of Judaism in Israel. Inspired by the educational approach of Rav Adin Steinsaltz, the program combines typical Aardvark Israel components, with a unique and intense Jewish learning program.

With a strong core program and a menu of add-on options, the highlight of the Steinsaltz Track is its unique Jewish enrichment program designed for students seeking a deeper approach to the study of Judaism in Israel.  The Steinsaltz track of Aardvark Israel has been developed with the mission of developing a cadre of creative, young Jewish leaders inspired by Torah Lishmah, motivated by a love of the Jewish People, and enthused by the rebirth of Medinat Yisrael.

Guided by Rav Adin Steinsaltz’s approach to Torah, creativity, and the Jewish People, the student’s gap year experience will be genuinely transformative – spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually.  Rav Steinsaltz is a world-renowned teacher, philosopher, social critic and prolific author, who has been one of our people’s greatest champions for open access to Jewish learning.  His life’s mission has been to give Jewish texts and learning back to the Jewish people.

Our Goals

• Strengthen Jewish Identity
• Foster Community Service and Activism
• Strengthen Israel-Diaspora Relationship
• Inspire Personal Growth

The Core Program

The Steinsaltz Track’s primary emphasis is on Torah Lishmah in a Beit Midrash setting. Through interaction with Rav Steinsaltz’s highly gifted staff of educators, students will create a relationship with Torah which is transformative.  Immersion into Israeli society combined with options for service to the community and formal and informal education provide the motivated student with a deeply enriching experience.

Learning

With a focus on Torah Lishmah – learning for the sake of learning, students will learn every morning first semester in the Steinsaltz Beit Midrash, located in the vibrant Jerusalem neighborhood of Nachlaot.  Catering to diverse levels and interests, areas of focus will include Talmud, Halacha, Tanach, Machshava, and Chasidut.  Learning from a staff of experienced and gifted educators inspired by Rav Steinsaltz as well as weekly classes with Rav Steinsaltz himself, students will be challenged intellectually, spiritually, and emotionally.

In addition, students will explore Judaism and Zionism through a dynamic learning program that goes beyond the beit midrash, fostering individual growth and deepening of Jewish identity. Through a partnership with the American Jewish University in Los Angeles, participants may earn up to a full year of college credit while on the program.  The range of courses offered both semesters  allows students to choose courses that interest them and advance them in their college careers.

Immersion

The program is designed to immerse the students into Israeli society so that by the end of the year they won't feel like tourists.  The goal is to integrate with Israelis and Israeli society in order to become familiar with the cultural, linguistic, historical, and political realities of Israel. Students live in apartments in the residential and centrally located Katamonim neighborhood of Jerusalem and Florentine neighborhood of Tel Aviv and are encouraged to establish relationships with their Israeli neighbors, become part of their communities, and grow to feel "at home" in each city.

Hesed

The students volunteer or intern up to 12 hours per week second semester in a variety of Israeli organizations, using their unique talents to help create positive change in Israel. They are given a wide range of choices and are placed at sites that match their interests and skills.

Structure and Location of the Program

The 9-month Gap Year program is divided into two semesters.  Students spends half of their year in Jerusalem and half of their year in Tel Aviv where there are countless opportunities for quality and diverse community service and internship experiences, enrichment opportunities, exciting nightlife, proximity to attractions such as the Old City in Jerusalem and the beach in Tel Aviv, and relevance to the program participants as they become integrated into their homes in a way which is significantly less likely in most other places in the country.

Fundamental to the Steinsaltz Track is a belief that learning takes place outside the classroom as much as inside.  As such, the students are taken on excursions and hikes all over the country throughout the year to see various places in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as well as in the northern and southern parts of the country.  These field trips include museums, communities, nature sites and more.  Two levels of excursions are offered in order to cater both to students who have little prior experience in Israel and those who have previously toured the country.  In addition a variety of seminars are held throughout the year on current and relevant topics.  Field trips take place approximately once per week.  Students are also encouraged to take advantage of the comprehensive public transportation system allowing them to explore Israel during their free time as well.

Steinsaltz Track	September – January	January - May
	Jerusalem	Tel Aviv

 

Sample Weekly Schedule in Jerusalem

	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday
Morning	Beit Midrash	Beit Midrash	Beit Midrash	Beit Midrash	Beit Midrash or Special Interest Program
Afternoon	Academic Studies	Special Interest Program or Free Time	Excursions	Academic Studies	Academic Studies
Evening	Group Activity or Free Time	Apartment Meeting	Group Activity or Night Seder	Group Activity or Free Time	Monthly Mishmar or Free Time

Sample Weekly Schedule in Tel Aviv

	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday
Morning	Hesed	Hesed	Excursions	Hesed	Hesed or Special Interest Program
Afternoon	Special Interest Program or Free Time	Academic Studies		Academic Studies	Academic Studies
Evening	Apartment Meeting	Shiur with Rabbi	Group Activity or Free Time	Group Activity or Free Time	Group Activity or Free Time

Steinsaltz Enrichment Programming

Participants in the Aardvark Israel Gap Year Program Steinsaltz Track will be afforded a variety of opportunities to connect with Israel and their Judaism in the ruach of Rav Steinsaltz’s approach.  Through studies, Shabbatot, special volunteering projects, and interactions with Israelis, students will be inspired throughout the year.

• Beit Midrash (first semester) – Located in the vibrant neighborhood of Nachlaot in Jerusalem, students will learn each day lishma in the Steinsaltz Beit Midrash.  Courses will be offered on various learning levels in areas such as Talmud, Halacha, Tanach, Machshava, Chasidut and the Jewish calendar cycle.
• Shabbatonim – Once per month there will be a Shabbaton to places such as Tekoa, Kfar Eztion, Mevo Modiin, Tzfat, Yerucham, Alon, etc.
• “Adopted” Family – Each student will be matched up with a Steinsaltz-involved family with whom they can get to know personally while enjoying occasional home hospitality and an insider’s view into an authentic Israeli home.
• Experiential Jewish Learning – Through a rich program of exciting activities, students will not only learn about Judaism, but experience it too – from diving for techelet (snails that make the blue dye on tzizit), to dunking in Tzfat’s famous Ari  mikve; from swinging a chicken over your head for kaparot on Yom Kippur, to staying up all night learning on Shavuot then davening at the Kotel for sunrise; from helping bereaved families on Yom HaZikaron, to making your own shofar for Chodesh Elul, to planting trees in Eretz Yisrael on Tu’Bishvat, to handing out mishloach manot in the streets of Jerusalem in costume on Purim.

Special Interest Add-Ons - Customize Your Experience

In addition to the core program, the Steinsaltz Gap Year Program offers add-on features for an additional fee.   These elective programs create a framework that taps into the talents and passions of the students by combining instruction with exposure to accomplished local professionals.  Through hands-on workshops, volunteering, seminars, academic courses, field trips, and interactions with local experts, students benefit from enrichment in their area of interest.  Creating immersion opportunities in the subjects that are most interesting to the student increases their sense of identification and appreciation for Israeli society and modern Israel.

• Law and Government – Receive an insider’s look into law and politics in Israel, while also developing specific skills necessary in these disciplines, including public speaking, debating, and community organization.  Learn about the political situation in Israel as well as meet politicians, lawyers, judges and other important figures.  Visit foreign embassies in Tel Aviv and be exposed to world opinion and policy on Israel.  Volunteer for lobbying group and NGOs and gain a better understanding of issues such as the environment, illegal immigrants, and religious rights.
• The Mind-Body Connection – Understand the body from a holistic approach through workshops, seminars, unique volunteer work, and enrichment activities, including the Israeli ambulance training course or a course in psychology, meetings with doctors and mental health professionals, volunteering in crisis intervention and support centers, workshops on alternative medicine, and more!
• Entrepreneurship – Get a taste of Israel as the vanguard of the entrepreneurial marketplace.  Learn about the Israeli economy from a variety of perspectives: creating a company, project management, writing a business plan, creativity, finances, and more.  Intern with a small business in order to learn from within and meet successful Israeli entrepreneurs to learn from their experiences and gain a better understanding of Israeli commerce and economic forecast.

First Semester	Second Semester
Law and Government	Mind Body Connection Entrepreneurship

World Travel Add-Ons – Explore the Jewish World

The travel add-ons offer students the opportunity to participate in organized trips outside of Israel for an added fee.  Choosing amongst two one-week educational and recreational excursions, students delve into the history of the local Jewish community and their relationship to Israel.  Itineraries are designed to give students a relevant Jewish experience while also visiting the most popular tourist destinations in each country.

• China – “Made in China”.  You have seen this stamped on most of the products you use so now it is time to go see where it all originates.  The trip is focused on Beijing a city of 22 million people.  Some of the famous sites you will see include:  Tiananmen Square, Prince Gong Mansion, The Forbidden City, Confucius Temple, Ming Dynasty Tombs, Temple of Heaven, Beihai Park, and the pandas in the Beijing Zoo.  And of course no trip to China is complete without seeing the Great Wall. And yes, there are Jewish and Zionist connections as well.
• Poland – For hundreds of years Jews had a rich and vibrant religious and cultural life in Poland until the destruction of the community in the Holocaust.  During this trip you will witness the site of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, the horrors of Auschwitz, the Jewish quarter of Krakow where Schindler’s List was filmed, cemeteries where famous rabbis are buried, and meet some of today’s Jews who are still living in Poland.  The country happens to also be a strong supporter of Israel so you will learn about this cooperation and partake in various cultural local folk dance and singing activities.  In addition Poland is rapidly becoming a major tourist destination and you will have a day to ski at a resort.

Religious Perspective

The Steinsaltz Track aims to build a love of Judaism and Zionism within its students.  We strive for our students to feel a commitment from within and not interpret Judaism as imposing from the outside.  Our students will learn Torah l’shma while developing their Jewish consciousness and activism.  They will also learn to take responsibility for their Judaism…a Judaism that is authentic to them personally.  They will develop into spiritually sensitive and aware Jews. Simply put…mentsches.

Inspired by Rav Adin Steinsaltz’s approach to Torah, creativity, and the Jewish People, the student’s gap year experience will be genuinely transformative – spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually.  We strive to provide a program which:

• Deepens the student’s Jewish identity through relationship with Torah;
• Spurs personal growth and self-awareness with an emphasis on authenticity;
• Inspires sensitivity and responsibility to the individual and the Jewish People through Service

In the words of  Rav Steinsaltz, “to create mensches.”

Staff - The Key Ingredient

The Aardvark Israel Gap Year Steinsaltz Track is an exciting program developed and run by a veteran Israel Programs staff and Steinsaltz educators.  The core group of staff in Israel has been working together for nearly a decade in a variety of Jewish and Zionist educational endeavors, successfully instilling Jewish and Zionist values and strengthening identity in today's youth.  Collaboratively working with the Steinsaltz Center in Israel and the Steinsaltz Ambassador's Program in America, the Aardvark Steinsaltz team provides the best of Jewish, Zionist experiences to the students.