Yeshivah Placement

223

bachurim placed in yeshivos

yeshivos accepted our bachurim

1,115

cases in action

117

follow up cases

The charedi yeshivah system adheres to very strict study track with few alternatives. In the past decade, we’ve witnessed an upsurge of bachurim who, unfortunately, cannot find their place in the standard yeshivah framework, for several reasons:

Bachurim who are academically weak or challenged; whose family background or comportment fall short of the rigid yeshivah standards; or who are labeled at any point in life as ‘troublemakers’ are not accepted by most yeshivos. According to yeshivah administrators, bachurim with weak abilities or spiritual backgrounds lower the yeshivah’s status and are thus undesirable as students.

In other cases, a bachur may be accepted into a yeshivah but find himself unable to keep pace with the rigorous demands and schedule of yeshivah life which compels long, intensive hours of study and unwavering discipline. Few maggidei shiurim are equipped to deal with struggling youth whose cognitive abilities are lower than average, and the tragic result is that these talmidim often drift and slide spiritually.

Another common factor contributing to a bachur’s inability to meld naturally into yeshivah life is emotional or behavioral challenges that may be rooted in longtime habits, attention disorders, learning challenges, speech impediments or tendency for hyperactivity.

How can we help?

Testimonials

“I was constantly in the door of a yeshivah only to find myself booted out the next week. Then, one day that my parents contacted Pele Yoetz. For the first time in my life, I underwent a professional evaluation which immediately identified a social difficulty. Several months of therapy taught me invaluable lessons for life, and when I started out in a new yeshivah the following zman, I felt like I was reborn!”

Efraim, 16

“We had no idea that our Moishy was going through major challenges until he crashed, and by then, it was too late. He was left without a yeshivah, and we all suffered a very tumultuous few months. One day, our son heard that Pele Yoetz could help, and in desperation, we made the call. They invited us for a consultation, and we went through the entire process until Moishy was happily settled and flourishing in a yeshivah that was just right for him.”

Moishy’s Father

“When I was young, I was never taught to take responsibility for myself, so I was completely unprepared to enter yeshivah ketanah. While my friends all seemed to be thriving, it wasn’t long before I found myself without a yeshivah. I hung out on the streets, and I was on the brink. At the last minute, my parents appealed to Pele Yoetz, which found me a yeshivah that was everything I wanted and more. Baruch Hashem, I did very well and went on to an excellent yeshivah gedolah.”

Duvid, 22

Pele Yoetz’s Yeshivah Placement Department mission is to assist bachurim, ages 13-20, who have completed their studies in charedi elementary schools or yeshivos ketanos find appropriate frameworks that meet their needs, academic skills and spiritual and disciplinary levels, and to campaign for their acceptance into these schools.

Our work plan consists of a three-stage process

1. Comprehensive evaluation of the bachur including:

Academic status (learning disability or specific challenge in the style of learning)
Behavioral status (social skills and status, relationship with yeshivah faculty)
Spiritual level and mitzvah observance.
Family/community background
Academic history

2. Placing the bachur in an appropriate yeshivah framework This process involves researching the yeshivah, exploring its values and rules, and assessing whether the yeshivah’s faculty is prepared to accept a child whose capacities differ from others.

3. Escorting and monitoring the bachur throughout his years in yeshivah to ensure that both the bachur and yeshivah are satisfied with the placement In the event that the bachur is unsatisfied with the choice, or the yeshivah feels that it is unviable, Pele Yoetz is on-call to facilitate both parties in working out the differences or locating a better option.

Our team is in contact with approximately 150 yeshivos throughout Eretz Yisrael, as well as with the families and bachurim themselves.

Throughout the months of yeshivah application and registration process, our Department devotes the majority of its efforts to placing bachurim in appropriate yeshivah frameworks.

During the rest of the year, our team works to assist and support youth who have not yet found an appropriate yeshivah, who left or were expelled from their respective yeshivos in order to find a proper arrangement so no bachur will be on his own.

Throughout the years, nearly every bachur who has appealed to our Yeshivah Placement Department for assistance has been successfully placed in a yeshivah that was right for him. A recent assessment conducted by Pele Yoetz indicates that 80% of bachurim whom we place in yeshivos choose to remain there until graduation, while those who are dissatisfied with the choice are given another chance as our team works to make an alternative arrangement. In several heartwarming cases, Pele Yoetz Center was recalled to facilitate a bachur’s acceptance into yeshivah gedolah following the success he encountered throughout three years in yeshivah ketanah.

Pele Yoetz’s Yeshivah Placement Department is the only organization of its kind that assists Chassidic bachurim from all streams and backgrounds find and settle into yeshivos that are right for them. On average, we assist 200 bachurim annually.