Alliance – Kol Israel Haverim (KIAH) is a leading educational organization in Israel, and part of the Alliance Israélite Universelle organization that was established in 1860 in France in order to promote solidarity among Jews worldwide. The founders of Alliance Israélite Universelle created a bold educational framework enabling Jewish pupils in Islamic countries to integrate into their surrounding environment by providing them with modern education while simultaneously strengthening their Jewish traditions.
Over a million students have passed through Alliance Israelite Universelle – KIAH (Kol Israel Haverim) institutes and programs.
In Israel, Kol Israel Haverim (KIAH) works within formal and informal educational frameworks and reaches over 50,000 people a year across Israeli society, with a focus on the country’s social and geographic peripheries. KIAH works towards two main goals:
- Advance educational excellence for all children regardless of socio-economic status or geographic location that in turn will lead to increased social mobility.
- Offer a Jewish education that emphasizes social responsibility and involvement, while cultivating Jewish leadership committed to social activism.
KIAH’s committed partners include government ministries, foundations, Jewish Federations, hi-tech companies, and private donors in Israel and abroad.
Israeli society has become polarized due to the lack of a shared Jewish language and knowledge base, increased alienation from Jewish roots, and the absence of identification with the collective Jewish story. KIAH has developed an effective response that includes innovative educational models and programs to fostering tolerance by embracing Jewish cultural traditions and promoting social mobility. KIAH operates in the areas of: ‘Jewish Identity’ that increases a sense of personal empowerment, ‘Educational Excellence’ that open the doors for pupils from socio-geographic peripheral regions to a better and brighter future, and ‘Welfare and Social Resilience’ that provides welfare and support for youth at risk. These programs and activities are crucial for underprivileged pupils and students from socio – geographic peripheral regions that require equal opportunities to access high quality education in their areas and benefit greatly from local leadership-led volunteer programs that nurture their communities.
To this end, KIAH is active throughout Israel in over 50 municipalities providing pedagogic support for teachers and operating school programs that promote Zionism, social Jewish values and civic identity in more than 90 schools. KIAH is also active in the broader community accommodating youth at risk, new immigrants, students, and leadership groups enabling them to increase their social and economic integration into society.