units-nov12 – It’s all about who

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Units: Saturday , November 12

Mandel School for Educational Leadership

The Mandel School for Educational Leadership was founded in 1991 as a joint venture of the Mandel Foundation and Israel’s Ministry of Education, with the aim of providing Israel’s education system with visionary leaders who have the passion, commitment, and practical wisdom to change Israeli society for the better.

The School’s fellows are senior educational leaders who have a proven track record of leadership in the field, high academic ability, and a commitment to improving Israeli society through education. The School offers a unique, intensive, two–year program of full–time study. The curriculum is tailored to the professional needs of each fellow and offers studies in both group and individual environments.

During their two years of study, fellows clarify their professional identity and personal values, strengthen their ability to discuss conflicting values, engage in in–depth theoretical studies, are exposed to new ideas and areas of knowledge, develop critical thinking skills, become better acquainted with the Israeli education system and its complexities, and enhance their ability to lead change.

The program emphasizes practical training based on state-of-the-art theory. It includes a group exercise and writing of a policy paper on a topic of concern to the Ministry of Education, as well as the planning of individual projects for future implementation in the field. As part of the personalized program of study for each fellow’s professional development, the School offers a continuous process of individual tutoring and group workshops, combined with reflective practices that utilize theory and practice.

Graduates of the Mandel School for Educational Leadership lead change in their professional fields, informed by the unique professional approach, values and ways of thinking that they acquired during their studies. Many of them hold key positions at the Ministry of Education or serve as directors of education departments in local authorities.

Mandel Leadership Institute

The Mandel Leadership Institute is dedicated to training social and educational leaders to serve Israel’s diverse communities and professional fields. The Institute recruits committed individuals with a proven record of leadership, a willingness to learn, and a deep commitment to improving their community, professional field, and Israeli society. Fellows come from diverse professional backgrounds in the public sector, the third sector, academia, and the Israel Defense Forces.

The Institute’s program offerings change in response to new needs and opportunities in areas and communities in which better leadership can make a real difference. Current programs target potential leaders in the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) community and in youth organizations, Jewish culture entrepreneurs, key instructors in academic institutions of teacher education, senior IDF commanders, and senior civil servants.

The Institute’s programs provide an intensive and inclusive learning environment that introduces fellows to inspiring ideas, challenges their prior conceptions and assumptions, helps them hone their personal and professional visions, allows them to reflect on their past and future practice, and supports them in developing practical ways of implementing their ideas. Each program cohort contains a diverse group of fellows, who enrich each other by providing alternative perspectives, and form groups and networks of committed leaders with common goals and a common language.

Graduates of the Institute bring about significant improvements and create new initiatives in their fields of activity, using a pluralistic approach that embraces social diversity and a multiplicity of views. Together, they are advancing a more inclusive, just, tolerant, and democratic society in Israel, in line with the values of the Mandel Foundation and in the spirit of Israel’s Declaration of Independence.

Mandel Center for Leadership in the North

The Mandel Center for Leadership in the North aims to identify potential leaders and enhance their ability to think and act in a diverse society, in a way that will benefit all the communities of Israel’s northern region while being sensitive to their different needs. This approach can serve as a model for Israeli society as a whole.

The Center focuses on leaders and potential leaders from all communities and population groups, who hold senior positions in varied professional fields in the public, nonprofit and business sectors, and who have the passion to promote a tolerant and just society and to improve the quality of life in Israel’s North.

At the core of the Center’s activities are two programs for developing social leadership – a full-time program and an in-service program. A third program empowers senior civil servants to find new and lasting solutions for the North, and to increase the equity of public services. These programs create a space for study and action in which fellows deepen their ability to analyze challenges from wide historical and contemporary perspectives, weigh moral and ethical considerations, and plan and develop comprehensive responses to improve life in the North.

The three programs share a common core curriculum, tailored to the focus of each program. Core studies include humanities, social studies, and public policy, all as related to the specific context of the North. The core curriculum also includes the study of leadership and the acquisition of skills.

The Center cultivates an active network of graduates who work to further the Center’s goals – both individually and in collaboration with each other. It also offers special management courses to help increase the effectiveness and impact of its graduates.

Mandel Center for Leadership in the Negev

The Mandel Center for Leadership in the Negev aims to improve the quality of life in the Negev by developing strong and vibrant social and educational leadership founded on vision, values, and expertise, which will lead practical initiatives and bring positive change to the region. The Center’s fellows are Negev residents from diverse professional fields, localities, and social backgrounds, who have demonstrated a commitment to improving life in the Negev and have the potential to achieve real social impact.

The Center offers two types of programs: regional programs and theme-based programs. Regional leadership programs bring together local leaders from different sectors and professions who live in the same region and empower them to take on leadership roles in public service and civil society and to enhance education, welfare, health, and community life in the entire region. Every two years a different region is selected, alternating between the Jewish and Arab- Bedouin sectors. Theme-based programs train leaders from across the entire Negev who wish to promote a specific field and thereby impact life in the Negev. The Center’s current theme-based program focuses on culture.

All programs share a core curriculum, with additional elements tailored to the specific needs of the region or theme. Theoretical studies include philosophy, identity, and worldviews; Negev society; public policy and governance; and leadership and leading change. The programs also include a practical component, in which fellows develop initiatives through which they can realize their vision for improving Negev life. Implementation begins during the program itself, guided by the Center’s faculty and specialists in the field.

The Center’s graduates share a common understanding of leadership and desire to drive change, and work together as part of a broad and diverse community of Mandel Negev graduates who are creating bridges between different localities, population groups, and professional fields for the benefit of all Negev residents.

Mandel Graduate Unit

The Mandel Graduate Unit serves graduates of core Mandel programs who are active in serving society and are interested in intellectual and professional development and in being involved in the graduate network. The Unit currently maintains ongoing professional connections with approximately 2,000 graduates, and this number is growing significantly every year.

The Graduate Unit offers a range of learning processes, supports graduates in tackling professional challenges, and facilitates professional connections and collaborations. It seeks to help graduates navigate their complex environments, encourages them to continue asking big ethical questions, and serves as a professional home to support them in their ongoing journey as leaders of change.

The learning processes offered by the Graduate Unit reflects its approach to leadership development. These processes include short–term, theme–based courses, focusing on topics such as inequality, education, and the changing public sphere; continued intellectual development through courses in the humanities on subjects such as political philosophy or classic Islamic and Jewish texts; and courses designed to improve the ability to lead change, such as storytelling, database management, and adaptive leadership.

The Unit also offers action groups for leading change in areas such as reducing violence in the Arab sector, gender relations, and improving teachers’ working conditions. It has offered two intensive long–term workshops: an accelerator for social entrepreneurship that has enabled ten graduates to turn their ideas into viable products; and an impact lab that developed sustainable solutions to issues related to inequality in education. The Unit offers graduates ongoing opportunities for professional development, equips them with cutting–edge knowledge and promotes professional connections and collaborations between graduates. In so doing, it significantly increases the impact of Mandel graduates as leaders driving change.