I
Publisher's Letter
The Allure Of Israel
ev Rudberg, Jason Noah and Sarah Rabin never
expected to be- studying abroad under these circum-
stances. The Tulane University students were accus-
tomed to fickle hurricane forecasts, including one in 2004,
right before Rosh Hashanah, that led to the evacuation of the
school's New Orleans campus.
But there was nothing fickle about
Katrina this year. As it devastated New
Orleans, it also sent Tulane students
scrambling to salvage their fall semes-
ters. Noah, a sophomore from East
Brunswick, N.J., and Rabin, a freshman
from Denver, were in temporary states
of denial. Meanwhile, Rudberg, a sopho-
more from Dallas, registered at the
Arthur M. • University of Texas-Dallas, then at
Southern Methodist University, and
Horwitz
lined
up an engineering internship.
Publisher
Today, they are students at the
Hebrew University in Jerusalem, part of a group of 20 Tulane
students who are studying in Israel this semester at the
Hebrew University, Tel Aviv University, Haifa University, Ben
Gurion University and Bar-Ilan University through the
efforts of the government of Israel, the Jewish Agency for
Israel and Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life:
While Zev, Jason and Sarah expect to be back at Tulane in
time for the-school's Jan. 17 reopening, the nimbleness with
Z
Israelis moved quickly to
help New Orleans students.
which Israel's universities and infamous bureaucracy
responded with scholarships, travel assistance, credit trans-
fers and crash courses in Hebrew bode well for MASA
(Hebrew for" journey"),.an umbrella initiative undertaken by
the goverriment and the Jewish Agency.
Launched with fanfare in 2004 by Prime Minister Ariel
Sharon, the $200 million MASA initiative intends to bring 20
percent of all diaspora Jews in the 18- to 30-year-old age
cohort to Israel by 2010 for extended periods of study, pro-
fessional development or aliyah (immigration). Dollars from
the MASA budget were made available to the Tulane stu-
dents.
For Alan Hoffman, the director general of the Jewish
Agency's Jewish-Zionist Education Department, a year in
Israel must become a rite of passage for every Jewish young
adult. The MASA initiative will build on existing programs,
such as the successful Birthright trips by college-aged Stu-
dents and summer teen trips, creating hundreds of new
opportunities to study or provide service in Israel. It will also
provide the marketing heft required to keep these opportuni-
ties top of mind for the target audience.
Meanwhile, Zev, Jason and Sarah have adjusted quickly to
their new surroundings in Jerusalem ... in part because of
their existing bond with Israel. Zev was a participant on a
March of the Living program to Poland and Israel. Jason has
been to Israel twice before and has family in Netanya. Sarah
participated in a five-weekprogram last summer through
her community's Agency of Jewish Education that included
Poland and Israel.
"I had intended to go to Israel in the near future Sarah
said during a recent meeting in Jerusalem. "I went to
Colorado University and, after a week, I contacted one of my
Tulane professors, who said it was OK to go to Israel. I spoke
to MASA (I didn't know about the scholarship) and came to
Israel about a week later." El
DONATE
YOUR
CAR!
JARC recently purchased a
much-needed van with the
proceeds of donated vehicles...
your gift
WILL make
a difference!
248
538.6611
garc
For 36 years,
helping people with
disabilities be included in
their community — all
through their lives.
www.jarc.org
Jason Noah, 19, of New Brunswick, N.J., and Zev Rudberg, 20, of Dallas on the campus of Hebrew
University on Mt. Scopus in Jerusalem
30301 Northwestern Highway
Suite 100
Farmington Hills, MI 483
,nr
December 8 • 2005
5