A Lifejacket for Youth at Risk

The youngest of five children born to Moroccan immigrants, Reuben used to become aggressive, get thrown out of class, and regularly be suspended. In seventh grade, Reuben started coming to Maleh, an in-school framework that provides individual attention and mentoring for students who face extreme difficulties in a traditional classroom. With coaching and support from the Maleh professionals, Reuben is completing high school, taking matriculation exams, and enlisting in the Israeli army.

"I would not have stayed in school without this program and without Rama’s help," explains the teen, who now has hope for the future.

Rama, the coordinator of Maleh in the Mateh Yehudah region of Israel, assists students who feel rejected and marginalized to see school as a positive, inviting place by providing them emotional and academic support in an alternative learning environment.

"Maleh is not just about grades," she says of the dropout prevention program. "It is about creating a connection so that they are off the streets, in school, and have a chance to be contributing members of society."

May 2008