Israel Scholarship Education Foundation

Israel Scholarship Education Foundation ISEF transforms marginalized young Israeli lives through higher education

As 2026 begins, we thank the donors whose commitment carried ISEF and its students through a complex and demanding year....
12/31/2025

As 2026 begins, we thank the donors whose commitment carried ISEF and its students through a complex and demanding year.

Your support gave students stability when they needed it most. It funded scholarships, mentorship, leadership programs, and steady guidance across campuses. It helped students stay focused on their studies, grow as leaders, and move forward with confidence, even when circumstances were uncertain.

Because of you, ISEF remained a constant presence in students’ lives. You strengthened their sense of belonging, reinforced academic persistence, and helped turn potential into progress.

Thank you for standing with our students and our community. Wishing you health, strength, and hope in the year ahead.

Happy New Year!

What a year of growth it's been!Across Israel, ISEF expanded its reach and strengthened the support around each scholar....
12/29/2025

What a year of growth it's been!

Across Israel, ISEF expanded its reach and strengthened the support around each scholar. Through scholarships, academic mentoring, leadership development, and structured community frameworks, ISEF scholars received financial support to complete their studies, while gaining stability and a place to connect with others like them, especially during moments of uncertainty.

ISEF worked across campuses and regions, including the north and south, to ensure students from diverse communities had consistent access to opportunity. First generation scholars navigated higher education with mentors by their side. STEM students, educators, medical students, and researchers studied with focus. Alumni remained part of the ecosystem, mentoring new scholars and reinforcing a cycle of responsibility and leadership.

This is what progress looks like when support is intentional and long term. If you wish to help more students grow through ISEF’s programs, you can be part of what comes next.
https://www.iseffoundation.org/many-ways-to-give/

This is how leadership is built. Through consistency, accountability, and care. The Nesher Academy is a local ISEF initi...
12/26/2025

This is how leadership is built. Through consistency, accountability, and care.

The Nesher Academy is a local ISEF initiative that supports students from the city of Nesher as they transition from school into higher education. Many are first in their families to pursue academic degrees. Many do so while carrying financial pressure and military or national service. It provides structure, mentoring, and a steady community so students do not face this transition alone.

The academy brought together academy coordinators, mentors, and program leaders to align on the year ahead. One of the most powerful moments came from an academy graduate who returned from active service to speak with the mentors. He shared what it meant to study, serve, and carry responsibility at the same time. His presence made clear that success grows when students know they are not carrying the weight alone.

Community is what keeps ISEF students enrolled, grounded, and willing to ask for help in academic spaces that can feel unfamiliar or overwhelming. Your support funds the structures that turn education into stability and commitment into future leadership.

The first steps toward leadership often happen quietly. A decision to take responsibility for others. The ISEF mentoring...
12/24/2025

The first steps toward leadership often happen quietly. A decision to take responsibility for others.

The ISEF mentoring program brings students into classrooms where they guide teens, strengthen motivation, and open doors to higher education. The first training session focused on understanding the program, setting expectations, and building skills in communication and public speaking.

Our students shared a clear goal. They want to grow as mentors, keep a positive atmosphere, and reach every teen with patience and presence. Their growth reflects ISEF’s mission to prepare future leaders who serve their communities with empathy and commitment.

Your support helps them continue this work. Every training session becomes another step toward stronger role models and wider access to education.

12/22/2025

Gratitude defines this season, and hope defines what comes next.

During this year's Hanukkah celebration, ISEF students shared their wishes for the future.
Some spoke about exams and careers. Others spoke about peace and family. Each response reflected quiet determination and trust in the path ahead.

Held at the Fiverr offices in Tel Aviv, this gathering connected learning with possibility.
Experiences like this help students imagine themselves in professional spaces they are preparing to enter through education.

We wish you a final Happy Hannukah and thank you for making these moments possible. Your support sustains students long after the candles are lit.

Interested in learning more about partnering with ISEF?
https://www.iseffoundation.org/many-ways-to-give/what-your-gift-supports/

Some achievements remind us why educational opportunity matters. This is one of them. ISEF alumnus Prof. Eli Avraham has...
12/18/2025

Some achievements remind us why educational opportunity matters. This is one of them.

ISEF alumnus Prof. Eli Avraham has released ’From David to Goliath: Detailed Review of How Israel is Portrayed in Global Media". The book studies how narratives form, how local and international institutions influence coverage, and how bias leads to a persistent gap between events and global perception. It also links these patterns to the rise in antisemitism and offers strategies for stronger communication.

Prof. Avraham is the head of the Comper Center for the Study of Antisemitism and Racism at the אוניברסיטת חיפה - University of Haifa. He founded the Ambassadors on the Network program and developed a master’s track that prepares students to address modern antisemitism. His work shows what happens when talented students receive the support needed to advance, research, and contribute at the highest level.

Donor support turns these stories into reality. It provides students with access to education, mentorship, and long-term leadership pathways. Each graduate who reaches this level reflects the generosity and belief of the community that stands behind ISEF.

If you want to explore or purchase the book, use the link below.
https://www.carmelph.co.il/product/from-david-to-goliath/

Our Northern Program's recent gathering brought students, alumni, and partners into one shared space of purpose. Tal Elb...
12/16/2025

Our Northern Program's recent gathering brought students, alumni, and partners into one shared space of purpose. Tal Elbusi, ISEF project manager, kicked off the event with an activity showing how scholarships and leadership training create mobility for students who begin their journey without equal resources.

Dana Segal, scholarships lead at Braude College of Engineering in Karmiel, introduced the support available on campus and highlighted how collaboration with ISEF strengthens student achievement.

Prof. Osnat Akirav, ISEF alumna and a leading scholar in democracy studies, spoke about activism, responsibility, and the courage to speak up, demonstrating to students how education becomes influence and influence becomes service.

The morning continued with group activities where students explored shared goals and defined the values that guide their year. These moments grow confidence and create a community that lasts well beyond graduation.

Hannukah reminds us that light grows when people stand together.Across Israel, ISEF scholars continue their studies beca...
12/14/2025

Hannukah reminds us that light grows when people stand together.

Across Israel, ISEF scholars continue their studies because they know a community stands behind them. Your commitment creates stability, access, and a sense of belonging that carries students through demanding years of learning and leadership.

This season, we thank you for being part of the ISEF community. Your presence keeps education strong and shared. Hannukah sameach.

“I have learned much from my teachers, more from my colleagues, but most of all from my students.” — Talmud Ta’anitThe l...
12/12/2025

“I have learned much from my teachers, more from my colleagues, but most of all from my students.” — Talmud Ta’anit

The launch of the Benardete Bridge To College year highlighted something essential about the ISEF model: our scholars they create more success around them.

Powered by the Luna and Selim Benardete family, the program reaches teens in underserved areas while shaping ISEF scholars into the kind of leaders who will one day return as alumni, mentors, and role models.

When our students mentor teens in underserved neighborhoods, they are not just helping someone earn a diploma, but they themselves are developing leadership, confidence, communication skills, and a deep sense of purpose.

They see what it means to be part of a chain that starts by receiving support, and then passing it forward.

One of our coordinators, Eden Ganen, shared how guiding a young woman reshaped her own understanding of what she’s capable of, while a local mother shared with the group that all three of her children had ISEF mentors, proof that one scholar can spark change across a family. ISEF alumnus Guy Zuzut, Director of Beit Dani, a community center in south Tel Aviv, gave everyone a tour of the facility remind them that teaching others strengthens your own identity and commitment to community.

This is how ISEF grows: students lifting students, generation after generation.

Learn more:
https://www.iseffoundation.org/programs/bridge-to-college/

The ISEF PhD Program opened its year with a clear reminder. ISEF supports young students, yet we also walk with scholars...
12/10/2025

The ISEF PhD Program opened its year with a clear reminder. ISEF supports young students, yet we also walk with scholars who are already far along in their academic path and still need community and support to reach the next stage.

The opening gathering brought our leadership and fellows together with purpose. Nina Avidar Weiner, Prof. Moshe Elkabets, Galit Caspi Cohen, and Prof. Yafit Sulimani welcomed the cohort and spoke about the meaning of excellence and responsibility. Their message affirmed that advanced scholars also need a strong network to continue rising.

Prof. Simcha Getahune, senior lecturer in education, Chair of the National Ethiopian Jewish Heritage Center, and co-founder of ELEM/Youth in Distress in Israel, shared her journey as an ISEF alumna. She described her challenges, her progress, and the choices that shaped her academic and public leadership.

Her story gave the fellows a clear reminder that even established scholars benefit from support, persistence, and community.

Your support gives these scholars the ability to stay enrolled, complete their degrees, and lead change across Israeli society.

12/08/2025

Sometimes hope begins in the moment you refuse to stop.

Eden had already enrolled in university and applied to ISEF when October 7 changed everything. Her cousin was kidnapped that morning. Her home turned quiet and her plans froze. For weeks she believed she would never begin her degree. Still, she showed up. Her family joined rallies, hung posters, and handed out flyers. She even organized an event at her university where students gathered, spoke about him, and sang songs for his strength.

Through ISEF’s support, Eden started her studies two months after the attack. As a first generation student she carried more than academic pressure. She carried fear, uncertainty, and public advocacy on behalf of her family. ISEF stood with her and made it possible for her to continue moving forward in a moment when nothing felt secure.

Awarding excellence that reflects both mind and character. The Joe Aiken Award celebrates a student who reaches strong r...
12/05/2025

Awarding excellence that reflects both mind and character.

The Joe Aiken Award celebrates a student who reaches strong results in STEM and also builds a life shaped by purpose, service, and personal growth. It recognizes that the next generation of scientific leaders must carry values that extend beyond the classroom or the lab.

This annual award inspires students to aim high in research and to show leadership in the way they live, learn, and contribute to those around them. It reflects the vision that drives ISEF and the belief that talent grows best when rooted in responsibility.

Join us in supporting the students who carry this legacy forward.
https://www.iseffoundation.org/many-ways-to-give/

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New York, NY

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Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 3pm

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+12126837772

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