MENIFA's Uniqueness – An Educational Intervention Program
Emphasis on working with and inside normative institutions – MENIFA groups operate inside or on the vicinity of schools, because we aim to reintegrate our youth within normative educational institutions. The physical closeness helps them feel that they are still connected to the institution.
Holistic accompaniment/guidance of participants – therapeutic/educational/mental – we take care of participants' welfare from all aspects.
Working on the three circles of detachment: Detachment from family – even when detachment is mental and not physical (meaning the teenager still lives at home).
Detachment from normative - MENIFA sees the detachment as a temporary crisis and is not willing to perpetuate this situation.
Detachment from community – Although many teenagers face identity issues, most of them express a wish not to severe all ties to their community.
Therapeutic Outdoor Workshops – MENIFA sees these workshops as an integral part of working with youth at risk. MENIFA has been incorporating them into the curriculum since the day it was established. The importance of the workshops in that they instill in the youth a sense of responsibility and belief in their ability to succeed in all conditions and circumstances.
Working with at risk youth from different sectors of Israeli society and especially with religious teens. We bring to the programs our in-depth understanding and knowledge of the unique characteristics of the religious sector.
Employing and Training Intern Teachers – In all our programs we employ intern teachers for various subjects. The advantage of this is multiple: teachers in the outset of their career learn valuable lessons and gain important insights about working with at risk youth and how to reach out to them. On the other hand because they have no prior experience of the education system they are not tainted by existing approaches and attitudes (which more often than not are not beneficial to drop out youth).
