Early Childhood

Parents and Children Together (PACT & PACT Plus) works to respond to the mounting educational difficulties within the Ethiopian-Israeli community and to bridge the academic and social gaps between Ethiopian-Israeli preschoolers and their veteran Israeli peers. 

Adopting a holistic approach, PACT provides comprehensive educational and community services for Ethiopian-Israeli preschoolers, while at the same time offering targeted training and support to their parents, local educators and service providers. Each framework includes welfare, education, and health-related programs. PACT activities include a host of programs including supplementary literacy and mathematics lessons and after-school enrichment.

PACT engages Ethiopian-Israeli parents in multi-cultural parent-child activities that work to strengthen the bond between parent and child, as well as to encourage and facilitate communication between Ethiopian-Israeli parents and school staff. In addition, specially trained PACT educational liaisons bridge the cultural barriers between veteran Israeli school staff and Ethiopian-Israeli parents, while at the same time helping teachers incorporate aspects of Ethiopian culture into the curriculum. Based on the PACT model, PACT Plus provides academic and social support to Ethiopian-Israeli first and second graders, with the goal of easing their transition into the formal education system and ensuring a strong educational foundation for the children's continued academic success.