Yemin Orde Educational Initiatives is designed to broaden the impact of the Yemin Orde education philosophy to help the world’s at-risk youth population live a secure and productive life.

For example, the YOEI approach is implemented at Rwanda’s Agahozo Shalom Youth Village and is seen in Yemin Orde’s Mechina, a pre-military leadership program for immigrant youth in Hatzor, Israel. In the United States, the values of Yemin Orde are part of the programming and educational approach at Philadelphia’s Arise Academy Charter High School and at San Diego’s San Pasqual Academy.  

The overall goal of the Educational Initiatives is to have a positive impact on the education system of Israeli society. This paradigm shift in educational philosophy is facilitated through the Derech Kfar (The Village Way) Educational Institute – the heart of Yemin Orde Educational Initiatives.  

Derech Kfar (The Village Way) Educational Institute
The Derech Kfar Institute was established to provide innovative and timely educational solutions for Israel’s immigrants and youth-at-risk. Derech Kfar is based on the successful educational philosophy and novel programs developed over 30 years at Yemin Orde Youth Village under the leadership of visionary educator Dr. Chaim Peri. Derech Kfar aims to infuse educators with educational methodologies which will enable them to provide children at-risk with the tools to overcome their troubled pasts, reach their potential, and succeed.

Institute programs take place in four different forums:

• Staff Training Programs
• Beit Midrash (case studies are discussed in context of tradition and heritage)
• Mentoring and Guidance (Institute staff provides 1:1 mentoring)
• Educators’ Forum (Staff members share experiences, problem-solve and brainstorm.)

In October 2007, the Ministry of Education formally endorsed Yemin Orde’s methodologies as the “leading conceptual and applicable framework of [the government’s] "rejuvenation of youth villages in Israel" program.  

Derech Kfar's methodology focuses on transforming declining youth villages into dynamic frameworks for youth at-risk. Derech Kfar aims to “deinstitutionalize” the institutions and to provide these children with the security and advantages that every child deserves.  

The Derech Kfar Staff 
The Derech Kfar Educational Institute staff includes a team of outstanding educators, each with a deep understanding and successful history of working with children-at-risk. The team is led by Dotan Levi, an experienced educator and senior staff member at Yemin Orde for more than 15 years.

Learn more about Chaim Peri.

Learn more about Yemin Orde Youth Village.