Meet Chaim Peri
Chaim Peri served as educator and director of Yemin Orde Youth Village in Israel for 30 years, touching the lives of thousands of at-
risk children, both immigrant and Israeli born. Today, he serves as Founder of Yemin Orde's Village Way Educational Initiatives and oversees the expansion of the successful Village Way educational methodology into 36 of Israel's youth villages, public high schools and therapeutic residential communities. By 2021, VWEI plans to expand to 59 educational communities in Israel, serving 25,000 youth.
Achievements include
1994: Initiate the Steering Center of Ethiopian Educational Affairs at the Ministry of Education;
1995: Establishment of the Shvut Am Institute at Yemin Orde, which addresses the identity conflicts of adolescent immigrants;
2000: Establishment of Yemin Orde’s Mechina, Pre-Military Leadership Program for Immigrant Youth in Hatzor, a town in the Upper Galilee.
In 2007, Chaim launched Yemin Orde's Village Way Educational Initiatives, an independent educational project aimed at rejuvenating youth villages throughout Israel, based on the successful philosophy and methodology developed at Yemin Orde Youth Village. The Educational Initiatives reflects Yemin Orde’s values of diversity, pluralism, service to the community, Jewish identity and spirituality.
AWARDS
Chaim Peri has been recognized for his work on behalf of Israel’s youth. He received Prime Minister Shimon Peres' "Guardian of the Child" Award, and was honored to light a ceremonial torch during the official opening of a Independence Day celebrations in Jerusalem.
In 2007, he was awarded the Exemplary Educator Award by the Minister of Education.
Peri holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bar Ilan University, a Masters degree from Columbia, and a Doctorate in Education from the University of London.
In May of 2013, Chaim Peri, received an honorary doctorate of 
Humane Letters at Brandeis University’s commencement ceremonies. Click here to read about this special honor.
In November 2014, Chaim Peri was honored with the World of Children Alumni Award, a global recognition of those working to dramatically improve the lives of children. The award is often cited as the Nobel Prize for Children's Advocates. Click here to read about this event.
Chaim Peri's Book
Teenagers Educated The Village Way will inspire readers from the very first pages.
From internationally-known visionary educator, Chaim Peri, come poignant stories of children born into precarious circumstances but who receive a second chance at leading a wholesome and successful life. In sharing his own childhood experiences in Israeli orphanages, Chaim is able to connect to the same feeling of loss and abandonment as the at-risk immigrant children at Yemin Orde Youth Village. This book is a brilliant testament to the power of creating communities of meaning.
Chaim Peri speaks from the heart in a direct, personal voice that carries readers on a journey into the psyche of an at-risk child.
To Buy Chaim’s Book
Contact the Friends of Yemin Orde national office at 202-237-0296 or email [email protected] for information on how to obtain a paperback copy of this book. This book is also available on Amazon.com in Kindle format.
In May 2018, Chaim Peri received the ImpactIsrael Tikkun Ha'Lev Award at an international gala in New York city.