The Nativ College Leadership Program in Israel (, lt. path) is a nine-month, post-high-school gap year program in Israel for mostly North American Jews. It operates under the auspices of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, and draws its participants mostly from USY and Ramah camps.
About Nativ
Nativ is the academic gap-year program of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ). Founded in 1981 as an opportunity for high school graduates to gain insight into Judaism and Israel through academic studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and volunteering on a religious kibbutz, Nativ has expanded to multiple tracks of academic and social justice volunteer programming over its 40 years of existence. The Nativ program has over 2,000 alumni (Nativ.org). Nativ is based at the Shirley & Jacob Fuchsberg Center for Conservative Judaism, located in Jerusalem at 6 Agron Street. Nativers live at Beit Nativ, the adjoining youth hostel at 8 Agron Street, which is minutes away from Ben Yehuda Street and Emek Refaim.
History and Purpose
Nativ was founded in 1981 as Conservative Judaism’s answer to similar year-long, post-high school programs like the nonpartisan but Zionist Young Judaea Year Course (founded in 1956). Nativ serves as a form of continuity for members of the Conservative movement’s youth programs including United Synagogue Youth (USY) and Ramah Camps. Additionally, the Nativ program engages and prepares participants for Jewish life in college and leadership roles in Conservative synagogues and the larger Jewish community later in life.
Nativ (“path”) refers to a path from youth to adulthood that includes Jewish education, Israel, and communal engagement and references the lyrics sung in synagogues as the Torah is removed from the Torah Ark: “Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace (Proverbs 3:17).”
Leadership
There have been five Nativ Directors since 1981: Shimon Lipsky (Nativ 1-8), David Keren (Nativ 9-24), Yossi Garr (Nativ 25-38), Nahum Binder (Interim Director, Nativ 39-40), and Sara Miriam Liben (Nativ 41-Presnet) (Facebook, “Nativ Program”). Prior to serving as Nativ Director, both Yossi Garr and Nahum Binder served as Nativ staff members- Mr. Garr on Nativ 16 and Mr. Binder on Nativ 19 and 21.
Participants
Nativ is USCJ’s college leadership program in Israel for in-bound college freshman from North America. Nativ’s website describes itself as “a powerful immersive experience for the Conservative Jewish leaders of tomorrow.” Of its alumni, Nativ says they, “enter college life infused with leadership skills and a focus on supporting the Jewish community (Web Archive, Nativ.org). Nativ participants are between the ages of 18 and 19 years old from North America and must have completed high school or equivalency. The majority of Nativ participants receive college acceptance and defer admission for one year. Candidates for Nativ apply through the International Office of United Synagogue Youth in New York and require a personal interview with a Nativ representative. Admission decisions are made by a joint committee of United Synagogue and Hebrew University/Oranim College or Conservative Yeshiva personnel. Candidates are evaluated based upon academic qualifications, leadership ability, and “commitment to the principles for which Nativ stands (Ibid.).”
Nativ allows participants to earn 12-16 college credits that may be transferable upon continuing studies. Nativ graduates have gone on to attend every Ivy League university, the University of California system, York University, McGill University, and the George Washington University among others (Nativ.org).
The Nativ Program
Nativ describes its purpose as providing, “a unique opportunity to explore new directions on the journey to becoming a Jewish adult (Web Archive, Nativ.org).”
The Nativ program consists of two components: Fall and Spring. During the Fall, Nativ participants have the option of participating in several tracks: Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Ulpan Hebrew language intensive, or the Conservative Yeshiva. In the Spring, participants volunteer in community service projects throughout Israel (Ibid.). From 1981-2005, the Spring semester was spent on Kibbutz Sa’ad- a religious kibbutz in the Negev Desert. As the Nativ program expanded, Kibbutz Sa’ad could no longer accommodate Nativ with enough volunteer opportunities or housing. Today, Nativ participants spend their Spring semester volunteering in the Yemin Orde Youth Village.