Hausner 7th Graders Embrace Charitable Giving, Donate $42K

News from the Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School in Palo Alto:

Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School held their Celebration of Tzedakah (charitable giving) ceremony on Wednesday, May 20, reinforcing one of the pillars of Hausner’s mission: to promote community responsibility.

This moving ceremony, whereby Hausner 7th graders presented $42,000 in donations they raised to 34 non-profit, worldwide organizations, is the culmination of their Avodah La’Olam class, a philanthropy and service learning curriculum.

Over the course of the year, students researched non-profit organizations aligned with their values and commitments, and interviewed the executive directors and other professionals of their self-selected organizations. These 12- and 13-year olds learned about how non-profits work, discussed what make some organizations better run than others, and made difficult decisions about how to best allocate funds to the selected organizations.

In total, Hausner’s 7th graders have donated $576,212 through this philanthropic program since its inception in 2001.
 
Speaking to middle school students, parents, Board members, faculty and staff at last week’s celebration, the students shared about the important work these organizations do and presented the funds directly to the representatives of attending organizations. The scope of these organizations’ efforts includes compassion toward the sick, honoring God’s creations/people with special needs, peace in the home, feeding the hungry/supporting the poor, compassion to animals, protecting the environment, education, and love of Israel.

Click here for a complete list of the 34 organizations that Hausner 7th graders selected to receive their donations.


Ora Gittelson-David, 2015 “Day School category” winner of the Annual Helen Diller Family Awards for Excellence in Jewish Education and Hausner’s Service Learning Coordinator and 7th/8th grade Jewish Studies Teacher, leads the Kindergarten-8th grade Avodah La’Olam program.

Ora explained, “It’s beyond heartwarming to witness our students’ active participation in tikkun olam, repairing the world. From researching organizations to support, and raising money by babysitting; selling baked goods; letter campaigns; and donating their own B’nai Mitzvah funds; to collectively agreeing on whom to donate to. Their philanthropic efforts give us great hope that the next generation will lead the way to help others in meaningful ways.”
 
The Avodah La’Olam mission, written by students in 2013, is “To promote philanthropy to the younger generation through Jewish values, personal passions, and teamwork in order to fulfill the Jewish responsibility of Tzedakah.”



Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School, founded in 1989, is an independent community day school providing an outstanding education for close to 400 students in grades K-8 on a state-of-the-art four-acre campus in Palo Alto.

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