Adi Center
School and Drop-In Centers
The Adi Center provides a safe, structured, and culturally sensitive educational environment for ultra-Orthodox girls who have disengaged from traditional schools. Operating as a school during the day and an after-school center in the afternoon, Adi offers both academic learning and emotional support.
Many of the girls who come to Adi have faced challenges such as neglect, abuse, or the inability to remain in a regular school setting. Through compassionate guidance, individualized care, and academic advancement, the Adi Center helps each girl regain stability, rebuild self-confidence, and create a brighter, more hopeful future.
Who We Serve and Why It’s Important
Adi is dedicated to supporting teenage girls from the Haredi (Ultra-Orthodox) community, one of Israel’s most underserved populations. These young women often fall through the cracks of mainstream services, facing pressures and challenges that are rarely acknowledged outside their community.
These girls, ages 15–18, live in Beit Shemesh, a growing city between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and have dropped out of school or withdrawn from traditional social or family frameworks. Many face dysfunctional family dynamics, emotional distress, struggles with religious identity, and mental health challenges. Without intervention, they risk isolation, limited opportunities, and disconnection from both higher education and society.
The program provides them with culturally sensitive, trauma-informed counseling and a space where they can find safety and support. By honoring their traditions while addressing their urgent needs, Adi helps these girls navigate crises, build resilience, and envision a future with unlimited possibilities.
What Happens at Adi Center
At Adi, participants spend their days in a warm, structured environment that balances academics with personal growth. Girls receive individualized support to prepare for their Bagrut (Israel’s matriculation exam), engage in life skills workshops, and receive ongoing emotional counseling. While they continue to live at home, the center functions as a safe, consistent anchor in their lives that restores stability and builds resilience. Adi’s culturally sensitive model ensures that participants can grow and heal within a familiar framework, while gaining the tools to reintegrate into broader society.
Where We Operate
Holon, Ofakim, Netanya, Tveria, Kiryat Mal’achi, Acre
Expansion
With your support, ELEM aims to:
- Expand Adi Center’s capacity to accommodate more girls in need
- Increase staffing to better support the girls academically and emotionally
- Enhance curriculum and workshops focused on life skills and personal empowerment
- Strengthen ties with families and community institutions to ensure sustainable reintegration