Teens who participate in Center for Israel Education programs report gaining enhanced Jewish identity, a need to educate others, valuable interactions with Jewish peers, and content knowledge on issues such as the Hamas-Israel war, Diaspora-Israel relations and responses to hate.
Program Summary
At least twice a year, CIE convenes Israel learning sessions for pre-collegiate Jewish teens. The sessions typically last four hours and are held in person, online or both in hybrid fashion. Topics include Jewish peoplehood, the origins of Zionism and evolution of Israel, contemporary Jewish/Israeli issues, challenges and solutions for remaining proudly Jewish at college, the meaning behind common terms and phrases used against Israel, and Israel in the media. Students grapple with understanding antisemitism and how to respond to its variations, with evidence and with effectiveness.
Since 2018, CIE’s Teen Israel Leadership Institute programs have reached 400 teens in the Southeast, across the United States, Mexico and Canada, and occasionally in Europe.
Parents and participants have shown uniform enthusiasm for these interactive engagements with peers. The following are Jewish students’ comments about their participation, with the location and date of the session each attended.
On Jewish Identity and Community
“I learned about college experiences from the college panel. This was my favorite part. I also want to talk to my family about what I learned today and maybe speak publicly. I especially enjoyed making more Jewish friends.” — Zeneva, Raleigh, February 2025
“With this knowledge, I hope to be inspired to make more of an impact in my community. I was inspired by the college students’ actions.” — Jonathan S., Atlanta, 2024
“It was a valuable experience that I believe will help me in advocating for and supporting the Jewish community.” — Yonatan B., Atlanta, November 2024
“The program really cemented the ideas and values that I associate with my Jewish identity.” — Felix F., Atlanta, November 2024
“My experience today reinforced my commitment to learning about and gaining more tools to fight for Israel. I learned about the power of antisemitism and the careful and complicated ways by which to approach it. I plan to use this knowledge as a stepping-stool to my goals of Israeli advocacy.” — Matan F., Atlanta, November 2024
“This session made me proud to be Jewish.” — Avner B., Atlanta, November 2023
“This experience helped me reflect on what’s happening in Israel and my role in it. One main takeaway for me is the idea that Judaism and your commitment to Israel looks different for each individual, and no one way is correct.” — Anna K., Atlanta, November 2023
“I learned a lot about the history of why Jews are hated. After this, I learned that I need to do more within my community to educate people. I also need to show pride in order to combat the antisemitism.” — Aiden C., Atlanta, November 2023
“I learned about how Jews have come together as a community for thousands of years.” — Nina L., Atlanta, November 2023
“I think the values and topics that we discussed were extremely important and gave me a lot more knowledge on my Jewish history. I learned about my Jewish heritage and history, the conflicts going on now in Israel, and the governmental structure.” Jake B., Atlanta, February 2023
“I liked discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I also liked meeting new people in the community similar to me.” — Daron B., Atlanta, February 2023
On Educating Others
“I think today provided me a deeper education on the development of Israel through the founding Zionists. I can help teach people who might not know the meaning of the myths and propaganda about Israel and Jewish people.” — Sigmund, Raleigh, February 2025
“I learned about the many biases against Israel and how to respond to them. I can now tell people about Israel and antisemitism.” — Anna, Raleigh, February 2025
“I want to educate people about the meaning and misuse of common euphemisms surrounding the Jewish people.” — Lyla, Raleigh, February 2025
“I learned that it’s important to underscore that Israel was not created due to antisemitism, and if that’s all one focuses on, they may be denying the legitimacy of Israel. With this knowledge I will continue to educate to uneducated about this topic.” — Doron W., Atlanta, November 2024
“I will use this knowledge in future conversations concerning Israel, and I will educate friends/family.” — Madison D., Atlanta, November 2024
“I learned a lot of things that I didn’t know. I’m definitely going to use this knowledge to educate my friends.” — Ron K., Atlanta, November 2024
“I learned more about the Israel-Hamas war and how to answer more questions when my peers ask me. With this I will be able to share more with other people and know how to answer when someone asks me about it.” — Guy O., Atlanta, November 2024
“I learned the importance of civil discourse and how to engage people who are uneducated on the history of Israel. With this information, I am inspired to study Israeli history to strengthen my understanding of the conflict.” — Eli B., Atlanta, November 2023
“I believe that this program was incredibly informational. I will use this knowledge to inform friends and family.” — Owen G., Atlanta, November 2023
“Today was a very beneficial experience. It gave me ideas on how to lead similar events for my BBYO community and what types of components should go into an event like this.” — Lindsay G., Atlanta, November 2023
“I will spread this knowledge with my community to raise awareness about antisemitism and the conflict.” — Jaron A., Atlanta, November 2023
“I realized how much I need to learn about Israel and its history to understand and have conversations about Israel with my peers.” — Sam S., Atlanta, November 2023
“I also learned that we need to go further in educating our community than just social media.” — Noah L., Atlanta, November 2023
“I learned how to approach the difficult conversations with peers.” — Bailey Z., Atlanta, November 2023
“I will use this knowledge to help educate my peers about this conflict.” — Eli L., Atlanta, November 2023
On Information Learned
“I learned how to deal with issues as they arise in school and on social media. I especially enjoyed the college student panel talking about the experiences and responses in college to protesters.” — Callum, Raleigh, February 2025
“I learned about the relationship between being Jewish and Zionism. I especially enjoyed learning the lies and myths about Jews being colonizers and white settlers.” — Maya, Raleigh, February 2025
“I learned about the complexities surrounding the modern state of Israel. I also learned the ways antisemitism and Israel’s protesters use misinformation and hate to further their own agenda. I hope to educate my peers and others who do not know or understand. I especially enjoyed the dialogue with people at my table.” — Ethan, Raleigh, February 2025
“I learned a lot about Israel and strategies to combat antisemitism. It was incredibly informative and eye-opening, providing me with new perspectives and tools. The speakers were passionate and knowledgeable, which made the sessions engaging and impactful.” — Yonatan B., Atlanta, November 2024
“Today taught me the truth about what’s happening in Israel. Some key lessons that I learned today are that you shouldn’t be stuck in a certain mindset, many people don’t fully know the history of Jews and Israel or omit it, media don’t always report accurate information and can present it in a way to favor certain people, and euphemisms are used to make it sound less harsh for a particular side. I now have a better understanding of how to navigate the current situation and what I can do to advocate for Israel and Jewish people.” — Ben K., Atlanta, November 2024
“I gained more knowledge on ways to look at applying to colleges based on levels of antisemitism and pro-Israel but also balancing that with the school and education itself.” — Lauren C., Atlanta, November 2024
“The presenters were great, but I especially loved making so many connections! It was a great opportunity to meet scholars and others who I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise. I had no idea about the Moroccan Israelis! I found that extremely fascinating.” — Alexa F., Atlanta, February 2023
“I learned a lot about Israel’s history as well as how music can play a role in achieving peace.” — Yoni S., Atlanta, February 2023
On Responding to Hate
“Today I learned a lot about antisemitism in colleges and online. I learned about which news outlets or websites are trustworthy for good information. I also learned about different ways that I can stand up and support Israel and different organizations who work against antisemitic information.” — Guy S., Atlanta, November 2024
“I learned about the origin of the word apartheid. This will help me be able to respond to people who claim that there is an apartheid going on in Israel.” — Liel W., Atlanta, November 2024
“It was amazing seeing all these people who came here dedicated to teaching and help support teenagers like me about everything Jews and Israelis are facing. I learned so much about the true history of the matter, the other points of view, how to fight back, and just heard about other experiences related to the matter. I am glad this is how I spent my Sunday.” — Nevo K., Atlanta, November 2024
On Interacting With Jewish Peers
“I really enjoyed being surrounded by so many Jewish teens who care the same as I do.” — Emily S., Atlanta, November 2023
“The best part was getting all these teens from all the different schools together to share their experiences.” — Adiel L., Atlanta, November 2023
“My experience today was excellent. I really enjoyed hearing from other Jewish students from different schools that I haven’t interacted with before. Hearing from other Jewish students who I have not met before was fantastic. After being around the same people from my school and synagogue, it was great to learn from and hear from students with a different experience and perspective.” — Andrew F., Atlanta, November 2023
— Center for Israel Education, 2025
