Ulpanat Ofra - Yeshiva High School for Girls

Welcome to Ulpanat Ofra

• Ulpanat Ofra was founded in 1985
• In the first class there were 17 students.
• Today, the Ulpana has over 900 students and is the largest independent Ulpana in Israel.

• In addition to the excellent academic curriculum we emphasize social and cultural activities.
• To this end, the students in our High School dorm in the Ulpana during the week.
• An integral part of the Ulpana's curriculum and social activities, is volunteer work, especially with children with special needs from the area.

• In the Ulpana there is a special project for absorbing new immigrants.
• At the present, there are about 40 students who are new immigrants (o'lim) from Ethiopia, and about 50 other students from other countries, especially from France.

Our curriculum is very diversified

• First and foremost, Biblical and Judaic studies on a very high level.
• Basic secular studies include: Mathematics, English, History, Physics and Biology.
• An elective "Beit Midrash" program is offered in the evenings.

Our curriculum also includes:

• Computer sciences
• Communications and media
• Art
• Social sciences
• Literature
• Israel studies (geography and society)
• Sports

All girls have about ten days per year of tours and hikes all over Israel, thus educating towards loving the land. Endearing the Land of Israel among the girls is one of our primary values.

After graduation our alumni serve in the "National Service" in several fields such as, security and defense systems, education, hospitals, social services and tour guiding. Some graduates even take part in Jewish-Israeli missions abroad.

At any given moment, we can safely say that at least 250 of the Ulpana's graduates are actively serving in various national service duties in all of Israel from Eilat to the Golan.

After national service our graduates seek higher academic education in a variety of professions such as law, medicine, teaching, architecture and many other fields.

Ulpanat ofra has won prizes in various fields.

The Ulpana has won the Presidential award for the most successful school in Israel.

The Ulpana has won several awards in sports.

Planned projects seeking donors:

• Beit kenesset - auditorium
• Beit midrash
• Ulpana gardens and landscape
• Additional dormitories
• Arts building
• Israel studies building

Educational programs seeking sponsors:

• Scholarships
• O'lim project
• Personal psychological treatment for girls at risk
• Holocaust memorial and educational tour to Poland
• Art exibitions all over Israel

Beit Kenesset -Auditorium

The Beit Kenesset - Auditorium is the main meeting space in the Ulpana. It hosts all main events held in the Ulpana, such as the morning prayers, lectures, musical performances, conferences, plays and annual graduations.

The auditorium was built about 20 years ago when the Ulpana was much smaller. Due to the growth of the student body and the intensivity of activities in the auditorium, we must to renovate and redecorate. The cost of this urgent project is 500,000 USD.

Yeshiva High School for Girls

Which is the right path for man to choose for himself? Whatever is harmonious for the one who does it, and harmonious for mankind.

Seminars

we hold an annual seminar for the girls. the seminar topics are accordint to the values of the ulpana and the intesivity of the topics goes up according to

the age of the girls

in the 9th grade the seminar is about "emuna", jewish faith. in this seminar we discuss the basic questions of Judaism, and what they mea to us it the modern era we live in.

the 10th grade seminar is about the israeli society. during this seminar the girls explore the connection between education and welfare, and visit peripherial towns in israel.

the gesher seminar is a seminar that meets religious 11th graders with secular student at the same age, in this seminar there is a bilateral exposure for the students from both backrounds.

in the 12th grade we hold two seminars, the first one is held with the ultra ortodox communities. the girls visit and dine in the charedi homes in the diffrent chassidic movments. in this seminar the girls learn the complete opposite side of the israeli society. on israel as apposite to the 11th grade seminar

Beit midrash

Our beit midrash program is an additional learning program to the curriculum, in this program we teach the students torah on a higher level of studying, the method of studying in the beit midrash is an elevating level of studies, according to the stutents grades.

in the 9th grade the beit midrash is based on the mishnah "pirkei avot" the basic value book of the mishnah. the learning starts with a overview of the mishnah and is continued by smaller learning groups, that study the mishnah in realistic methods, Arts, Theater and a Scholarly learning. At the end of the program the girls take a field trip in the footseps of the torah scoralrs they were learning about. the trip takes the girls to "kivrey tzadikim" in the Galilee.

The 10th grade "Beit midrash" program explores the basic values and meaning of being a jewish woman. This beit midrash program starts with a lecture covering the topic that is sutudied, followed by four sessions of reserching and studying the secific topic. During the year this "Beit midrash" studies about 5 topics.

the learning starts with a brief review of the topic, continued by "cavrutas", leaning pairs.

where the topic is studied in a personal view and disscution with the learning partner. later on the learning comes to its peak when all students join for a final frontal class where all issues of the topic are discussed in a large forum.