Keren Kemach

Keren Kemach (Hebrew: קרן קמ"ח, an acronym for Kidum Mikzo'i Haredi, 'Haredi Professional Advancement') is an Israeli philanthropic fund dedicated to the economic empowerment of the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) community. Founded in 2007 on the initiative of Jack Scholdenfree and a group of Haredi public figures and social activists, the fund was established in response to the economic hardship in the Haredi sector and to a policy paper by the Floersheimer Institute that analyzed the barriers preventing Haredi integration into the Israeli labor market. The initiative received backing from British-Israeli real-estate magnate Leo Noé and other philanthropists, most with personal ties to the Haredi community in Israel or the Diaspora. The fund operates a comprehensive system of career counseling, psychometric aptitude testing, academic and vocational scholarships, and job placement. Its counseling and guidance services are delivered through the Yead Institute, which helps applicants identify the right professional development path. Scholarships can cover up to about 85% of tuition and sometimes include a living stipend. In 2021 the fund supported approximately 4,500 students, split evenly between men and women and across Lithuanian, Hasidic, and Sephardic streams, adding to some 15,000 who had received scholarships since its founding. Leading fields of study among scholarship recipients are computer science, education, and paramedical professions. A 2021 survey of about 20,000 scholarship recipients found that 85.8% successfully integrated into the labor market, and dropout rates among Kemach graduates are significantly lower than among Haredi students generally. Keren Kemach is considered the largest body of its kind in the Haredi public. Its annual budget in 2021 was estimated at about 50 million shekels, and that year it provided various employment services to some 35,000 Haredi men and women. Its headquarters are in the Sha'arei Ha'ir building at the entrance to Jerusalem. The management team includes Haredi public figures and professionals who work in dialogue and coordination with leaders of the various Haredi streams. The fund's CEO is Mordechai Feldstein, formerly CEO of ZAKA, and its deputy director is attorney Avraham Yustman. Beyond scholarships and counseling, the fund operates several flagship programs. Merkaz Kivun (established 2014 with the Jerusalem Municipality and the Ministry of Economy) provides employment guidance, training, placement, and employer relations; by 2021 more than 20,000 people had passed through it and about 13,000 had been placed in jobs. Bizmax, a business and innovation complex for Haredi men in Jerusalem, was established with Achim Global and the Jerusalem Development Authority and includes the Bizlabs startup incubator and TheSchool business school. The Miggo program, launched in 2023, aims to train thousands of Haredi men for engineering and high-tech professions. In June 2023, on the occasion of Israel's 75th anniversary, President Isaac Herzog awarded the President's Medal to Keren Kemach for its unique contribution to the state; the award was received by founder Leo Noé and CEO Moti Feldstein.

Keren Kemach was founded in 2007 on the initiative of Jack Scholdenfree, by a group of public figures and social activists from the Haredi community, including Rabbi Bezalel Cohen and Yechezkel Rosenblum. They sought to help solve the economic distress in the Haredi sector, following the publication of a policy paper by the Floersheimer Institute for Policy Studies that analyzed the barriers preventing the Haredi public from integrating into the Israeli labor market and recommended establishing a system of counseling and assistance for Haredi students. The initiative to establish the fund won the support of British-Israeli real-estate magnate Leo Noé, as well as other philanthropists, most of whom had personal ties to the Haredi community in Israel or the Diaspora. The fund's offices are located in the Sha'arei Ha'ir building at the entrance to Jerusalem, close to Haredi population centers on one hand and the business districts of the center and west of the city on the other. The management team includes Haredi public figures and professionals who work in dialogue and coordination with the leaders of the various Haredi streams. The CEO of the fund is Mordechai Feldstein, who previously served as CEO of ZAKA; the deputy director is attorney Avraham Yustman. In its early years, the fund focused on assisting Haredi men seeking to enter the labor market. From 2009, the fund began granting study scholarships also to Haredi women applying to academic studies, though preference still exists for assisting men, whose employment rate in the Israeli labor market is lower. In June 2023, on the occasion of the state's 75th year, President Isaac Herzog decided to award the President's Medal to Keren Kemach for its unique contribution to the State of Israel. The reasoning of the advisory committee to the President stated that the association had been operating for about 16 years and was leading a vital revolution in all matters relating to the integration of the Haredi public into the world of employment. The citation noted: 'The innovative idea of creating a place that combines diagnosis, study counseling, and employment guidance under one roof broke new ground in Haredi society and created a significant change in thinking and approach in the integration of the Haredi public and the world of work. The organization was founded by the British-Haredi businessman Leo Noé and the Haredi social entrepreneur Moti Feldstein. To date, the association has provided employment guidance services and significant scholarships for both vocational training and studies to tens of thousands of women and men from the Haredi public.' On behalf of the fund, the medal was received by British-Jewish philanthropist and Kemach founder Leo Noé and CEO Moti Feldstein. Over the years, the fund expanded its activities. In 2014, it established Merkaz Kivun (initiated by the Jerusalem Municipality and in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy), managed by Elazar Atzur, to provide employment guidance to the Haredi sector. Following a joint win by the fund and BDO in a Ministry of Labor tender to operate regional employment clusters, the activity of the Kivun centers was expanded to additional locations in the country under the management of Yechiel Amoyal: Kivun Surrounding Jerusalem, serving Haredi communities in Beit Shemesh, Beitar Illit, Modi'in Illit, and surrounding settlements; and Kivun North, serving Haredi communities in the north of the country, including Safed, Tiberias, Haifa, Netanya, and the surrounding area. Bizmax, a business and innovation complex for Haredi men in Jerusalem, was established by Keren Kemach in cooperation with Achim Global and the Jerusalem Development Authority, and has been managed since its founding by Eliyahu Dinowitz. In 2023, the fund founded the Miggo program to train thousands of Haredi men for engineering and high-tech professions, initiated by senior figures in the high-tech world, philanthropic funds, and the Ministry of Labor.

• 2023

  Miggo program founded to train thousands of Haredi men for engineering and high-tech professions.

• 2023

  President's Medal awarded to Keren Kemach on Israel's 75th anniversary.

• 2021

  Annual budget estimated at about 50 million shekels; services provided to some 35,000 Haredi men and women.

• 2014

  Merkaz Kivun established with the Jerusalem Municipality and the Ministry of Economy.

• 2009

  Fund begins granting study scholarships also to Haredi women applying to academic studies.

• 2007

  Keren Kemach founded on the initiative of Jack Scholdenfree by Haredi public figures and activists.

The largest body of its kind in the Haredi public, combining economic resilience and personal growth while preserving Haredi identity and values.

• Yead Institute counseling and guidance

  Provides counseling and guidance for professional or academic studies, including psychometric aptitude tests and personal counseling by professionals and occupational psychologists.

• Scholarships for academic and vocational studies

  Scholarships covering up to about 85% of tuition, sometimes with a living stipend, for students meeting the fund's criteria.

• Merkaz Kivun

  Employment guidance center established in 2014, with departments for guidance, training, placement, and employer relations.

• Bizmax

  Business and innovation complex for Haredi men in Jerusalem, including shared workspaces, private offices, meeting rooms, Bizlabs startup incubator, and TheSchool business school.

• Miggo

  Program founded in 2023 to train thousands of Haredi men for engineering and high-tech professions.

1. 1Official websitekeren-kemach.org
2. 2Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Hebrew Wikipediahe.wikipedia.org