Know someone who should apply? Fill out this
form and we will send you more information & keep you
informed of application updates.
Information for Applicants
Are you eligible to apply? You must live in North America.
You must be born before June 29, 1993 AND currently
enrolled in the 11th grade*.
*Exception: If you are born after June
29, 1993 and are currently in the 11th grade you will be eligible to
apply during your senior year.
Not eligible this year? Fill out this
form and we will notify you when you are eligible.
What are The Bronfman
Fellowships? Every year, twenty-six outstanding North American teenagers
are selected for The Bronfman Youth Fellowships in Israel. The Fellows
come from all over the United States and Canada, from the widest possible
range of Jewish backgrounds... READ MORE>>
Is BYFI for me? The Bronfman Youth Fellowships is an opportunity for you to
spend the summer before your senior year in high school traveling through
Israel, exploring your Jewish identity, and meeting thinkers, authors,
artists, and educators in an all expense paid, 5 week educational experience
that will change your life...But don't just take our word for it:
Hear from former fellows and get a better look
at our program in the video below.
College bound? BYFI is a highly competitive program and our alumni have always
done exceptionally well with the college admissions process. READ MORE>>
Concerned about security? Have a look at our security
policy.
Key dates Application deadline Jan 20, 2009
Finalists notified March 1, 2009
Interviews in mid-March
Fellowship recipients notified April 1, 2009
Orientation begins June 29, 2009
The return home from Israel is August 5, 2009
Assisting
an applicant? Thank
you for assisting an applicant to The Bronfman Youth Fellowships. Please
see instructions below.
Need a recommender
form? Click the button below to download
the
Ready to send your letter of recommendation?
Enclose your
letter and cover sheet form in an envelope.
Form A for school guidance counselors,
principals, or teachers
Form B for non-school employers,
community leaders, etc.
Sign your name
across the seal of the envelope and send it to the address listed
below.
All materials must
be postmarked by January 20, 2009.
Official
Transcripts School officials please note the
following:
Official
transcripts should be mailed to the address below.
Transcripts
must be postmarked by January 20, 2009:
Alternatively,
transcripts can be mailed by the applicant.
Please
send transcripts and/or letters of recommendation to:
BYFI
163 Delaware Ave.
Suite 102
Delmar, NY 12054
More About The Bronfman Youth Fellowships
in Israel
BRONFMAN FELLOWS spend the summer before their high
school senior year traveling through Israel, exploring their Jewish
Identity, and engaging with thinkers, authors, artists, and educators
in an ALL EXPENSES PAID, 5 week Israel experience that will change their
lives.
BYFI's summer program in Israel is the beginning of
a long-term association for the Fellows, which continues through our
extraordinarily active alumni network. This includes:
* Local and national gatherings, seminars and institutes.
* Online community.
* Community service projects.
* Funding for alumni initiatives.
* Opportunities for professional growth.
THE BRONFMAN YOUTH FELLOWSHIPS IN ISRAEL offers a
5-week summer program in Israel that educates and inspires exceptional
young Jews from diverse backgrounds to become active participants in
Jewish culture throughout their lives, and to contribute their talents
and vision to the Jewish community and to the world at large.
Every year, twenty-six outstanding North American
teenagers are selected for The Bronfman Youth Fellowships in Israel.
The Fellows come from all over the United States and Canada, from the
widest possible range of Jewish backgrounds, and are selected based
on merit, and not financial need. In their five weeks together, the
Fellows encounter the land and people of Israel, study Judaism and major
issues in contemporary Jewish life, and learn about themselves and each
other. The summer is the beginning of a long-term association for the
Fellows, which continues through our extraordinarily active alumni network.
High School Juniors from the United States and Canada
who will be sixteen by June 2009 are eligible for the Fellowship. Fellowships
cover round-trip transportation between New York and Israel, educational
programming, and room, board and travel while in Israel. Room and board
at orientation and the fall Follow-Up Seminar in New York City are also
included. Limited additional subsidies (based on need) are available
to defray costs of travel to interviews, to New York for the summer
program, and for follow-up alumni activities. RETURN TO TOP>>
College bound?
BYFI is a highly competitive program and our
alumni have always done exceptionally well with the college admissions
process. In fact a recently published guide* lists our program first
in discussing "the top scholarship programs particularly noted
for producing winners who year after year are among the strongest candidates
for admissions to highly selective institutions."
Over the last 18 years our Fellows consistently attend
excellent schools.:
* Harvard (90 of our Fellows)
* Yale (90 of our fellows)
* Brown (40 of our fellows)
* Columbia (31 of our fellows)
* U of Pennsylvania (26 of our fellows)
* Princeton (26 of our fellows)
* Cornell (5 of our fellows)
* Dartmouth (3 of our fellows)
* "What it Really Takes to Get
Into the Ivy League and other Highly Selective Colleges", written
by Chuck Hughes and published in 2003 by McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Books.
As our 2009 summer program dates get closer, we would
like to inform you of our current thinking about this summer's trip
to Israel.
Over the past few years, because of the security
situation in Israel, we have made a number of adjustments to our traditional
itinerary and security protocols. As the summer of 2009 approaches,
we are revisiting and refining our security procedures. As of now, our
plan is for the program to be based in the Goldstein Youth Village in
the San Simon neighborhood of Jerusalem, the northern Galilee town of
Tzfat, and the Negev (at Sdeh Boker, in and around Eilat, and in the
Negev desert). The Goldstein Youth Village is a gated, guarded campus
facility, in a relatively out of the way neighborhood of southern Jerusalem.
The group has stayed there many times in the past, and we have found
the security procedures and the facilities to be excellent.
Group day-trips into downtown Jerusalem and Tel Aviv
will be made only if and when the security situation allows it. Last
summer, we were able to see most of the sites that we have traditionally
visited in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and we feel hopeful that, with the
proper precautions being taken, we will be able to do so again this
year. Our movements in the north and the Negev will also be subject
to the developing security situation.
Our Security Guidelines
Our security guidelines have been developed over
twenty years of experience, in consultation with our Israeli security
staff personnel and the appropriate authorities. The guidelines under
which we operate attempt to take the volatile aspects of living in Israel
into account. In planning our programming elements, be they educational,
religious, or recreational, security and safety are a foremost concern.
However, no matter how carefully one plans, the situation in Israel
is fluid and unpredictable. While in Israel, we receive the best available
information, and our security decisions are made daily, based on the
day-to-day situation, in consultation with the relevant governmental
organizations.
Our Security Director, Assaf Snir, maintains a liaison
with the Israeli Police Department, the Israeli Army, the United States
Embassy in Israel and international security advisory services throughout
the summer.
When in Israel, we will, on an ongoing basis, carefully
review our itinerary in light of security considerations. Our itinerary
will be cleared by the central Israeli Government office which coordinates
the activities of the Army, the Police and the Intelligence Services;
they issue specific guidelines as to where it is safe to travel and
the best routes to use. Local security personnel are notified of our
travel plans and will immediately notify the group in the event of incident
or security risk.
If necessary, we will change our itinerary to reflect
any heightened risk or security concerns. Our current plans as to where
we will base the group for much of the summer and what areas we will
visit may change as a result of evolving developments. For security
reasons, we will not distribute a detailed copy of this coming summer's
itinerary to parents or Fellows in advance. Parents will be getting
e-mailed updates on the group's activities and movements, including
pictures, on a regular basis all through the summer.
Geographic Restrictions for the 2009 Bronfman Youth
Fellowships in Israel Program
-----No travel in or near the Gaza Strip or the Lebanon
border.
-----No travel in the West Bank or Arab East Jerusalem.
Travel within East Jerusalem is limited to accessing the most popular
Jewish religious sites therein (e.g. The Western Wall and the Jewish
Quarter).
-----Fellows will at NO TIME be allowed to travel
on their own in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, or anywhere else, without parental
permission and permission from our security personnel. While in the
Goldstein Youth Village, we will be in an enclosed, protected environment,
in which Fellows will be allowed to move freely, but which they will
NOT be allowed to leave on their own. In Tzfat, if security conditions
permit it, Fellows will be allowed to go in groups of at least three
to certain designated areas in town, once they have received permission
to do so. In the Negev we will always be traveling as a group.
Identification/Contact Cards
All Fellows will be issued a personal identification
card that includes faculty/staff contact information. This card must
be carried by the Fellow at all times.
A Closing Word
We are determined to create an experience for our 2009 Fellows which
is challenging, exciting and inspiring. The faculty and staff are convinced
that we can run a full, active, dynamic program, within the parameters
that we have outlined above. With your cooperation, this year's trip
will be a great one. RETURN TO TOP>>
THE BRONFMAN YOUTH FELLOWSHIPS IN ISRAEL
163 Delaware Ave. Suite 102 Delmar, NY 12054
518-475-7212
www.bronfman.org
