What Academia Misses about Haredim

The Marker 17.8.16

Higher Education – by Chaim Sukenik

What Academia Misses about Haredim

They say that you can't argue with success, especially not with such tremendous success as an 83% increase in Haredi students over the last five years. 

And yet, despite this unique success, that can only be credited to select government programs, some insist on concentrating on numbers instead of acknowledging the achievements reached. 

These days, the Council for Higher Education is conducting discussions regarding the renewal of the five-year-plan for integration of Haredim into academia. 

Despite the significant success of the previous five-year-plan, some oppose its renewal. 

The majority of the discussion revolves around the continued existence of gender-separate campuses, which today house the majority of Haredi students. 

The arguments of the opposed reveal that they lack familiarity with the characteristics and mentality of the Haredi community as well as the existing reality, since the action they seek – will undoubtedly incur the return to isolation of the Haredi sector and impede the continued integration of this community into Israeli society. 

The claim of the Hebrew University representative in the discussions, stating that the existence of dozens of Haredi students in their regular campus is proof that if the Haredi community is not provided with the option of the "Refuge of Separate Campuses," they will have no choice but to integrate into regular campuses – is absurd, since this handful of Haredim does not represent the mindset held by the majority of the Haredi community. 

The Haredi sector is undergoing a long process and still upholds that the centrality of Torah learning is valued above all others. 

However, simultaneously a change is occurring in the understanding and acceptance that integrating into academia and the workforce is a necessity. 

And yet, most of the Haredi students view separation as condition without which they would not attended an institution of higher education. 

Taking steps such as closing the separate campuses will bring an end and even cause regression in the process of integration and to the exclusion of the majority of Haredim from academic institutions. 

As for their claim regarding the low academic level and censored materials provided in the Haredi campuses, it seems on this point as well that the opposition is unfamiliar with the happenings on the ground, or that they are actively choosing to ignore it. 

The Jerusalem College of Technology – Lev Academic Center, the institute that I have the privilege to head, has over 40 years of experience with separate campuses for men and women. 

40 years that have produced 8,000 orthodox and ultra-orthodox graduates, many of which hold key positions in the Israeli market and industry. 

Working on our campuses are leading professors and scientists, at the forefront of research in Israel and around the world. 

Our placement statistics are currently at 93%, and we were only recently ranked first and second in two of the CPA accreditation exams with 100% success rates for our Haredi women's campus. 

These final words are not intended for self-promotion or braggery, they are simply here to present the reality that proves two things: the first, that separate campuses for men and women should not be viewed as segregation, but as a necessity based on the beliefs and world view of many, among which are the national-religious (dati-leumi) and Haredim communities; the second, the integration of Haredim, who comprise a third of our student population, does not necessarily lead to a decline in the quality and academic achievements of an institution. 

If some Haredi campuses do not meet the level and academic demands required and expected from an institution of higher education, such cases should be addressed individually. 

Pouring the baby out with the bathwater and concluding from such cases that all separate campuses should be closed – is foolishness. 

The successful integration of sectors and communities in academia and society, such as Haredim and Ethiopian-Israelis, requires the establishment of programs specialized for the needs of these communities. 

Without assumptions, compromising the academic level, or cutting corners – but by understanding their needs and difficulties, and creating conditions and a supportive environment, which will ensure their success. 

The universities' insistence to remain in an academic ivory tower and settle for a mere handful from those sectors that they accept into their fold, will memorialize their segregation and exclusion from academia. 

Adopting this approach will cause endless problems for the entire Israeli society. 

The author is the president of the Jerusalem College of Technology – Lev Academic Center, in which over 2,000 Haredi students are studying towards degrees in engineering, computers, management and health-sciences.