Since its founding in 1988, the March of the Living (MOL) has become the world's preeminent program aimed at educating the world's youth about the importance of Holocaust remembrance. More than 150,000 people from 40 nations have participated in the March of the Living since its inception in 1988.
The International March of the Living is dedicated to the providing of Holocaust education, primarily but not exclusively, to high school students from around the globe. Toward that goal, we conduct seminars, classes and group activities in conjunction with our partners and constituent organizations (Federations, Zionist youth organizations, Bureaus of Jewish Education, Jewish educational institutions).
Through our network of partners worldwide, we are currently and continually involved in the interviewing and recruitment of program participants. Our partners provide a thorough and comprehensive educational orientation to the March of the Living participants during the four months prior to the trip; and in addition, all leaders participate in seminars organized by the International March of the Living to review the programs of the previous year and in preparation for the coming program. The training process is then complemented by the participants' journey through time and history in Poland where, in addition to visits to and education about the camps and ghettos, they commemorate Yom Ha'Shoah through the three kilometer march from Auschwitz to Birkenau. The opportunity to see the sites and stand on the very soil as our ancestors, has a proven success record of strengthening the commitment to preserve the legacy of the Holocaust, to learn from the lessons of the Holocaust and to accept one's social responsibility to use these lessons to help secure a better future for all. This memorable educational experience continues in Israel where participants commemorate Yom HaZikaron and celebrate Yom Ha'Atzmaut and experience Israel with a new understanding of this chapter of our Jewish past and its relevance to our present and future.
On Yom Ha'Atzmaut, the concluding day of the program, a festive and joyous March takes place from Safra Square to the Kotel. The Am Yisrael Chai feelings that pervade the atmosphere remain with the students forever and is a clear indicator of the impact of the program on our young, impressionable participants. Following this glorious March, an outstanding mega-musical event and dinner party is held for all our participants with an unimaginable display of love for, commitment to and bond with Israel.
During the two week life altering experience, the international delegations of students march en masse in Poland to keep alive the memory of the millions of those of our people who perished. They march to proclaim their commitment to the State of Israel. They march to help build a better and safer world so that no people shall again be forced to experience the horror of the Shoah. Once in Israel, their understanding of and commitment to the Jewish future becomes universally reinforced by all participants. Thousands of MOL alumni each year become active "ambassadors" in their own communities and on their campuses in support of Israel.
In the Jewish identity project research study entitled "Beyond Distancing: Young Adult American Jews and their Alienation from Israel", the waning attachment of American Jews to the State of Israel was astonishing. A most compelling statistic from the research of Messeurs. Cohen and Kelman, indicates that almost one half of non-Orthodox young adults ages 18-36 would not be devastated if the State of Israel did not exist.
I believe that the Taglit-Birthright founders anticipated the aforementioned alienation and, according to their web site, created a program "to send thousands of young Jewish adults from all over the world to Israel as a gift in order to diminish the growing division between Israel and Jewish communities around the world; to strengthen the sense of solidarity among world Jewry and to strengthen participants' Jewish identity and connection to the Jewish People." I am pleased to reiterate the March of the Living achieves all of the Taglit target objectives with even more exceptional results.
Our research studies (See attached charts) clearly indicate that MOL is empowered to accomplish seismic changes in our participants' attitude toward Israel and their commitment to a Jewish lifestyle.
As a result of participating in the March of the Living, virtually all the students develop a strong connection to their Jewish heritage, are committed to marrying a Jewish spouse and providing their children with a Jewish education. Moreover, Israel becomes an important and meaningful part of their existence with a significant portion of alumni returning to Israel on numerous occasions.
The International March of the Living is eager to explore and pursue establishing a meaningful partnership with Shapell Foundation in our outreach to Jewish Student Union members. We were appropriately excited and elated but not surprised when the Honorable Natan Sharanksy announced earlier this year that the strengthening of Jewish identity for both Israelis and Diaspora Jews was the most important mission for the Jewish Agency for Israel. Much more additional work needs to be done in order to assure the future of our Jewish people and the vitality and strength of the State of Israel. Working together with the Jewish Student Union to provide a March of the Living experience to Jewish public high school students from diverse backgrounds will make a tremendous impact on these students' commitment to their Jewish heritage and their bond to Israel.
The Jewish Student Union program is effectively impacting Jewish public high school students from diverse backgrounds and levels of commitment to their Jewish heritage. The programs are serving students in 27 states and Canadian provinces with 220 high schools involved. The typical JSU club hour offers the students engaging and interactive programming on topics of student interests that are designed to: enhance a teen’s Jewish identity, nurture a connection to the State of Israel, and inspire an enduring relationship with the Jewish people and to provide for a deeper involvement with the Jewish community.
These students are excellent candidates for an MOL experience. Under the guidance of the Jewish Student Union, students will be selected on the basis of their demonstrated leadership skills. This will assure both March of the Living and the Jewish Student Union that the impact on these students will be transmitted to other students on their home campuses and in their communities.
In the mid-eighties, the founders of the March of the Living designed a program with its main goals of honoring the memory of those who perished in the Shoah; expanding Holocaust education and developing a cadre of alumni around the world to serve as agents for change in combating Holocaust denial on their campuses and in their communities. Little did we recognize that we possessed the seeds for dramatically impacting Jewish youth regarding their commitment to their Jewish heritage, their Jewish identity and their bond to and love for the State of Israel.
The power is in the process. We, indeed, almost accidentally, created a fabulous formula for achieving the results that are so important to the Jewish Student Union. The components of our success are enumerated below:
· Our primary target audience is 16-18 year old Jewish youth. Psychologists and sociologists tell us that at this delicate age, participants are very impressionable and more prone to modifying their behavior and attitudes than when several years older and in a college environment.
· Bringing together youth from diverse Jewish backgrounds from around the world. Approximately 20% of our population comes from a modern Orthodox background. The balance of our participants come from Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist religious affiliation with a healthy dose of students being totally unaffiliated and at great risk regarding their Jewish identity. This unique inter and intra-group blending serves to promote appreciation of "the other" and creates a unique bond to a common goal - Jewish and Israel survival.
· Rigorous educational preparation prior to the program. The program is far more than just a trip.
· The power of combining Auschwitz on Yom Ha'Shoah with Jerusalem on Yom Ha'Atzmaut clearly leaves a lasting impression on virtually all participants.
