Keren Hovev, 23, from San Francisco, came to Israel for a 10-month stint to teach English, and ended up making aliyah. Hovev arrived in Israel a year ago to take part in Masa Israel Teaching Fellows, a joint initiative of Masa Israel, the Education Ministry and the Jewish Agency, in cooperation with the Levinsky College of Education. The program aims to strengthen the connection between young Jews from English-speaking countries with Israel, as well as improve English instruction in elementary and middle schools. Program participants were assigned as "teaching fellows" to schools, where they spent 25 hours a week teaching English. They also volunteered with local communities. "I was born in Israel and when I was three, my parents moved to the U.S.," Hovev said. She said she approached the program "as a sort of experiment to see what it's like to live in Israel as an adult and what really happens here." Having studied education and worked with children in the U.S., Hovev said she feels "teaching English to children is perfect for me, and certainly in Israel. I love giving, volunteering, and for me it's a great opportunity." Hovev taught for 10 months in Rehovot as part of her work with the Masa program, and will work as an English teacher in Israel's center in the coming academic year. She is not alone: A further 11 of the 18 participants in the program have decided to make the move to Israel. "I completely fell in love with Israel, the people, the atmosphere. I just feel it at home here," Hovev explained. According to Levinsky College President Professor Michal Belar, "The training provided by the college to Masa participants and their transformation into English teachers in Israel simultaneously serves a number of important goals: the self-fulfillment of highly-qualified teachers, the important reinforcement of the English language teaching system in our school system and the transformation of part of the group into actual immigrants." Masa CEO Liran Avisar Ben Horin said, "The young people gain significant life experiences and the education system is grappling with one of the most important challenges that exists today."
