Established over 40 years ago, this innovative community outreach program gives BGU students, known as “Goodman Fellows,” the opportunity to live rent-free in disadvantaged neighborhoods in Beer-Sheva in exchange for volunteering in the community. There are currently some 80 students living in 47 apartments.
Each student spends at least eight hours a week running after school activities, including homework clubs, sports, dance, drama, martial arts, and more. The students also mentor adults, work with senior citizens, create community-wide holiday programs, and plant and tend to community gardens.
What’s more, each student gets an “adopted family” in the neighborhood, with whom they form personal connections that last a lifetime.