A Can't-Muss Experience

By Emily Raij

Jewish National Fund (JNF) is the largest provider of Israel engagement programs in the U.S., and Harrison Shames, Orlando JNF’s senior campaign executive, wants Central Florida to know just how far the organization’s Israel advocacy and education initiatives can reach.

Those initiatives focus on all ages – from children being introduced to Israel through immersive school experiences to leadership opportunities for college students and resources for educators.

One area in which programming has recently expanded is high-school engagement. Celebrating its 50th anniversary this past year, Alexander Muss High School in Israel (AMHSI) allows teens from all over the world to study abroad during the summer or during the school year for either an entire semester or a two-month mini-mester. A particularly unique part of the program is the Israel Studies curriculum, which covers more than 4,000 years of Jewish and Israeli history and uses the land as the classroom by incorporating trips, or tiyulim, into learning.

“You’re experiencing biblical and modern Israeli history through the best form of education – immersive education – not just sitting and talking about it,” says Harrison. “We’re going to take you there. Now we’re telling the story and we’re physically there. It’s that firsthand, immersive experience that’s pretty unparalleled.”

At the same time, students keep up with their general studies at any level including AP and honors classes. According to JNF, AMHSI “is the only pluralist, college prep, fully accredited program where high-school students from the United States and across the globe study abroad together.”

Livia Smith relished her time at Alexander Muss High, and mom Leah says it unlocked a new sense of Jewish pride in her daughter.

Connecting With Culture

Students enhance not only their college applications and résumés but also their relationships with their peers and with Israel. They live in dormitories on campus in Hod HaSharon, about 20 minutes from Tel Aviv, and a second campus in Be’er Sheva recently opened allowing students to experience life in the Negev.

“For more than 50 years, teens from around the world have come to Muss where they have built meaningful connections with one another, their sense of self and Judaism, and the state of Israel and its people,” says Dr. Steve Kutno, AMHSI’s head of school. “We have diversified the programs we offer, inviting students to learn and experience Israel in a myriad of ways. And with a second campus in Be’er Sheva, we are serving more students than ever before, encouraging and enriching future generations.”

One of those students is Livia Smith, an AMHSI participant from Central Florida.

“AMHSI was truly an experience of a lifetime,” she says. “The program broadened my knowledge of Israel’s history and current events that, as a young person, I can speak to more confidently. The trip also deepened my love and commitment to Israel. My memories at Yad Vashem, Masada, and the Kotel will be with me forever and will forever ignite pride, courage, and strength in me as a young Jewish woman.”

“I feel grateful to JNF and the entire AMHSI staff for providing Livia an experience she will never forget,” says Leah. “The curriculum was so diverse and allowed her to experience Israel outside of a classroom from faculty that reflect the diversity of Israeli society in culture, history, and politics. Livia not only created new friendships with kids her age all over the country but, most importantly, gained an independence and love for Israel all on her own which she will have forever.”

Coby Bitman, Livia Smith, Jules Soll, and Jacob Buchanan are just some of the local high-school students who have recently spent time studying abroad at Alexander Muss High School in Israel.

Orlando attorney Scott Goldberg is also an AMHSI alum (Class of 1988).

“While attending the Alexander Muss High School in Israel program, I experienced things that I never would have without the program, “Scott says. “Whether traveling all the way south to Eilat, or all the way up to the Golan Heights, you see and learn about it all. But AMHSI is more than that. It is the memories made with friends, from the pizza place we went to in Netanya almost every weekend that constantly played Bob Marley music, or attending the Bryan Adams concert at a Roman amphitheater on the beach in Caesarea. These are memories that I will cherish forever.”

Perhaps the most significant legacy of the AMHSI program is the lifelong impact it has on participants. Many of today’s local Jewish leaders can trace the start of their immersion in the community back to their time at Alexander Muss High.

“AMHSI, along with BBYO, was one of the most important aspects in shaping my life,” says Sharon Moskowitz, who participated in the program in the fall of 1976. “Not only did I make lifelong friends, but I learned morals and values that I live by today. After Muss, I used what I learned and became active in Jewish organizations throughout Orlando.”

Support And Opportunity For All

The application process for AMHSI begins by completing forms online at AMHSI.org and selecting the year, program, and desired session. Next, applicants schedule and complete an interview with an AMHSI representative. Admissions decisions take three to four weeks, and this popular program often has a waitlist.

“I’m coming up on a year with JNF, and the thing I really take to heart, and I think a lot of people do, is education as a whole, what’s available for our children,” says Harrison. “I don’t ever want financials to be a barrier, so having local community support is critical, too.”

To help remove that financial barrier, JNF’s Boruchin Center established Dream Israel, a teen travel initiative with a commitment of $25 million to provide high-school students with opportunities to study abroad in Israel. Teens fundraise $5,000 toward one of JNF’s program areas and can then earn grants of up to $7,500 to attend an approved program of their choice including AMHSI, Ramah TRY (Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim High School), USY (United Synagogue Youth) High, and URJ (Union for Reform Judaism) Heller High. Smaller grants are also given if teens raise less than $5,000.

According to Zoë Carvel, Dream Israel manager, more than 300 teens have participated in Dream Israel with nearly $2 million in grants awarded and more than $1.3 million raised for JNF projects in Israel.

“This initiative is not only getting more teens to Israel on longterm trips but also teaching them the value of tzedakah – an important message for our future leaders of the Jewish world,” says Zoë.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON DREAM ISRAEL, VISIT MY.JN.ORG/DREAMISRAEL.

This story was originally published in print in Fall 2023.