Uncategorized
College in Israel, Made Clearer: How “The Future Is Calling” Helps American Jewish Students Find Their Place
A Different College Search
For many American Jewish families, the college search is no longer just about rankings and dorm tours. It’s about values, identity, belonging — and whether a campus will feel like a place where a Jewish student can actually breathe.
Just as important, families want to know students won’t have to trade academic rigor for that sense of belonging. Israel’s universities offer globally respected, academically serious programs — including English-taught and transitional pathways — so students can pursue excellence while feeling supported.
At the same time, there’s a practical reality: tuition in the U.S. has climbed to a level that can feel surreal, even for middle- and upper-middle-income families. More parents are asking the question out loud: is there another path that’s academically serious, globally respected, and financially sane?
“The Future Is Calling,” a campaign supported by the Tzemach David Foundation, exists to make one answer easier to explore: college in Israel — not as a vague idea, but as a concrete, navigable option with real programs, real support, and real student experiences.
A Campaign Built for Clarity
“We saw real informational gaps that exist… A lot of things are translated into English, but aren’t translated into American,” says Tamar Krieger Kalev, Executive Director at Tzemach David / The Future Is Calling.
In the months around October 7, Tamar says she watched interest accelerate — and saw how hard it still was for American families to understand Israeli higher education. Philanthropic funding toward Israeli universities helped expand transitional tracks for international students; it also surfaced how many obstacles families face simply trying to figure out what’s possible. The result is a campaign that aims to translate, clarify, and support — so families can move from interest to confidence without doing forty hours of scattered research.
Translating Between Systems
One reason families stall is that Israeli higher education doesn’t work like the American system — and the differences show up quickly in admissions, degree structure, and program language.
“You don’t apply to a university… you apply to a certain program in the university, and every program has their own requirements,” Tamar explains. That one distinction alone can change how a student searches, compares, and applies — especially if they’re used to thinking in terms of a single application leading to an entire campus experience.
The Future Is Calling exists to make those differences legible, early — and to help families ask better questions from the start.
The Future Is Calling, organized around four pillars.
Four Pillars, One Promise
Tamar describes four pillars that guide the initiative: Personal Growth and Transformation; Academic Excellence and Innovation; Value and Accessibility; and Community and Tradition. Together, they form a simple promise: Israel can be a place of high-level learning and real-world opportunity — while also offering a supportive environment for Jewish life, identity, and belonging.
An option hiding in plain sight
Israel’s universities are deeply familiar to Israelis and olim — but for many American families, they can still feel distant, hard to compare, or difficult to understand. That’s the gap TheFutureIsCalling.org is designed to close.
Instead of asking families to start from scratch, the site offers a structured entry point:
- A view of major Israeli universities and what each is known for
- Program discovery (including English-taught options)
- Parent-facing answers about support systems, adjustment, and logistics
- Resource pathways — so families can move from “interest” to “next step” without guesswork
“The idea is to have… a one stop shop for people to be able to get all the information,” Tamar says.
And unlike a single-institution pitch, the campaign is designed to help families compare across multiple schools. “We don’t represent one university or one college. We represent several,” she adds — a detail that matters if your real goal is fit.
Academic Excellence and Innovation: world-class universities in the heart of a global ecosystem
For American families used to a familiar narrative — “the best education must be in the U.S.” — this is often the most surprising part: Israeli programs are competitive, serious, and connected to real-world opportunity.
Israel’s universities are not “alternative” in the sense of lesser — they are globally recognized institutions with deep strengths in STEM, medicine, research, and innovation. The campaign spotlights multiple universities offering English-taught degrees and support for international students, including Technion (Israel Institute of Technology), Tel Aviv University, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Bar-Ilan University, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, and Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT).
Tamar also points to the advantages of studying inside an innovation ecosystem that’s physically close. Students can access internships and training opportunities with global companies that have a strong presence in Israel — alongside the startup culture Israel is known for — and carry those experiences into the next chapter, whether in Israel or back in the U.S.
“Real students, real stories”
The most convincing part of the campaign is also the simplest: the student voices.
Asher Dayanim, an American student at Tel Aviv University, puts it plainly: “This past year has been the most amazing in my life.” He describes Tel Aviv as a place where learning doesn’t end when class does — where the city itself becomes part of the education, full of conversations, cultures, and ideas that keep widening the frame.
And for Ava Schwartz, a U.S. student who chose Tel Aviv University’s Liberal Arts program, it was the academic flexibility that made the decision click. “The liberal arts program at TAU is the only one like it in Israel… it allows me to explore everything from psychology to Jewish Studies while living in the city I fell in love with,” she says — capturing something many students are seeking right now: rigor, range, and an environment that feels alive.
The questions parents actually ask
In any family considering a serious move, “Is it inspiring?” is rarely the first question. The first questions are usually more basic — and more human: Is it safe? Will the degree translate back home? What about language? Can we afford it?
On cost, Tamar notes that tuition can look dramatically different depending on program and institution — and that for families thinking about immigration, there can be additional support: “If the student has made Aliyah… the government will pay for their first degree,” she says. And she adds a line that lands for parents immediately: “You can have your kid come home several times… and you’ll still save a lot of money, even though you’re paying for flights.” The point isn’t that every student should go to Israel. It’s that families deserve a clear look at the option — without needing to already be insiders.
A campaign that acts like a guide
At its best, The Future Is Calling functions less like a brochure and more like a guide — a place to gather momentum and get oriented.
“Usually it’s a phone call where they have a huge amount of questions…” Tamar says. For families that feel overwhelmed, that human layer matters: a real person who can translate between systems, clarify what a program actually is, and help a student find a starting point.
And then, the site becomes the hub. “The idea is to have… a one stop shop for people to be able to get all the information,” Tamar explains — a place to compare institutions, understand pathways, and begin narrowing toward fit.
For some students, the pull is academic: specific programs, labs, or a particular university culture. For others, it’s the integration of Jewish life into the calendar of everyday life — not as an extracurricular, but as an atmosphere. And for many, it’s the combination: a high-level education in a place that offers a different kind of grounding, community, and continuity — with clearer access to opportunity on the other side.
Answering the call
There’s a phrase that appears often across the campaign: “the future is calling.” It’s a tagline, yes — but it’s also a real description of where many families find themselves: on the edge of a decision that will shape not just four years, but a life.
The campaign’s invitation is simple: let Israeli universities be part of your consideration set — not as a niche choice, but as a real option with academic strength, clearer economics, and a supportive Jewish environment.
To explore programs, student stories, and parent resources, visit TheFutureIsCalling.org.
The post College in Israel, Made Clearer: How “The Future Is Calling” Helps American Jewish Students Find Their Place appeared first on The Forward.
Uncategorized
Milei praises ‘Judeo-Christian values’ at Chabad event as Argentina courts European Jews
(JTA) — BUENOS AIRES — Argentine President Javier Milei exalted “Judeo-Christian values” on Monday as he spoke to a crowd of 1,800 people celebrating the 32nd anniversary of the death of the last Chabad-Lubavitch rabbi.
Milei was the keynote speaker at the Hasidic Orthodox movement’s event marking the yahrzeit of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, becoming what appears to be the first sitting non-Jewish head of state to make an official tribute to the Lubavitcher Rebbe at a major Chabad event.
“The conclusion I have reached is simple in its formulation and profound in its consequences: When one embraces Judeo-Christian values, spiritual and material life become aligned and resonate on the same wavelength,” Milei said Monday night at the Palacio Libertad cultural center.
It was the latest in a long list of expressions of admiration for Judaism for Milei, a self-described “anarcho-capitalist” who was elected in 2023 and since has made support for Israel a cornerstone of his agenda. He has previously visited Schneerson’s grave in New York City, made pilgrimages to the Western Wall in Jerusalem and presented a picture of Schneerson to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a gift. He was also honored at a Chabad synagogue in Miami in 2024, where he revealed that he believed he has Jewish heritage.
Milei has long studied Judaism and has said he wants to convert after leaving office but sees Jewish practice, including the observance of Shabbat, as incompatible with the presidency.
His 40-minute speech at the Chabad event focused almost entirely on Jewish religious texts and thought, quoting passages from the Torah as the basis of his economic view.
Milei also revealed that his address was drawn from the epilogue of his upcoming book, “Morality as State Policy,” in which he argues that capitalism is a system invented by “the Creator” — whom he also referred to as “the One” — to bring paradise to earth through work.
Jews in Argentina have a range of perspectives on Milei’s philosemitism.
“I appreciate that the president chose to attend and speak at the Tribute to the Rebbe,” Rabbi Tzvi Grunblatt, the head of Chabad in Argentina, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. “He is doing so from a deeply personal place. I also think it is healthy for him to have this spiritual side.”
But Alicia Osipovich, a sign-language interpreter assisting a deaf attendee at the event, told JTA that Milei’s forceful support for Israel and Judaism made her uneasy, even as she personally appreciated it.
“I’m proud and deeply moved to have a president like him,” Osipovich said. “At the same time, I have some concerns. He speaks extensively about Israel, and you know how support for Israel is sometimes portrayed. He says he is a Zionist, but nowadays the word ‘Zionist’ is often used as a negative label. I have mixed emotions. As a Jew, I am proud, but I also feel some concern about the increased public exposure of Judaism these days.”
Under Milei’s leadership, Argentina has invited European Jews worried about rising antisemitism to consider the country as a destination. Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno recently emphasized Argentina’s attractiveness in a message aimed at Jews in Britain and other European countries who are grappling with surging incidents targeting Jewish communities.
“A country on the up with great opportunities. Sunny, with many natural attributes, and home to the largest Jewish community in Latin America. Strong stand against antisemitism. British and European Jews should seriously consider Argentina. You are welcome,” Quirno wrote on X in reply to author Saul Sadka, who had urged British Jews to consider leaving amid growing hostility.
Argentina’s leading Jewish organization, DAIA, has recorded more antisemitic incidents in recent years, mostly taking place online. But the rate of antisemitic incidents reported in the country last year was significantly lower than in many other countries with sizable Jewish populations, according to the 2025 worldwide antisemitism report published in April by Tel Aviv University.
Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s global director, praised Quirno’s invitation, saying it reflected a significant shift.
“Sign of the times? A country formerly ruled by a Nazi-supporting dictator has morphed over decades into a strong democracy whose president is a philo-Semite,” Cooper wrote in reply to Milei’s foreign minister. “Argentina currently serves as chair of IHRA [the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance]. Foreign minister now beckons embattled British Jews. Incredible.”
Israel’s ambassador to Argentina Eyal Sela told JTA at the Chabad event that he had no difficulty recognizing that Argentina is currently a very good place for Jewish life.
“Yes, I agree with the Argentine foreign minister,” Sela told JTA. “Of course, Israel will always be the best place for Jewish life. But today, Argentina is a much better place for Jews than Europe.”
Monday’s event opened with the testimony of Yosef Chaim Ohana, a survivor of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, who expressed deep gratitude for the support shown by Jews around the world, followed by remarks from his father, Avi Ohana. Milei hosted the Ohanas and Grunblatt on Tuesday morning at Argentina’s presidential palace, the Casa Rosada.
Dozens of Argentine nationals were murdered or taken hostage on Oct. 7. This week, an Israeli who had worked in Buenos Aires at the Israeli embassy in Argentina was killed in an attack on a moshav in central Israel.
The post Milei praises ‘Judeo-Christian values’ at Chabad event as Argentina courts European Jews appeared first on The Forward.
Uncategorized
France bans Smotrich as 6 countries impose new sanctions over Israeli settler violence
(JTA) — Six countries have imposed coordinated sanctions against Israeli groups over settler violence in the West Bank, with France barring Israel’s far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, from its borders.
France, the United Kingdom, Canada, Norway and Australia on Tuesday released sweeping sanctions on Israeli networks and leaders to “hold extremist settlers accountable for the horrific levels of settler violence against Palestinian civilians,” their foreign ministers said in a joint statement.
The measures include a range of travel bans and asset freezes aimed at disrupting flows of finance to extremist settler groups as violence escalates in the West Bank. The United Nations reported over 1,800 settler attacks against Palestinians in 2025, the highest number since it began documenting incidents in 2006, and violence has remained intense this year. The Israeli military also recorded a sharp increase in nationalist and settler violence in 2025.
Israel said it rejected “the disgraceful measures adopted by foreign governments against Israeli citizens, entities, and a government minister,” accusing the other countries of imposing a political stance that was “camouflaged as measures against violence.”
“What these governments have in common is their resounding failure to combat the antisemitism that is rampant in their own countries,” said Israel’s Foreign Ministry. “Anti-Israeli policies of the kind adopted today only serve to fuel that antisemitism.”
New Zealand imposed travel bans last week on three Israelis: Itamar Yehuda Levi, Harel David Libi and Eliav Libi. Foreign Minister Winston Peters said the bans were not aimed at the Israeli government or people, but targeted “three individuals who have actively worked to expand illegal settlements in the West Bank, including through violence.” Levi and his construction company, Eyal Hari Yehuda, were also listed as targets of new sanctions from the United Kingdom. Levi, Harel David Libi and Eliav Libi could not be reached for comment.
France on Tuesday joined a growing list of countries to ban Smotrich, Israel’s far-right finance minister who oversees demolition and construction in a portion of the West Bank. The ban comes days after Smotrich visited the United States to march in a pro-Israel parade in New York City, surprising many local Jewish leaders who said they do not support him.
Smotrich has already been barred from entering Ireland, Spain, the United Kingdom, Norway, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Slovenia. Smotrich did not respond to a request for comment.
Those countries have also previously banned Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s far-right national security minister. France banned Ben-Gvir last month after he posted a video of himself taunting detained activists who attempted to carry aid to Gaza on a flotilla.
France added four leaders of settler organizations and 21 settlers accused of violence to its travel ban list on Tuesday, according to foreign affairs minister Jean-Noël Barrot.
The United Kingdom, for the first time, has explicitly advised businesses against economic and financial activity in the West Bank. The country released a list of seven sanctioned people and entities that financially support Israeli settler farms and outposts in the West Bank or are associated with physical attacks on Palestinians.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper also announced at least £10 million for the Palestinian Authority, which runs Palestinian areas of the West Bank, and £1 million for humanitarian assistance with clearing mines in Gaza.
Canada announced that its measures on Tuesday brought the country to a total of 19 individuals and 12 entities sanctioned for “their role in extremist settler violence.”
The joint statement issued by five foreign ministers said that illegal settlements, which shrink the territory inhabited by Palestinians, undermine “viability of the State of Palestine and the prospects for peaceful coexistence.” Norway officially recognized a Palestinian state in May 2024, with France, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia following suit in September 2025. New Zealand has not recognized a Palestinian state.
The post France bans Smotrich as 6 countries impose new sanctions over Israeli settler violence appeared first on The Forward.
Uncategorized
Colombian President Gustavo Petro sparks outcry over tweet reading ‘Heil Hitler’
(JTA) — Colombia’s outgoing president, Gustavo Petro, sparked fierce condemnation from Israeli and Latin American leaders after he tweeted the phrase “Heil Hitler” Sunday in response to an op-ed endorsing a candidate in the country’s upcoming presidential election.
Petro, a left-wing president in the final weeks of his term ahead of the country’s June 21 runoff election, posted the Nazi phrase in response to an op-ed supporting right-wing presidential candidate Abelardo de la Espriella.
Petro subsequently defended his use of the Nazi slogan, arguing that he was critiquing the language used by the op-ed’s author, which he said included “fascist phrases.”
His defense came after criticism from Israeli leaders and others who said the “Heil Hitler” comment was inappropriate.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, called on the Colombian leader to “come to your senses and apologize” before Wednesday, when he is slated to preside over a debate at the United Nations Security Council.
“President of Colombia, @petrogustavo, whatever is going on in your personal life, there are lines that must never be crossed,” Danon wrote in a post on X. “Using Nazi slogans is a disgraceful low from which there is no coming back.”
Israel’s Foreign Ministry also decried the post, writing on X that it was a “total loss of moral compass and an indelible stain on Colombia’s legacy.”
The episode comes amid shifting norms about the use of Holocaust analogies and language in political discourse. After being considered out of bounds for a long time, people on both the right and the left have increasingly shed those norms amid growing political polarization and extremism around the world.
The “Heil Hitler” post was not the first time Petro has landed in hot water for invoking the Holocaust. In the wake of Oct. 7, Petro drew backlash from Jewish and Israeli leaders for likening the actions of Israel to Nazi Germany. On social media, he has repeatedly called political rivals Nazis, including last month when he wrote in a post on X that Israel’s national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, had behaved like a “true Nazi” after he posted videos taunting detained activists from a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
In 2024, Petro also severed diplomatic ties with Israel, accusing the country of commiting genocide in Gaza, an accusation Israel has denied. Espriella, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump, has vowed to renew diplomatic ties with Israel.
On Monday, 24 Latin American lawmakers signed onto a statement condemning Petro’s rhetoric, warning that his repeated use of references to Naziism risked distorting Holocaust memory.
“The use of references to Nazism must not become a rhetorical tool to discredit political or ideological positions. Democratic leaders have a responsibility to promote a respectful public debate that is conscious of the weight of words,” the statement read.
The statement was initiated by the Coalition of Latin American Legislators Against Antisemitism, which is led by the Combat Antisemitism Movement. The signatories included lawmakers from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay.
Shay Salamon, CAM’s executive director of Latin American affairs, said in a statement that Petro’s invocation of the phrase reflected a “troubling record of antisemitic expressions and conduct” by the Colombian leader.
“When a leader uses the authority of his office to stigmatize the Jewish people or trivialize their historic suffering, silence is no longer an option,” Salamon said.
The post Colombian President Gustavo Petro sparks outcry over tweet reading ‘Heil Hitler’ appeared first on The Forward.
