The Yavne School, in collaboration with the Yael Foundation, has developed a unique educational model that strengthens Jewish identity while fostering values of excellence, openness, and innovation. Principal Ela Ashkenazi discusses the vision, values, and story behind their success in contemporary Jewish education.
The morning rush at Yavne School in Mexico City looks like any other. Kids jumping out of cars, backpacks in tow, smiles and chattering among friends, and, on occasion, that nervous expression on a kid’s face moments before a test. But listen closely and you’ll catch something unique: conversations in Spanish and Hebrew in simple harmony, recitation of Torah passages alongside complaints about math homework.
This is what the last eight decades of Jewish education in Mexico City look like. The Yavne School opened in 1943 when the local Jewish community was still small. Back then, it served maybe a few dozen families who’d escaped Europe’s growing darkness. Today, with the help of funding from the Yael Foundation, some 360 students fill its classrooms, from nursery to high school, preparing for university.
Founded by Uri and Yael Poliavich in 2020, the Yael Foundation is now a leading philanthropic initiative currently working in 41 countries impacting almost 17,000 Jewish students, leading change to promote excellence in Jewish education. In collaboration with other foundations and philanthropies, its many initiatives and grants are having an extremely positive impact on the future of the Jewish people worldwide. Through investments in day schools, a unique multinational subsidized summer camp, leadership programs, and informal education, it lives its motto: ‘No Jewish Child Left Behind.’
Over the past few years, the school experienced a dramatic rise in enrollment, an increase of nearly 25%. That’s a big deal anywhere, but it’s especially significant given what Jewish communities worldwide are dealing with right now: demographic changes, rising tensions, and the constant question of how to stay connected to tradition while living fully modern lives.
Mexico’s Jewish population numbers somewhere between 58,000 and 100,000 people, most of them residing in Mexico City. Compare that to Argentina’s 171,000 or Brazil’s 92,000, and Mexico’s Jewish population might seem small. But there’s something different here. Mexican Jews have woven themselves into the country’s fabric in ways that feel natural and organic. They’ve integrated into every industry and mainstream Mexican culture, all while maintaining their own traditions and identities.
The number of antisemitic incidents tells another important part of the story. While the world is plagued by a tsunami of antisemitic sentiment and attacks, Mexican Jews have been relatively shielded from this uptick. Yes, incidents increased from 21 to 78 between 2022 and 2023, but those figures are small in comparison to what has been seen in many European countries and even in cities in the neighboring countries to the north – the United States, and Canada. Moreover, a Jewish school like Yavne operates with very few security concerns that commonly plague Jewish institutions these days.
Principal Ela Ashkenazi has been thinking about this a lot lately. “Our goal is straightforward,” she says during a break between meetings with parents and teachers. “We want to create a place where students feel part of something bigger than themselves.” It sounds simple, but walk through Yavne and you see how complex that really is.
Take morning prayers. At secular schools, the day starts with announcements and administrative details. At Yavne, 360 students and dozens of faculty members pause for a moment of reflection. It’s not forced or artificial. Students participate because they want to, because they’ve been taught that this moment matters.
Jewish values are constantly being emphasized in an educational manner: respect, kindness, integrity, and belonging. Students are regularly being included in various volunteer projects in nearby neighborhoods. Also, leadership by example is a value that is encouraged. Older students are assigned younger cohorts to mentor and guide, and teachers handle conflicts between students in a compassionate and understanding manner.
Aurit Taube teaches sixth grade and puts it this way: “Faith here isn’t one subject among many. It’s more like the foundation that everything else gets built on.” Her classroom walls display both Mexican historical timelines and Jewish calendar cycles. Students might start a discussion about ancient civilizations and end up talking about what it means to be responsible for one’s community.
Striking that right balance between general academic achievement and experiential Jewish educational studies has always been a tricky matter to manage. Yavne School does something exceptional – it trains all its teachers, Jewish and non-Jewish alike, in Jewish culture and values. The goal isn’t conversion or even deep religious knowledge. It’s cultural understanding. When a science teacher grasps the importance of Shabbat to his students, he can plan lab experiments that don’t conflict with religious observance. When literature instructors know something about Jewish storytelling traditions, they can help students see connections between Mexican writers and Hebrew poets.
The diversity of the student body keeps things interesting. Some students come from strictly Orthodox homes where Hebrew is spoken daily. Others are just discovering what it means to be Jewish. Academically, there’s a similar variety – students who excel effortlessly alongside others who need extra support to succeed.
The school boasts a special learning center, which handles the range of scholastic performance carefully. Specialists work with students who learn differently, but they also help bridge cultural gaps. A student whose family recently moved from a less observant community might need different kinds of support than one whose challenge is primarily academic.
Since Oct. 7, special attention has been paid to the concept of kol Yisrael arevim zeh bazeh – “all of Israel is connected to one another.” Several Yavne students qualified for national competitions in both Zionism studies and biblical knowledge. They also organized their own community service projects to feel connected to Jews around the world. There were discussions about current events and a true sense of camaraderie with youth from various forums around the city and the world.
Parental involvement runs deep at Yavne. The parents committee is involved with everything from fundraising to curriculum input. Beyond that, the school partners with broader community organizations, giving students opportunities to engage with Mexico’s wider Jewish population.
Modern challenges require modern solutions. How do you inspire teenagers to live meaningful religious lives when they’re constantly connected to social media? How do you teach ancient texts to kids who expect immediate answers to every question?
Yavne’s approach has been to meet students where they are rather than demand that they conform to old patterns. New curriculum development focuses on making Jewish learning relevant to contemporary concerns. Faculty training includes sessions on adolescent psychology and modern pedagogy.
“One of our biggest challenges is reaching students authentically,” the administrators acknowledge. “We want to inspire genuine love for Jewish tradition, help them develop personal relationships with their faith. That takes more than just good teaching – it requires real understanding of who these kids are and what matters to them.”
The school’s hopes for graduates reflect this complexity. Yavne wants young people who can lead by example, who understand both Jewish law and Mexican culture, who can represent their community confidently to the broader world. Some will choose to live in Israel. Others will build their lives in Mexico while maintaining strong Jewish identities.
Yavne represents something valuable in an era when young people often feel forced to choose between competing loyalties. Here, being deeply Jewish and proudly Mexican aren’t contradictory – they’re complementary aspects of a rich, multifaceted identity.
The 25% enrollment increase suggests that families in Mexico City are recognizing the value of this approach. They’re not just choosing academic excellence, although Yavne delivers that. They’re investing in an education that produces young people who are comfortable in multiple worlds, confident in their heritage, and prepared for leadership roles in whatever communities they eventually call home.
In Yavne’s ninth decade, the conversations taking place in the hallways represent more than just daily school chatter. They’re the sound of tradition adapting to contemporary life, of ancient wisdom meeting modern challenges, of a community writing its next chapter, one student at a time.
For more information about global Jewish educational opportunities and impactful Jewish experiential learning, contact the Yael Foundation.
This article was written in cooperation with the Yael Foundation.