This Years' Impact: Highlighted Results of our 2023-24 Evaluation Program

Established in 1982, the Jaffa Institute is an Israeli nonprofit that assists impoverished residents of Greater Tel Aviv-Jaffa and Bet Shemesh. Our mission is to provide disadvantaged individuals with the educational, nutritional, therapeutic and social support they need to escape the cycle of intergenerational poverty. To this end, we run over 40 diverse programs touching the lives of thousands each year.

Since its inception, the Jaffa Institute has adopted a self-reflective approach that enhances its ability to learn both from its successes and from initiatives that didn’t work out as planned. We understand that taking action, even with the best of intentions, will achieve the desired results only if complemented by a rigorous, ongoing evaluation process gauging the results of that action and informing future endeavors.

Program evaluation is therefore high on the Jaffa Institute’s list of priorities, as reflected by the time, effort and resources we employ to measure the effectiveness of our programs. Evaluation results are closely monitored to enable us to draw conclusions regarding what is working, where we need to improve and how we can continue to grow and develop.

Following are highlights from the results of various evaluation processes conducted on our programs across the 2023-2024 academic year:

Youth Club Program Evaluation Results:

The Jaffa Institute runs three clubs for disadvantaged teenagers; one for boys and two for girls. These after-school clubs provide participants with nutritional, therapeutic and educational support. Evaluation results revealed:

• A 31% improvement in resilience measures among program participants

• A 25% improvement in social skill measures among program participants

• A 23% improvement in self-image measures among program participants

Click here for the full evaluation report

After-School Educational Enrichment Center Program Evaluation Results:

The Jaffa Institute runs 20 Afterschool Educational Enrichment Centers, providing approximately 300 disadvantaged children aged 3-17 with academic support, enrichment activities and individual counseling, as well as a daily hot meal. Evaluation results revealed:

• Significant improvement in participants’ academic functioning in six of the seven centers evaluated

• Significant improvement in participants’ social functioning in all seven of the centers evaluated

• Significant improvement in participants’ personal-emotional functioning in six of the seven centers evaluated

Jump Start Program Evaluation Results:

Jump Start is a support program running within the framework of our Youth clubs. It provides academic enrichment and emotional support through individual tutoring sessions, addressing the unique educational needs of teenagers while boosting their self-confidence and motivation. Evaluation results revealed:

• A significant improvement in grades across years 5, 7, 8, 10 and 11.

• 40% of all students achieved their goal of improving their grade in a specific subject of their choice.

• A 12% increase in the number of students with indicators of high self-efficacy and self-confidence.

Emergency Response Evaluation Results:

The events of October 7th 2023 and the ensuing war created many challenges for our organization, testing our mettle and exposing both strengths and areas for improvement. We are proud of our swift and effective response in addressing food, housing and equipment shortages among both evacuees and soldiers, and of our efforts to provide educational frameworks and therapeutic support to evacuees, as well as our adaptability in continuing the  educational programs so vital to the children in our care despite restrictions imposed by the Home Front. However, evaluation of our emergency response also revealed that the results could be even better with improved staff digital literacy skills and ability to effectively conduct activities remotely. Based on these findings, The Jaffa Institute has introduced a digital literacy training program for all relevant staff members.

Summary of 2024 Evaluations:

The evaluation results presented in this email reflect a successful year of activities, reinforcing our confidence that our approach and methods are achieving the desired results and getting the job done! At the same time, our in-depth analysis of all evaluation results continues to help us identify any changes and adjustments required to optimize our effectiveness moving forward, so that we can continue to improve, grow and develop from year to year.

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