T hat I’m attracted to people of passion especially when that passion involves changing the world in some meaningful way is no secret to regular readers. Dayan Yonason Abraham of the London Beth Din is one such idealist possessed of the energy to make dreams happen.

Recently Dayan Abraham was appointed nasi of Shuvu the network of schools for children of olim from the Former Soviet Union (FSU) created in response to the impassioned appeal by Rav Avraham Pam at the 1989 Agudath Israel of America convention. I have accompanied Dayan Abraham on visits to a number of Shuvu schools over the last few years and have seen announcements that he would be the featured speaker at Shabbatons in different communities.

Still I was a bit surprised when I read that he had been appointed nasi of Shuvu. I could not imagine how he would have time for such a task in addition to his duties as dayan and rav of a shul in London. I asked him whether the title only meant that he was to be the new public face of the organization. He replied that the likelihood of his ever being selected to be the “face” of anything was remote.

He fully intends to be actively involved in setting the direction of the organization in every respect he assured me. He has agreed to undertake yet another major responsibility only because he is convinced of Shuvu’s potential to have a transformative impact on Israel society.

As he explained to me the number of secular parents who are likely to be attracted to an explicitly chareidi school is inevitably limited given all that the term chareidi conjures up in the minds of the secular public — no secular studies lifelong yeshivah study no army service.

On the other hand the number of those either positively interested in an enhanced Jewish curriculum or at least not opposed to such a curriculum if combined with superior secular studies in a well-run school emphasizing respect and discipline is potentially much larger.

And as Dayan Abraham pointed out to me of those who remain in the Shuvu system through high school a very high percentage become fully shomer mitzvos. And many of those students bring their families along with them. Shuvu schools impose no requirements of mitzvah observance in the home — either on students or parents. The agenda is not explicitly kiruv. But the Shuvu high schools all have a rav attached to the school who is involved with all the students’ entire families: He organizes learning groups for parents special Erev Shabbos family events in schools and the like. And again over 50% of the high-school parents become observant.

Before accepting the position Dayan Abraham visited most of Shuvu schools and farhered students in depth. Most important Shuvu commissioned a major study by Rafi Smith one of Israel’s leading pollsters to assess the potential attractiveness of the Shuvu model of high-level secular studies and intensified Jewish content for secular Israeli parents. The results of that study were what ultimately convinced Dayan Abraham to undertake this major new responsibility.

Already 40% of the students in the Shuvu system are of native Israeli backgrounds or from countries other than those comprising the FSU. Shuvu has identified five areas ripe for new schools aimed at the general public when the funding becomes available.

Three-quarters of those interviewed by Smith described themselves as secular and another 9% as traditional but with no particular affinity for religion. Over 90% do not observe Shabbos.

Yet when asked to describe the ideal educational system that they would choose for their children just under 50% said that they would prefer intensified Jewish studies to accompany the secular studies and another 13% chose an educational model in which Jewish and secular studies are equal. A total of 58% opted for intensified or equal Jewish studies.

When the questioner described a school within 15 minutes of the student’s home with excellent secular studies and enhanced Jewish studies and a particular emphasis on discipline and preventing violence — all combined with a long school day — 12% of those polled said that they would definitely enroll their children in such a school and 38% that they would probably do so.

That finding suggests a potential pool of half the students now in the Israeli state educational system for Shuvu schools. True something less than the half of parents who say they would certainly or probably register their children for such a school would likely do so if the opportunity became real. The Smith study did not reveal such a widespread dismay with the current state school system to make a wholesale flight from the state system likely. A quarter of parents describe themselves as very satisfied with their children’s current schooling and 59% as satisfied.

Yet the study did find that rates of dissatisfaction rise as children reach sixth grade and beyond. One can speculate that by the time children reach the higher grades their parents start paying more attention to what their children are learning and how well.

Of those who are not satisfied with their children’s schooling the sources of their dissatisfaction are in areas in which Shuvu schools excel. Over 60% of the dissatisfied parents complain of the level of core studies and 59% cite the high levels of violence and disciplinary problems. Half complain about the level of the teaching.

Shuvu schools teach 20-25% more math material per year and begin both English and computer studies in lower grades than the state system. The Bais Yaakov and yeshivah-trained teachers bring an idealism to their teaching that is largely absent from the state system. Anyone who has ever visited a Shuvu school has been immediately struck by the mesirus nefesh of the teachers. And Professor Tamar Horowitz of Ben-Gurion University has written that Shuvu has the highest level of teacher accountability of any school system.

Rafi Smith conducted a second survey dealing with the levels of satisfaction of Shuvu parents. Eighty-eight percent of parents described themselves as “very” or “quite” satisfied; the same percentage said that they would recommend Shuvu to other parents. Over 90% expressed high satisfaction with the academic level; 90% with the Jewish studies; and almost 90% with the level of the teaching. In an earlier study over 80% of Shuvu parents who had previously had children in the state system felt that the levels of discipline and respect shown in the Shuvu schools were higher than in their previous schools. In the Smith study 88% of parents said they were even happy about the dress codes imposed in Shuvu schools.

That is not to underestimate the obstacles to be overcome for Shuvu to have the same kind of impact on the general Israeli population that it has had among Russian speakers. Even when the question mentioned studies that gender-separate classes improve student concentration and academic achievement 83% of the parents interviewed by Rafi Smith expressed their opposition to gender-separated classes after fourth grade.

The parental presumption against gender separation is not however irrebuttable. Even among parents who have already enrolled their children in Shuvu schools over 40% of parents in many schools continue to express opposition to gender-separated classes. And yet most of those parents say they would recommend a Shuvu school to other parents.

A lot of work will be needed to publicize the Shuvu brand. Less than half of the Israeli parents polled have ever heard of Shuvu. But that also means that there is great potential to grow the Shuvu brand for when they learn about Shuvu they are almost guaranteed to hear good things.

Dayan Abraham is embarking on this new project fully aware of the challenges ahead. But he entirely expects to overcome them and has placed a large bet on success. Let us pray that he was right and that Shuvu succeeds in its mission of spreading knowledge of Torah throughout the Land.

A Shavuos Thought

A friend shared the following insight recently. Avraham Avinu Yisro and Ruth were all geirim in some sense. But the motivation in each case was different.

No human being has ever separated himself so thoroughly from the surrounding society as Avraham Avinu. We his descendants are called Ivrim (those who crossed over) because he stood on one side and the entire idol-worshipping world stood on the other.

Avraham came to a recognition of Hashem through his own philosophical inquiries. He recognized his Creator by himself say Chazal. He thought more clearly than any man who had ever lived.

Yisro was drawn by the grandeur of Jewish history. He heard of Kri’as Yam Suf and the battle with Amalek and realized that the Jewish People are Hashem’s chosen people the ones through whom He reveals Himself to the entire world.

Ruth by contrast was explicitly told by Naomi that she could not benefit in any way by attaching herself to the Jewish People. She would in all likelihood never marry or bear children. Yet she was so powerfully attracted by the beauty (ne'imus) of Naomi’s ways that she could not bring herself to separate from her mother-in-law. Instead she made Naomi’s people her people and Naomi’s G-d her G-d.

Ultimately of course Ruth became the mother of malchus through the House of Dovid Hamelech and through her Mashiach will come. All because she saw something so attractive in Naomi’s ways that she could not help wanting to be like her.

We too should remain ever conscious of our power to become a beacon of the Torah for our fellow Jews (or chas v’shalom the opposite) through the manner in which we conduct ourselves.

Originally featured in Mishpacha Issue 662. Yonoson Rosenblum may be contacted directly at rosenblum@mishpacha.com.