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Social Action Unit Supports Students

At Bar-Ilan University we believe that education in general, and academic education in particular, is a tool for social leadership that can close societal gaps and empower weaker sectors in society. This is why we created the Social Action Unit – an organization within the University that enables thousands of students to express their hidden learning potential, despite their physical, emotional or socio-economic limitations, and gives them the necessary tools to fully integrate into Israeli society.

In the coming months the Canadian Friends of Bar-Ilan University will bring you an on-going series of student success stories as part of our mission to support the Social Action Unit.

We begin this month with the story of Raviv, a student completing his BA in Education despite suffering from severe learning disabilities and neurological complications.

Raviv suffers from very severe learning disabilities and neurological complications, including Attention Deficit Disorder. In addition to battling occasional emotional breakdowns, he has difficulty writing, summarizing course material, and faces other hurdles to overcome on a daily basis.

Many people, including the social services workers who provide care for Raviv, discouraged him from pursuing an academic degree. They believed that he would neither be able to function independently nor successfully achieve his goals. But, with no support from anyone, he decided to pursue a college education, and he has proven to be one of the shining stars in his field of study.

Now in his fourth year of study towards a BA in Education, Raviv says that the Social Action Unit has stood by his side from the very beginning of his academic career at Bar-Ilan, providing him with a wide variety of services which include tutors at least four hours per week, additional time to complete exams, special rooms in which to take his exams, the option to take certain exams orally, dictation of his answers to examiners, and more. The Unit has even intervened on his behalf in order to obtain special authorization from his department for a number of exceptional requests related to his mental disabilities.

"I cannot stress enough how amazing the Social Action Unit is," says Raviv. “I want to learn. I can learn. But without this Unit, I never could have gotten as far as I have. The outpouring of love, endless emotional support, compassion, training, and attention to my problems provided by the people in the Social Action Unit literally saved me. I will never forget what they have done for me.”

The 29-year-old, who comes from Yehud, studies at Bar-Ilan three days a week. Beginning next year, he hopes to pursue another degree at the University -- a BA in Social Work. Eventually, he hopes to work in the field of Clinical Social Work and even to write a book about his life experiences.

"I have an 87 average!" exclaims Raviv. “I never dared dream that this would be the case."

The Social Action Unit at Bar-Ilan University is responsible for our students’ wellbeing and looks after those with special needs including those who have hearing impairments, vision impairments, physical disabilities, medical disabilities, and emotional difficulties as well as those who come from Israel’s peripheral areas and disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Today the Social Action Unit assists approximately 1,000 students who reside in Israel's peripheries and/or who have special needs. Support for these students comes in a variety of services, including:

-- Individual counseling during University registration

-- Personal and group tutorials

-- Personal advice regarding academic and administrative matters

-- Assistance with photocopying educational material

-- Borrowing equipment such as laptop computers and hearing aids

-- Exam adaptation assistance such as the allotment of additional time during a test, testing in small groups, writing exams on the computer, reading aloud for visually impaired students, dictation of exam answers, and more

-- Workshops for improving study skills

-- Vocational training towards completion of degree study

Each of these services provides students with the technical, emotional and professional support they need in order to enable them to obtain their academic degree. With the support of the Social Action Unit, each student is able to learn as an equal among equals, as independently as possible, and integrate into Israeli society.