The students and faculty of Gann Academy seek to forge deep and lasting connections with the land and people of Israel. These connections are demonstrated in many ways during the course of a student’s four years here. Through academic courses students learn Jewish history, Israeli literature, and Hebrew language. Through school committees and programs centered on holidays and special events—sad as well as happy—students learn more about Israeli culture, politics, and society. In addition, they are active in organizing to support causes in all walks of Israeli life. The Gann Academy community is represented at nearly every march, rally, or program connected to Israel.

It is through personal connections, however, that students gain the greatest understanding of the land and people of Israel. Opportunities to travel to Israel are always promoted as well as the junior first-trimester Israel experience. An ongoing exchange program with students from Ironi Hey High School brings 25 juniors from Haifa to Boston. The ongoing videoconference program enables students from Ironi Hey and Gann Academy to meet in real time each week.  The Leo Baeck School in Haifa sends two juniors to Gann Academy for the fall trimester of their junior year as part of their Young Ambassadors program supported by the Boston Haifa Connection of CJP. In addition, students participate in advocacy for Israel through rallies and through participation in AIPAC conferences and various workshops offered by the ADL, the David Project and other organizations.

The vision of Israel held by Diaspora high school students, too often flat and lacking texture, is enriched at Gann Academy through personal encounters. At Gann we want our students to hear the many different personal stories that their Israeli counterparts have to tell, and to integrate them into their lives. We want them to grapple with the meaning of these stories, develop relationships based on a definite point of view, and respond passionately to these firsthand experiences.