Mitio is from Brooklyn and Jessie is from Elkins Park, PA, which is where they settled before they made aliyah. Mitio had many different professions, including working as an outdoor Jewish educator, in nonprofits, and as an electrician. Jessie taught Tanach in Modern Orthodox high schools. Jessie was much more enthusiastic about aliyah than Mitio, particularly after teaching Ramban! It was an ongoing debate, especially since they dated and got married in Israel, but it was on the back burner for most of the seven years that they lived in the U.S.
Their hesitations were largely professional. Jessie was under the impression there were too many Tanach teachers in Israel and she wouldn’t find a job; she had a good teaching position in the U.S. that was hard to leave. Mitio didn’t know how he would translate his diverse work experience to a new job market in a different language.
But when Jessie lost the teaching position she loved in the midst of COVID, they felt there wasn’t really anything holding them back. They finally made the decision to apply for aliyah when they had their third baby in 2020 and they opened an application in the hospital! The process took 18 months.
They watched all of Kim Bash’s Zoom calls with Anglo communities, did research on Nefesh B’Nefesh’s website and anywhere they could find and chose Ramat Bet Shemesh Aleph. Upon arrival, it seemed like such a big city, especially having come from a small suburb with one orthodox shul. “It’s funny how over two years later, when it’s all so familiar, it feels so much less like a city!”
Jessie is back to teaching Tanach and other Bagrut subjects in English for an olim track at a local high school. Over the past three years since they made aliyah, she needed to get her degrees recognized, take the Staj (required teaching internship) course, take level 4 ulpan for teachers, get approval/apply for a teaching license, and start a first-year teacher course (despite being an experienced teacher). “My MS was from Azrieli Graduate School, which has a partnership with Misrad HaChinuch, so the degree is recognized as if it is an Israeli teaching degree. That definitely helped. Also, being in touch with the regional madrich for olim teachers (Morim Olim) was so helpful because they are there to get you through the whole process.”
After trying out different things, Mitio decided to get a teaching certificate to become an English teacher, which he is currently doing, while also taking ulpan and doing his teaching internship.
“A veteran teacher, who was also in the reserves, shared this insight with me: as a teacher, you’re part of the home front.” Said Mitio. “If I can approach teaching with the gumption and grit of a soldier, if I can provide my students with consistent and meaningful opportunities to grow, if I can bring a much-needed professionalism to the field, then I am performing a service to my nation. Being a teacher can also give you job security and make it easier to be on a similar schedule as your kids – not always possible when working American hours or in different fields.
“The experience of retraining to be a teacher is analogous to navigating through an underground labyrinth of bureaucracy. An outdated map with helpful comments scribbled on the margins is available as a guide; plentiful voices above ground of those who’ve ‘made it’ topside are available if called upon. However, the obstacles can be abundant and the frustrations amplified by the vestiges of a recalcitrant, socialist bureaucracy. While having a teaching certificate is eventually required, there is some wiggle room for native English speakers who teach English as long as they have a college diploma. Protexia is a real thing, so use your networks – that absolutely helped me get my foot in the door for my first teaching job. There is also a shortage of religious, male, English teachers. Be prepared for a secondary wave of culture shock when you enter your first class!
“The retraining program that I was in was overall a positive experience. It was all in English and was specifically for men from all over the religious spectrum. It’s a one-year program, one evening per week in Yerushalayim, one evening per week over Zoom, and a number of asynchronous courses. Many of the staff are veteran teachers in Israel, and there’s a supportive community among the students.”
Jessie explains, “We are both baalei teshuva. So, entering the Dati Leumi school system, both as teachers and as parents, has been a really interesting cultural experience. Particularly during the war, when we are seeing so many parents and so many teachers being called up, we are surrounded by people who are so deeply committed to this land and country and people and it’s been really inspiring.
“There are so many new experiences that are different even from when we lived here as yeshiva/seminary students:
“How many times have I gone shopping with my baby and ended up leaving him in a stranger’s arms so I could pick out everything I needed with two hands!
“I’m still baffled that there is only one choice for certain items.
“The shortages. Even though I see they come in cycles, I’m still always surprised when the WhatsApp groups start filling up with frantic ‘where can I find’ or ‘I just saw the delivery come in’ messages. Pro tip: check the gas station for milk!
“Getting medical and/or parenting advice in the most random places from total strangers!
“We picked up our new passport at a candy store! The guy pulled out a drawer full of passports to find ours. We bought falafel but the internet was down so the credit card machine wasn’t working. The owner told us to come back tomorrow to pay!
“There is a much-frequented tefillin stand in the local Ace Hardware!
Jessie’s aliyah highlights include: “Having our first sabra baby; Stargazing with our kids; Living close to my twin sister after 10 years; Watching the supermarkets transform before every chag; The frantic buzz of erev Shabbat and the intense quiet of Shabbat; Watching our kids become fluent in Hebrew; Visiting Ein Hemed, Ma’arat Teumim (Bat caves), and just enjoying the beauty and uniqueness of Eretz Yisrael – including the endlessly beautiful sunsets in Beit Shemesh. Above all is witnessing the incredible strength we’ve seen in Am Yisrael since the war broke out. The support, the chesed and the resilience. As painful as this past year has been, we can’t imagine being anywhere else – this is exactly where we should be – not watching Jewish history unfold, but actually participating in it.”
