Challenges Faced by Israel's Children and Youth at Risk
Of  the 2.2 million children and youth in Israel, 15% (350,000) are considered “at risk.”

Risk may be manifest in a multitude of ways:

• physical wellbeing may be in danger
• emotional security may be in danger;
• suffer due to abuse and/or neglect at home
• difficulties in interpersonal relations and social integration

They may be at risk of becoming disenfranchised or dropping out from school, heading towards a life spent on the margins of society

Indeed, the statistics regarding Israel’s children and youth are staggering:

• 35% live below the poverty line
• 8% are known victims of neglect or abuse
• 4% have families that are dysfunctional or violent
• 30% of Arabs-Israelis and 10% of Jews do not complete high school

Furthermore, the precarious security, economic, and social situation in Israel over the last few years has exacerbated the existing problems, increasingly exposing children and youth to ongoing stress and trauma.

The Dropout Phenomenon among Israeli Youngsters

• It is estimated that one in twenty Israeli children will drop out of school by the time they reach age 17
• Among immigrant youth, this figure is far higher
• Of the total number of students who dropout nationwide, two-thirds leave school before finishing junior high

Just as disturbing are the youngsters that are defined as "hidden dropouts":

• students who are disengaged and alienated from the educational process
• high absenteeism
• suffer from poor scholastic achievements
• disassociation from the school environment and learning process as well as experience behavioral and social difficulties