Ilan School
Educational staff and current expenses
About the school
The Ilan School is a Jewish day school located in the western suburbs of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The school was founded in 1953. Since 2011 the school has been run by Chabad movement, led by Rabbi Iosi Ludman, the emissary in the West Area.
The Ilan School provides a comprehensive education to its students, from kindergarten through primary school, with a focus on Jewish values. The kindergarten follows the Montessori approach that is becoming more and more popular among parents worldwide. The school's curriculum is designed to provide students with a strong foundation in Jewish studies, including Hebrew language, Torah and Talmud, Jewish history, and Jewish ethics. The students attend Ilan School until they become 11 years old (6th form), and then mostly join the Jewish secondary schools located in central districts of Buenos Aires. More than 70 students learn at Ilan institutions today.
The school integrates many students who come from families in need, or families that hardly had any elements of Jewish identity before their kids entered the Jewish school or kindergarten. The school has many fantastic success stories about enabling personal growth, rendering safety, and saving the Jewish identity of the kids and their families. It’s also the only possible option of Jewish education for families spread all over the West Area.
Since 2021, Yael Foundation has been supporting the school and kindergarten activities: complementary grants for educational staff teaching Jewish subjects, nutrition and transport expenses for kids coming from remote areas, and psychological assistance for students who need it.
About the community
Chabad Center of Western suburbs offers a range of activities and social events for Jews living in the area, including holiday celebrations, cultural events for whole families, welfare, and more. The school and its community are the only center of Jewish life in the neighborhood since traditionally the Jewish communities haven’t settled in the area. However, due to the economic situation and inner migration processes, many Jewish families settled in remote neighborhoods outside the city center in recent years.