Uri Poliavich is a philanthropist who co-founded the Yael Foundation in 2020 to support Jewish education worldwide. The foundation now supports 145 institutions across 48 countries, reaching more than 29,000 children.
A significant part of educational development concerns not only buildings and equipment but also the people who work within educational institutions. Teachers, school leaders, and other specialists influence how programs are implemented and how institutions develop over time.
Within the philanthropic approach of Uri Poliavich, support for educational infrastructure is therefore complemented by attention to professional development and institutional expertise.
The Role of Teachers in the Educational Approach
Teachers are central to the everyday work of any school. Equipment, educational materials, and curricula become effective through the specialists who use them in the classroom.
For this reason, the Yael Foundation includes professional development among the areas it supports. Educational institutions can receive access to training, specialist expertise, and resources intended to strengthen teaching practices.
This can be particularly important for smaller communities, where individual educators may have broader responsibilities and fewer opportunities for regular professional exchange.
The broader approach supported by Uri Poliavich therefore considers the working environment and professional development of educators alongside other aspects of school development.
What Professional Development Can Include
Support for teaching staff can take different forms depending on the needs of a particular institution.
Training in Modern Teaching Methods
Educators can receive access to professional training in contemporary teaching methods. Such programs provide opportunities to update existing practices, exchange experience, and introduce new approaches where they are relevant.
Professional development can also extend beyond the individual participant. Teachers can share useful methods and materials with colleagues, allowing knowledge gained through training to become part of broader school practice.
Digital Materials in the Classroom
Digital resources are another part of modern educational environments. Schools supported by the foundation may receive technology and educational materials that can be incorporated into classroom teaching.
The use of such tools is most effective when educators also have the knowledge required to integrate them into lessons. For this reason, equipment and professional preparation can be considered together rather than as separate areas.
Digital resources can complement the teaching of a wide range of subjects, including language, history, culture, and general academic disciplines.
School Leaders and Long-Term Institutional Development
School leaders coordinate many aspects of an educational institution, including planning, staffing, facilities, educational programs, and communication with families and local communities.
Professional development for school leadership can therefore be an important part of institutional growth. Through the Yael Foundation, school directors and administrators can gain access to expertise and exchange experience with specialists and colleagues from other institutions.
Relevant areas can include:
- Long-term educational and organizational planning.
- Evaluation and development of educational programs.
- Communication with families and local communities.
- Development of school processes and institutional capacity.
- Coordination of facilities, educational resources, and internal projects.
These areas help school leaders work with the institution as a whole rather than focusing only on individual short-term tasks.
External expertise can also provide an additional perspective on educational programs and organizational processes. Such reviews are intended to give institutions more information for further development rather than replace the decisions of local school leadership.
How Infrastructure Investment Connects With People
Physical infrastructure and professional expertise are closely connected. Renovated classrooms, new equipment, and improved facilities create possibilities, while educators and administrators determine how those resources are used in everyday educational work.
The allocation and use of support are handled through structured foundation processes and cooperation with the educational institutions involved. Local schools identify their needs, while relevant specialists contribute to planning, implementation, and evaluation.
The foundation supports rather than directly manages educational institutions. Decisions about teaching, school organization, and local priorities remain with educators and school leaders who understand the circumstances of their own institutions.
What Investment in People Can Produce
Professional development usually produces results gradually. Training can influence teaching practice over time, while stronger school leadership can support the long-term development of an institution.
Educators who gain new knowledge can apply it across multiple classes and academic years. School leaders who strengthen planning and organizational skills can use that experience across different areas of the institution.
For Uri Poliavich, this is an important reason why philanthropic support for education includes people as well as physical infrastructure. Buildings create the setting for education, while teachers, administrators, and specialists determine how that setting functions in practice.
Across 145 institutions and 101 cities, the Yael Foundation combines support for educational spaces with professional and institutional development. This approach treats the quality of education as the result of both suitable infrastructure and the expertise of the people working within it.
