An Agreement between the Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Poland and the Israel Youth Exchange Council was signed 24 May 2009 in Jerusalem. The document concerns Polish - Israeli youth exchanges and its title is: Program of cooperation on youth exchange between the Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Poland and the Israel Youth Exchange Council for the years 2009-2011.

The negotiation process regarding the matter started in April and May, 2008, when the will to build a vast Polish - Israeli youth exchange program was expressed during the Polish - Israeli High Level Meeting.

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The study program „Jewish Culture and the Holocaust" is intended for Bachelor's and Master's degree holders who teach History, Polish language or Religious Instruction at primary or secondary school as well as for persons who are interested in Jewish history and culture. The workshops may be organized in two groups: for teachers (one group) and for other  professionals (another group).

2009 Irena Sendler Award “For repairing the World” went to Beata Maliszkiewicz, an educator from Opole, a co-founder and director of School Complex YES.

 

Beata Maliszkiewicz has initiated numerous educational projects focusing on national minorities in the local community, particularly Jews, Germans and Romanies. Here are some examples: a project „Let’s Meet with the Others” was dedicated to national minorities in Poland (the Concert of Nations, publication „We are Other People too”), „History of the Street”, told about German, Jewish and Polish inhabitants living on one street in Opole (a performance “The Voices” and a co-author of the book “The Voices from Barlickiego Street”), “The Rabbi from Opole” was a research on history of Rabbi Leo Baeck (a performance “The Alphabet”, a street performance dedicated to Leo Baeck and Jewish Community), “I Am a Big Pair of Eyes – a Journey as a Meeting with Other People” was a street performance based on R. Kapuściński’s prose. She has also organized summer and winter courses for Romanies. She runs a schools theatre and has been organizing „Theatre Time” since 2001, a project that unites Romanies, disabled artists, Koreans and young people from all over Europe. She has to her credit numerous publications dedicated to intercultural education and has launched a program of cooperation with the Leo Baeck College in London. I remember Irena Sendler’s modesty, cheerfulness and naturalness when she received the Order of the Smile from children. She is an inspiration for the world and an example of remarkable courage and integrity. Her life is a lesson that teaches that it is possible, as she said, “To do what we should”. It is an unimagined honor for me to be Irena Sendler Award nominee.