Israel Association of Community Centers

The Israel Association of Community Centers (Hebrew: החברה למתנ"סים, HaChevra LeMatnasim) is an Israeli government-owned company responsible for building and operating a nationwide network of community centers (matnasim). Established in 1969 on the initiative of then Minister of Education Zalman Aran, it functions as the social-community arm of the State of Israel, under the responsibility of the Ministry of Education. Its mission is to strengthen national social resilience through local community centers that build strong, cohesive communities and foster a sense of belonging and significance for every individual. The organization operates approximately 200 community centers and 1,000 branches, employing over 45,000 staff and engaging about 30,000 volunteers. It serves around 3 million residents annually across all segments of Israeli society, including Jews, Arabs, Haredim, Druze, Bedouin, Circassians, and others. Its activities span education, culture, sports, welfare, and community development, with programs tailored to all ages and sectors, from early childhood to seniors, and including special-needs populations. The Association works in strategic partnership with local authorities, government ministries, philanthropy, and the business sector. It operates national and local programs, emphasizing data-driven management, systematic measurement, and real-time insights to create deep, precise, and sustainable community change. Its work continues in routine times and emergencies, providing a communal continuum. The company is governed by a board of directors, whose members are either elected from the director pool or appointed by the Minister of Education. Its professional management is led by a CEO and a team of department heads and district managers. The organization is divided into five geographic districts: South (Beer Sheva), North (Kfar Vradim/Kabri), Haifa and Valleys (Nesher), Jerusalem, and Center (Lod). Over the years, the Association has adapted to changing social needs, expanding its reach into Arab and Haredi communities, promoting informal education, volunteerism, violence reduction, and inclusion of people with disabilities. It operates core programs such as "Smart Start" for early childhood, "Shakal" for youth, learning centers, and programs for special populations like "Amitim" (mental health) and "Re'im" (autism spectrum). The Association also emphasizes corporate social responsibility, aligning with ESG principles in environment, society, and governance.

The idea of the community center in Israel developed during a search for new ways to accelerate social processes in developing communities and weaker populations. The concept took shape in 1969, on the initiative of the Minister of Education and Culture, Zalman Aran. Aran examined the implementation of the community center idea along two parallel lines: he tasked Dr. Yael Posner, head of the Education Administration at the Ministry of Education and Culture, with establishing a committee to study the matter; and he tasked Haim Tzipori, from the Culture Unit at the Ministry of Education, responsible for eradicating illiteracy and the Art for the People enterprise, with examining whether cultural and social activity existed in development towns and what its character was. The meeting between the two provided the major and significant push for the establishment and development of community centers in Israel. After the committee decided that there was indeed room to operate community centers, the question arose as to how the centers would function organizationally. At that time, the Ministry of Education could not bear the burden alone. The committee wanted each center to develop according to its special local conditions, and therefore proposed a local management for each center to determine its policy. Regarding the overall organization, responsible for all local managements, it was proposed to establish a government company, whose board of directors would represent various bodies and strata in the state and society, and which would be responsible for managing the center and employing the workers. The committee chair Tzipori summarized Posner's committee work: "In various committees and with the help of the Attorney General, the patterns crystallized by 1969, the year the company was founded. Naturally, Dr. Yael Posner was chosen to be the chair of the board. It was then that the Israeli nickname for the community center was determined - matnas - derived from the long official name - Center for Culture, Youth and Sport, given to it in the early days due to various constraints, when no one was sure what the day would bring. Over the years, as the institution developed and proved itself as a community center worthy of its name, we thought more than once that perhaps it would be better to change the name, but we quickly dropped the idea because in the meantime the matnas had taken root and become an asset and an idiom, like ramatkal or shekem. The original recipe proved itself to a not insignificant degree of success." Accordingly, it was decided to divide the matnas system into geographic districts, each headed by a district manager, whose role was to guide the matnas director, and through him the staff and local management, in the full range of issues in which the matnas is engaged, as well as to maintain contact with authorities and organizations in the region. In the years 2004-2008, during Yair Geller's tenure as CEO of the Israel Association of Community Centers, the company focused on promoting informal education, increasing volunteer rates, reducing violence among youth, and integrating populations with special needs into leisure activities. The company operated and supported residents of the north during the Second Lebanon War. In 2008, during Eitan Mizrahi's tenure as CEO, it underwent rebranding and opened centers in Arab towns and in the Haredi sector. Until 2020, the company was under the responsibility of the Ministry of Education, but when the Ministry of Higher and Supplementary Education was established, responsibility for the Association was transferred to it. In July 2021, with the dissolution of that ministry, it was decided to return the Association to the Ministry of Education. The Association operates a national network of about 700 community centers spread throughout the country, in all sectors and populations, in more than 150 local authorities, serving millions of residents annually. The organization is divided into five geographic districts: South (operating from Beer Sheva), North (from Kabri), Haifa and Valleys (from Nesher), Jerusalem (from Jerusalem), and Center (from Lod). Each district is headed by a district manager and district team responsible for guidance, supervision, and instruction of community center directors and local staff and management, as well as maintaining contact with authorities and organizations in the area. The community center (matnas) is an independent institution operating as an association (non-profit), a public benefit company, or a limited company based on partnership and agreement with the local authority in whose area it is located. Each community center is headed by a public management board that includes representatives of the local authority, residents, the Israel Association of Community Centers, and in some cases also representatives of the Jewish Agency. The public management is legally and publicly responsible for the management and budget of the community center. The director of the community center implements the policy of its public management. A special contract and covenant regulate the relationship between the local authority, the Israel Association of Community Centers, and the local community center. Most community centers are located in buildings unique to them and operate branches throughout the locality, daycare buildings, performance halls, sports halls, libraries, swimming pools, and more. The community center serves as a focal point for community, social, leisure, and cultural activity for the entire locality, with an integrative vision of residents, the authority, and businesses. The center makes services accessible to all residents, promotes community development and building processes, advances public involvement, volunteerism, and entrepreneurship, and encourages community pride and belonging as part of Israeli society. The center's gates are open most hours of the day to all strata and sectors of the population and all ages. The activity is diverse, flexible, and covers many topics, according to the needs and desires of the residents, and with their participation in the various committees that determine the center's activity. The centers' activities are in community, social, educational, and cultural fields, integrating diverse populations, including those with physical, mental, or psychiatric disabilities. Among the activities: frameworks for families and early childhood, daycare and afternoon programs, multidisciplinary and multi-age learning centers, programs for people with mental disabilities - Amitim, mental-behavioral - Re'im, or physical - Accessible Community; clubs and enrichment activities in various fields, cultural and sports events, tours and trips, as well as any additional program according to community needs. Core programs include: Education - "Smart Start" community daycare: educational and cultural frameworks for early childhood providing educational, developmental, and social response in partnership between parents and educators; Enrichment centers for early childhood and family: a community space for empowering families and strengthening intergenerational connection; Shakal: field activities, extreme sports, and community for youth, integrating youth from special populations and at-risk youth; Entrepreneurship and innovation centers: advanced technological infrastructure complexes dedicated to experimentation, learning, and guidance, with a vision of reducing digital gaps; Learning community: multidisciplinary learning centers for all ages for development, continuous education, and personal advancement while providing essential tools to participants, pedagogical learning, and promoting a supportive social environment. Special populations - Amitim: a program promoting integration into the general population of people with mental disabilities of all ages, operating on an individual and group level, in dedicated and integrated groups; Re'im: a program for children, youth, and adults on the autism spectrum and suffering from communication disorders. The program includes group therapy that imparts social skills and abilities. District infrastructures - Maz Leve: a supervisor accompanying, training, guiding, and monitoring...

• 2021

  Following the dissolution of the Ministry of Higher and Supplementary Education, the Association is returned to the Ministry of Education.

• 2020

  Responsibility for the Association is transferred from the Ministry of Education to the Ministry of Higher and Supplementary Education.

• 2008

  Eitan Mizrahi becomes CEO; the organization undergoes rebranding and opens centers in Arab and Haredi communities.

• 2004

  Yair Geller becomes CEO; focus on informal education, volunteerism, violence reduction, and inclusion.

• 1969

  The Israel Association of Community Centers is founded on the initiative of Minister of Education Zalman Aran; Dr. Yael Posner becomes first board chair.

The social-community arm of the State of Israel, operating the largest community network in the country.

• Community centers (matnasim)

  Local community centers operating as associations or public benefit companies, providing educational, cultural, social, and leisure activities for all ages.

• "Smart Start" community daycare

  Early childhood educational and cultural frameworks in partnership between parents and educators.

• Shakal

  Field activities, extreme sports, and community for youth, integrating youth from special populations and at-risk youth.

• Amitim

  Program promoting integration of people with mental disabilities of all ages into the general population.

• Re'im

  Program for children, youth, and adults on the autism spectrum and with communication disorders, including group therapy for social skills.

• Learning community centers

  Multidisciplinary learning centers for all ages for development, continuous education, and personal advancement.

1. 1החברה למתנ"סים | אדם, קהילה, חברהmatnasim.org.il
2. 2מי אנחנו | החברה למתנ"סיםmatnasim.org.il
3. 3אחריות תאגידית | החברה למתנ"סיםmatnasim.org.il
4. 4Israel Association of Community Centers - Wikidatawikidata.org
5. 5החברה למתנ"סים - Wikipedia (Hebrew)he.wikipedia.org