Educational Programs and Materials
Research conducted by the Rand Corporation shows that receiving correctional education while incarcerated reduces an individual’s risk of recidivating and also improves the odds of obtaining employment after release. Through an array of educational Torah programs, Aleph provides incarcerated individuals with unique opportunities for intellectual stimulation, personal growth, and skills development.
The Aleph Sparks of Lights Correspondence Courses, now officially recognized and accredited by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), (https://www.bop.gov/inmates/fsa/docs/fsa_guide_eng_2023.pdf) give incarcerated individuals the opportunity to learn about everything from Jewish law and Kabbalah to Hebrew reading and Tanya. The courses are a valuable spiritual and emotional lifeline for those who find themselves in one of the darkest places imaginable.
The “Torah on the Phone” program matches volunteer mentors with Jewish individuals in prison who want to connect to their Judaism through Torah learning. During a weekly 15-minute phone call, someone in prison can learn with a fellow Jew and ask moral, ethical, and spiritual questions to a trusted mentor. For those living in darkness behind bars, this is a rare learning opportunity that provides much-needed light, hope, and inspiration.
Our MP3 Program provides free educational and inspiring content on prison-approved tablets and MP3s in the United States and around the world. In addition to our Correspondence courses, the content includes audio files, videos, a Chumash, and other Jewish texts and books. Aleph’s education department is working on getting the app approved in all states so that incarcerated individuals can access it in every prison across the country.
Additionally, we encourage Jewish males to embrace their heritage by donning Tefillin daily, a practice that not only fulfills a mitzvah, but also brings about special blessings of safety and protection. Aleph offers free Tefillin and Tzitzit (fringes) to verified Jewish people who commit to donning it daily and cannot afford to pay on their own or with the assistance of family members.
Aleph also offers free Jewish books, including works on Jewish Ethics, Chassidism, mysticism, and inspiration, to interested readers.
For so many in the throes of isolation, these educational and spiritual opportunities can create a sense that even while the body is in confinement, the soul remains eternally free. One participant wrote to us: “I was in a very dark place when I requested the Correspondence courses. Hashem had it delivered exactly on time… I felt I could no longer bear another day. I read these through several times that night… By morning I realized the great wrong I had been about to do and flushed the pills down the toilet.”
To find out more about these courses or programs, please email [email protected].