Women who consider an independent life apart from their batterer need to know that they can provide for themselves and their children. Thus, they are in great need of basic skills such as language, computer orientation, awareness of their rights and acquaintance with the world of employment.
Internalized low self esteem, learned helplessness, lack of professional skills, language and work orientation, all band against the prospect of survivors of domestic violence to run an independent life and household, and to implement freedom of choices.
Most of the women residing in the Shelter either have no work experience at all or have worked temporarily and sporadically.
The project's main goals are:
- To prevent financial-dependence issues from pushing women back into the arms of their abusers.
- To help women become independent and self-sufficient in supporting themselves and their children before they leave the Shelter;
- To empower and elevate the battered women's self-esteem;
- To enhance battered women's economic and professional awareness;
- To guide the women as they take the initial steps required to join the work force;
- To provide women options for developing the skills needed to enter the job market;
The Shelter has created a modular and flexible support system, which allows for differentiation in needs, character, cultures and abilities, while providing emotional empowerment combined with concrete skills and tools for work and independence.
The components of the project are designed to allow the women to heal from the trauma they have experienced through living under terror and violence, to restore their self-image and self-confidence and to strengthen their confidence in their natural talents and abilities.
By simultaneously providing emotional empowerment and psychotherapy with concrete skills, the project intends to increase, strengthen, and broaden the employment abilities of the women.
The project's components include: individual coaching and therapy, bi-weekly group empowerment and support sessions, practical work orientation seminars and workshops, Hebrew classes, individual career coaching, high school equivalency and/or professional courses, friendly employer program, hobbies and leisure workshops, childcare during program's activities and more.
All of the Shelter's women residents participate in at least two components of this project. The project's direct beneficiaries are the women who reside in the Shelter, and the indirect beneficiaries are their children.