Six TABC students embarked upon the CIJE (Center for Initiatives in Jewish Education) Journey to the Startup Nation, a week-long trip to Israel during which they visited innovation hubs, startups and leading tech companies. Together with over 20 students from other Jewish day schools, TABC students Yehuda Ashkenazy ‘23, JJ Guralnik ‘23, Akiva Lieber ‘23, Amitai Macklin ‘24, Eric Sorkin ‘25 and Akiva Sytner ‘25 experienced a jam-packed and impactful itinerary including visits to Healables, Aleph Farms, Massivit 3D, Vayyar and many other innovative companies, as well as Reichman University (IDC), Hebrew University and Technion to learn about cutting-edge research and educational opportunities. “The trip showed us Israel from a technological and entrepreneurial standpoint, beyond the Jewish history of it. It was amazing to learn about the different opportunities the Startup Nation opens for you,” shared Sytner. “Seeing many different tech companies showed us how a small country like Israel can be a pioneer in modern technology and change the world for the better,” Sorkin said.

The boys also benefited from networking with like-minded students with different perspectives. As Macklin observed, “It was a lot of fun to meet new people from other schools and connect with them over engineering and technology.” The trip provided all its attendees with invaluable experiences that will fuel their future ambitions in the world of technology. JJ Guralnik reflected at the trip’s closing banquet: “In engineering, I’m always thinking about what project would be fun for me to build. From this trip, I learned that any product can succeed with a good team behind it that clearly understands an important problem they’re trying to solve.” This message encapsulates an important goal of TABC’s engineering program: to imbue within its students the drive to understand complex problems and develop creative solutions for them using diverse resources.