About
Micha Haifa and the North was established in 1983.
We teach, treat and rehabilitate deaf and hard-of-hearing toddlers and children, ages birth to 6.
We provide professional top-quality services to infants and children in a vast geographic region (Hadera in the south to the Galilee and Golan in the north).
Our work begins from the moment they are diagnosed through newborn hearing screenings in hospitals and continues as they integrate into Micha’s rehabilitative daycare centers or other external frameworks.
We operate in two centers in Haifa and Tiberias.
Haifa: three daycare centers for ages 0-3 and five preschools for ages 3-6.
Tiberias: a daycare center for ages 0-3 and a preschool for ages 3-6.
We believe in an early intervention approach. In our view, the earlier the diagnosis and treatment of hearing impairments, the greater the chances for optimal rehabilitation.
Our uniqueness lies in the holistic rehabilitative-educational support we offer each child and their family, along with a warm, personalized approach.
Each child follows an individualized rehabilitation plan tailored to their needs, designed by our experienced educational and paramedical teams, in their mother tongue (Hebrew, Arabic) and sign language.
Our teams are dedicated to conducting developmental monitoring and periodic evaluations throughout the school year.
These toddlers and children visit Micha at varying frequencies throughout the school year, experiencing the empowering environment of a 'peer group day' (a class with peers their age who also face hearing challenges). Simultaneously, they receive all the treatments and support they need.
Micha Haifa and the North is an organization that promotes values of coexistence and mutual responsibility. It serves as a 'melting pot' for all sectors and groups in Israeli society: Jews and Arabs, secular and religious, veteran residents and new immigrants, members of the Ethiopian community, and immigrants from the former Soviet Union.
We believe in equal employment opportunities and welcome individuals with disabilities to join us in various roles, including education, therapy, security, and maintenance. We are committed to advancing women in the workforce. The vast majority of Micha Haifa and the North’s workforce (97%) is comprised of women, who hold key roles in the management board, leadership positions, educational teams, and therapeutic staff.
Services Provided at Micha
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Hearing evaluations and hearing aid fittings (conducted at two pediatric audiology clinics specializing in early childhood, meeting the Ministry of Health standards)
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Speech and language therapy (speech-language pathology)
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Motor therapy (occupational therapy and physiotherapy)
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Emotional therapy (using music, art, and other methods)
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Individual and/or group parental guidance, and assistance in exercising rights
In addition to serving children in our rehabilitative daycare centers, we provide services to hundreds of toddlers and children in external settings, whether in regular or special education frameworks. These children face hearing challenges, including mild to moderate hearing loss or single-sided hearing impairment.
Our Vision
Micha Haifa and the North leads the vision of fully integrating deaf and hard-of-hearing children into the mainstream education system by the age of six, providing them with a strong and stable foundation in their early years at Micha. This foundation supports their independent journey as contributing and productive adults within their community.
Legal Advisor
Attorney Elbar Nahas
Management
Mr. Elad Shenbal – Director, Micha Center Tiberia
Ms. Livnat Bernstein – Director, Micha Center Haifa
Ms. Dafna Zamir – Director, Micha Haifa Preschool Cluster
CPA Eran Elkobi – Finance Manager
Administration
Ms. Mira Amiel – Administrative Manager, Micha Haifa
Ms. Fraha Ben Abu – Administrative Manager, Micha Tiberias
The Micha Haifa and North Team
Board of Directors
Mr. Eli Kramer – Chairman
Dr. Gideon Intzler – Board Member
Ms. Ruti Lipa – Board Member
Attorney Avi Goldsobel – Board Member
Mr. Shai Podoshin – Board Member
Mr. Eitan Shahem – Board Member
Audit Committee
Mr. Oz Hod
Mr. Dan Eichengreen
Accountants
Kesselman & Kesselman
In their memory
We have lost two beloved and influential women at Micha Haifa and the North.
Together with their families, we honor their memory and forever cherish their contributions.
Director of Micha Haifa Center 1075-2009
Ofra was a noble woman. The equal opportunity to any child to get proper education, care and rehabilitation was her mission. She truly believed in the power of every child to overcome obstacles and succeed….
Municipalities (even in remote peripheral areas).
She made great efforts to identify…
Her vision became a reality. Collaboration that she initiated contributed a lot to the increase in the number of children throughout Haifa and the Northern district who received tailor made programs created for them, according to their hearing profile.
Ofra had exceptional interpersonal skills. She made sure that every family, every child are welcomed warmly at Micha before the child begins a long rehabilitation process.
respectful communication, gentle approach, and professional determination shaped her character, which became central to Micha's organizational culture. She firmly believed that every employee has the right to grow professionally and contribute meaningfully to the organization.
On behalf of the Micha leadership through the generations, the professional teams, and the families, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to dear Ofra for her many years of dedicated service to Micha Haifa and the North. We honor her tremendous contributions and preserve her legacy for generations to come.
May her memory be a blessing
Ofra Goldsobel
1947-2022
Yifat was a woman of quiet strength who always chose kindness.
She viewed the world with openness, trust, faith, tolerance, and acceptance of others. She always saw the good in everyone, and her life revolved around giving and love.
Born, raised, and educated in Kibbutz Manara in the Upper Galilee, Yifat worked as a dedicated and exceptional preschool teacher at Micha Tiberias from 2010 to 2022. She shared her love of nature and the beauty around us with the children. Her devotion to the children of Micha, whom she treated as her own, was boundless—she would have reached for the moon for them. Her heart was filled with love, and she believed in the potential of every child to succeed.
Everyone who met her felt her magic immediately and was captivated by the purity that radiated from her.
Yifat left a lasting mark on all our hearts—children, staff, and parents alike. Her memory remains an inspiration to us all.
We bid her farewell with great sorrow but with the knowledge that her good spirit will always be with us.
May her memory be a blessing
Yifat Katz
1961-2022