Shmitta, In Practice

One of the schools I tested girls in, for the Israeli Bagrut English "Interview" Test, was Ulpanat Ofra, the Girls High School in Ofra. It's the largest high school in Mateh Binyamin, our regional council.

I just can't get over its size. When my daughter entered, twenty years ago, she was in its third class, and they fed sixty people for lunch, including staff. Today, it's a six-grade school, from the Seventh Grade until the Twelfth, both junior and senior high schools. I was told that they now prepare food for a thousand.

These are not garbage pails. The signs say to put any "Kedushat shvi'it" here, from fruits and vegetables, left over on plates.