This week marks 50 years since the Rebbe launched Mivtza Chinuch, placing a renewed focus on education and introducing the 12 Pesukim as a central foundation.
At the launch of Mivtza Chinuch, the Rebbe emphasized:
“…דארף מען מאַכן אַ טומל און אַ שטורעם אין דעם ענין פון חינוך הבנים והבנות, סיי די קטנים בשנים, און סיי די קטנים בידיעה וואָס זיי דארפן האָבן חינוך”
“There must be a tumult and a storm in the matter of educating sons and daughters, both those who are young in years and those who are young in knowledge and need education.”
The Rebbe made clear that chinuch is not only the role of educators. It belongs to every Yid. In our homes, our conversations, and our daily example, each of us shapes the chinuch around us.
“The Rebbe’s words on Mivtza Chinuch are not just to be studied; they are meant to be brought into practice, shaping the way we live and educate every day,” said Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky, General Chairman of Merkos’s Chinuch Office.
In that spirit, a growing effort has taken shape to help bring the Rebbe’s vision into everyday practice, supporting mechanchim, mechanchos, shluchim, and parents with tools and conversations to think more deeply about chinuch and how it lives in real life.
Over the past year, that work has moved through gatherings like the Kinus HaMechanchim, the chinuch tracks at the Kinus HaShluchim and Kinus HaShluchos, and ongoing trainings and workshops for educators. From engaging children more meaningfully to navigating new tools through a chinuch lens, the goal has been simple: to bring the Rebbe’s approach from inspiration to day-to-day reality.
At the heart of this is the 12 Pesukim, first introduced by the Rebbe on Rosh Chodesh Iyar, 50 years ago. Continued learning, collaboration, and new materials have been helping educators bring each possuk to life in ways children can understand and connect to.
A central resource in this area is twelvepesukim.org, developed together with Tzivos Hashem. The site offers frameworks and materials to support teaching and learning the pesukim. A brand-new page, From the Rebbe’s Words, now makes it easy to find the Rebbe’s teachings on the 12 Pesukim all in one place, with videos, sichos, and more. The site also offers a wide range of additional resources for children and adults, including learning materials, curricula, and other practical tools.
The impact is already being felt in classrooms. One Hebrew day school teacher shared that she had always wanted to teach the 12 Pesukim in a meaningful way, but lacked the right resources, especially for non-frum students. When new materials became available, she built a full program around them for Yud Shevat. “The students were so engaged and excited to share the 12 Pesukim with their family and friends,” she said. “We gave out the updated booklets and they loved it!”
For those already carrying this work every day—mechanchim and mechanchos, shluchim, parents, and all those deeply invested in chinuch—this is a moment of recognition. It is also a call to action. What are we each doing to strengthen chinuch in our own sphere of influence?
Whether as educators, parents, school leaders, or simply through the way we speak, act, and interact with others, each of us has the ability to shape the chinuch around us.
Visit twelvepesukim.org to explore the resources, and find additional content on the Merkos Chinuch Office YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MerkosChinuchOffice
To get Jews out of public schools