Ronit was born in 1950 in Tel Aviv, Israel of Holocaust survivor parents stemming from Holland and Czechoslovakia, respectively. Ronit has two children; a son of 31 and a daughter of 27, both residing in Israel.
After completing high school, Ronit served the Intelligence Unit of the Israel Defense Forces for 3 years which she found to be most meaningful.
In 1971, she began her studies in Sociology, Anthropology and Political Science at Hebrew University and received her B.A. in 1975. She received her Masters degree in Criminology from Tel Aviv University in 1979. Her thesis was about battered women, the first empirical research on this subject in Israel. Additionally, she worked as a volunteer at a shelter for battered women in Herzliya directed by Mrs. Ruth Resnick.
From1983, through 2000, she initiated and managed the Department for the Prevention of Family Violence in Naamat.
In 1983, Ronit established the first hotline number and opened the Counseling Center for Domestic Violence in Naamat. Despite the fact that this number was set up for all family members, only women between the ages of 16-80 utilized the service, indicating that they finally had a place to turn to for help.
Originally, Ronit's main goal was to create a place of support and to direct women to other agencies for help. However, she quickly realized that there were no other agencies to turn to, and so she personally took on the responsibility. She decided to adjust her goal for the Center to reflect a need that she had been unaware of; to create a place not only for victims, but also for abusers. Parallel to her clinical work, she and her staff also worked to change the current attitude that existed within the formal systems already in place. This meant that her approach had to include those in the established system, i.e., police, welfare, family court, hospital emergency rooms, schools and the IDF. A large part of her work was creating a new model which would give educators tools with which to deal with violence in schools.
There was an emphasis on the teenager, vis a vis the red flags within this age bracket that could predict the chance of violence later on in marriage. In focusing on behavioral signs, such as jealousy, controlling actions, threatening suicide if the girlfriend would leave the relationship, there was a better chance of preventing such behavior from the outset.
Today Ronit is an expert advisor for an Internet Site called "4 Girls" (www.4girls.co.il) where she volunteers her expertise directly with those who write in with questions.
In 1993, she began a movement for Men Against Violence and for the Equality Between the Sexes, a kind of partnership that hadn't existed before. Today the movement acts under the name, The Movement for a New Masculinity.
In 1996, Ronit established the Glickman-Naamat Center, in partnership with the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality, an ambulatory center and shelter for battered women and their children who suffer from domestic violence. She directed this center for 4 years, while simultaneously working with her professional staff of Naamat social workers, lawyers and educators in a coalition with other professionals and politicians, such as, Knesset member, Yael Dayan, to enact laws to protect women and their families.
In 1996, instead of writing a doctoral thesis, she decided to summarize her work experience into a book, along with well known Israeli Journalist, Dalia Yairi. In the book, there are many stories of a myriad of women, i.e., Jewish and Arab Women, religious and non-religious, Israeli-born and new immigrant, young and old, to better understand the universality of the problem.
From 2000-2003, Ronit served as the Director of The Authority for the Advancement of the Status of Women in Prime Minister Ehud Barak's office. After the new elections, Ronit was asked to remain on in this capacity by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, as an expression of his trust in her ability. She worked with him and his administration until 2003, having accomplished, to her credit, an important change amongst the 265 Municipalities. Prior to her work with the Prime Minister's office, there had been only 40 Mayors who had Status of Women Directors, yet, by the time that she completed her term, she had single-handedly changed that number to 200. Additionally, the yearly budget now reflects a line item budget expense of NIS 25 million (US$ 5.5 million) for shelters and centers for battered women and their children throughout Israel.
Today in Israel, there are 60 established centers for women victims of domestic violence, with the 1983 Naamat Center being the model and important influence on the system as a whole.
While in Naamat and the Prime Minister's office, Ronit became aware of the need to establish a heightened awareness of women's issues, beginning with young girls as young as 14 years old. In 2000, a large conference was held at the United Nations entitled, The Beijing plus Five, which confirmed for her the importance of her vision of working with female youngsters and especially those at risk.
The new Beit Ruth Center for Girls, a Project of the Jaffa Institute, will be Ronit's newest undertaking. She believes that programs need to be developed for both girls and boys, but she envisions those programs separate from one another, as the needs are different. Ronit will be responsible for working as liaison on behalf of the Jaffa Institute and in cooperation with relevant government ministries, (i.e., welfare offices and general government offices), to ensure cooperation and to develop the Beit Ruth Center for Girls.
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