Social activist who advances the rights of Ethiopian Israelis in Israel and around the world.

Born in Ethiopia and immigrated to Israel in 1984. She worked as a social worker at the Prison Authority in Ethiopia. After immigrating to Israel, she studied at Bar Ilan University for a B.A. in Social Work, followed by studying at Hebrew University for an M.A. in Social Work. Dr. Mangasha is a graduate of the Mandel School for Educational Leadership. In 2007, she received her Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Sussex in England. Her doctoral dissertation dealt with social-educational mediation among Ethiopian Israelis in Israel’s Education System.

Dr. Mengesha is a social activist, advancing the rights of Ethiopian Israelis and their integration into society. She worked for the Ministry of Welfare, “SHATIL”, and a number of organizations for Ethiopian Israelis. She was also one of the founders and managers of the Fidel Association for Education and Social Integration of Ethiopian Jews in Israel. In this framework, she represented Israel at the United Nation’s conference against racism in 2001, which took place in Durban, South Africa.

Dr. Mangasha received Hebrew University’s “Shmuel Rotenberg Prize for Zionist Education”, a Leadership Prize from Bar Ilan University, and a prize from the Open University. Until 2011, she served as the CEO of the Ethiopian National Project – a partnership between the Israeli government, world Jewry, and the Ethiopian Israeli community, aiming to advance the integration of the Ethiopian Israeli community in Israeli society.

She currently serves as the director of the department of education at Rosh Ha’ayin’s Municipality.