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For immediate release January 18th, 2000   Ra’anana to become Atlanta’s eighteenth sister city. The City of Atlanta today approved the application of Ra’anana, Israel, to become Atlanta’s eighteenth sister city.  Ra’anana is a city of approximately 75,000 people located near Tel Aviv in the Sharon district.  Ra’anana is recognized for its natural beauty, highly educated population, and as a center for hi-tech companies.   The Ra’anana twinning application was approved in November 1999 by the Atlanta Sister Cities Commission (ASCC).  The link was sponsored by Dr. Arnold Heller, Social Studies Chairperson and International Business Program Diploma Director at North Atlanta High School.  Dr. Heller will become Chair of the Atlanta-Ra’anana Sister City Committee.  The twinning relationship has developed out of the International Business Program (IBP) developed by North Atlanta High School and its student exchange program with Ostrovsky High School in Ra’anana. The IBP students operate a nonprofit corporation, the Atlanta Caribbean Trading Company (ACTCo), which provide students with real life experience in entrepreneurship, international trade, and electronic commercial technologies (www.actco.org).  ACTCo imports Ahava Dead Sea lotions and Israeli arts and crafts through Ostrovsky’s Young Entrepreneurs Program. Ostrovsky High’s is planning to develop a school store based on ACTCo’s Warrior Warehouse School Store.   The Ra’anana application was endorsed by the Consulate of Israel, American-Israel Chamber of Commerce, and Atlanta Jewish Federation.  Dr. Heller has served as the Chair of the Atlanta-Rio de Janeiro Sister City Committee for the past three years, and Secretary of the ASCC for the past two years.  Dr. Heller hopes to develop strong linkages between Atlanta and Ra’anana in the areas of education, culture, athletics, youth programs and hi-tech economic development.  Atlantans are invited to join the new committee and become involved.    Ra’anana, the ‘jewel of Israel’s Sharon District’, is located about fifteen minutes north of Tel Aviv and fifteen minutes from the seacoast.  Ra’anana has 75,000 highly educated and civic-minded citizens and has other sister cities in Italy, France and Holland.  The city is a high technology center, has a university, top medical centers, an outstanding school system and one of Israel’s finest symphony orchestras.   ENDS