The Religious Education Administration formulates policy and guides educational institutions under its auspices in planning programs and developing projects for the religious education system. The administration's work is based on the perception that state religious education encourages involvement and affiliation with the State of Israel and Israeli society. The administration provides services to students and parents who request state religious education, and views the development of religious-Torah-Zionist education as a central function, while planning for the demands deriving from the pluralism in religious society. The administration is also responsible for improving the level of teaching in the state religious education system, and for providing support for students in development towns and low-income neighborhoods, as well as new immigrants.