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Students in Jerusalem have something new to cheer about, and it's not just that the school year has started strike-free. Although City Hall, under the administration of Mayor Nir Barkat, has yet to solve the student housing crisis, the city's young scholars are least finding that what they do when not in class or at home is getting more varied, more student-friendly, easier on the bank account and overall more awesome.

The trend has been apparent for some time now. Last summer was sandwiched by two huge blowout free concerts, one (pictured) with Macy Gray headlining and the other with Israeli pop sensations Mosh Ben Ari and Sarit Hadad. Both concerts were part of all-night party-thons called "white nights" and were aimed at students (college and high school).

The creamy fillings inside the sandwich were the summer's free Friday street parties, thrown under the auspices of the city government, with artists like Avaraham Tal and Kaveret doing their best to jam into the bustle of pre-shabbat Jerusalem. There was also the Jerusalem Beer Festival, which was brought to masses-friendly Independence Park. And should one think the shows were confined to the summer only, this Wednesday, the ball will continue rolling with a black party courtesy of the Balkan Beat Box and City Hall - in the Safra parking lot.

While many of the above events were free, the city's university students have recently been finding that their wallets are suffering less damage from everyday cultural activities like concerts, exhibits, theater performances and movies that do charge for entrance. Much of that is thanks to a new effort by Ruach Chadasha (New Spirit), called Mishtageya Ba'al Habayit, or "the homeowner has gone mad" (the Israeli equivalent of the Crazy Eddie's electronics superstore sales pitch).

And much like Crazy Eddie, the prices being offered for Jerusalem cultural fare are so low, one might argue that we should toss Ruach Chadasha's leadership in an insane asylum and throw away the key. The Barkat-founded organization has set up a new program offering deep, deep discounts to students for subscriptions to a number of venues, like the Cinematheque, the Khan Theater, the Jerusalem Theater and others.

According to Ruach Chadasha administrator Daniel Greenberg, the effort is all part of Ruach Chadasha's overarching plan to tamp any brain drain from decamping from Jerusalem. "Students in Jerusalem would come for four or five years and then leave," he said. "The idea to get them to stay was for them to get to know the city, the culture the city has to offer."

Lest you think the effort is just confined to students, the city has long been on the vanguard of dropping prices for tourists and residents alike, like discounts at sites for using their parking lots, holy combos or deals just for being a Jerusalemite.

With the Ruach Chadasha program now being extended beyond Hebrew University to the city's myriad other schools, like Bezalel, Hadassah and other institutions, the city is doing its best to keep the youth happy, and all of Jerusalem is benefiting from the effort.

Photos courtesy Ruach Chadasha.