Mr. Layth R. Awwad and Ms. Ruba Ayyad from the Department of English at Bethlehem University participated in the VI Global Symposium Uniservitate, held on 6–7 November 2025 in Eichstätt, Germany, under the theme “Service-Learning in a Fragile World: Universities Nourishing Peace and Hope.”
Organized by Uniservitate (Porticus + CLAYSS) in collaboration with the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, the symposium brought together faculty, researchers, and practitioners from across the world to explore how service-learning can advance solidarity, peace, and hope in times of instability.
On the second day of the symposium, Mr. Awwad and Ms. Ayyad presented their research findings during a 15-minute session titled “Service-Learning in Wartime: Solidarity and Spirituality at Bethlehem University in Palestine,” delivered within the topic sessions “Simultaneous sessions Global Compact on Education Solidarity Service-Learning Experiences.” Their presentation introduced the Palestinian context into global conversations on service-learning, offering insight into how students at Bethlehem University continued their learning experience during a period marked by uncertainty, restricted movement, and emotional strain.
Their research highlighted how, during the wartime shift to online learning in Fall 2023, service-learning served as a vital bridge, allowing students to maintain academic continuity while engaging in meaningful acts of solidarity with their community. Students designed and carried out both digital awareness campaigns and on-the-ground advocacy initiatives, addressing urgent community needs at a time when social and emotional support structures were under immense pressure. These campaigns demonstrated students’ ability to combine academic learning with civic responsibility, creating much-needed spaces of connection, empowerment, and purpose despite the instability around them.
Throughout the symposium, the presentation received positive feedback from participants and members of the global Uniservitate and CLAYSS community. Many expressed admiration for how Bethlehem University students transformed crisis into action, and several attendees noted their interest in exploring how similar pedagogical approaches could be adapted to their own institutional and cultural contexts. The case study’s integration of creativity, digital literacy, and community engagement sparked meaningful conversations about the evolving role of service-learning during times of crisis.
Their research findings resonate strongly with Pope Leo XIV’s educational priorities, particularly the call to educate for peace, nurture hope, humanize technological spaces, and cultivate a spiritual and civic consciousness rooted in service.
By contributing this perspective at an international symposium, Bethlehem University reaffirmed its role as a leader in shaping global conversations on service-learning. The University’s participation underscores its ongoing commitment to academic excellence rooted in service, solidarity, and moral responsibility, and its dedication to preparing students to become agents of hope and transformation in their communities.
