Bethlehem University continues to advance its mission of community engagement and transformative education through active participation in two major international gatherings dedicated to service learning in Catholic higher education.
From 5–7 November 2025, representatives from Bethlehem University took part in the CEE&ME HUB Meeting and the Global Symposium on Service Learning in a Fragile World, both organized by the Uniservitate Network and hosted by the Katholische Universität Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (KUEI) in Eichstätt, Germany.
Representing Bethlehem University at the CEE&ME HUB Meeting were Ms. Ruba Ayyad and Mr. Layth R. Awwad from the English Department, along with Br. Alejandro González Cerna FSC, Dean of the Faculty of Education. The meeting brought together educators and researchers from across Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East to exchange insights, project updates, and research outcomes related to service-learning integration within higher education institutions.
The program featured welcoming remarks and a message from Ms. Maria Rosa Tapia, General Coordinator of Uniservitate, as well as presentations by partner institutions highlighting student research and innovative approaches to institutionalizing service learning. The sessions encouraged meaningful dialogue on strengthening communication within the HUB network and ensuring the long-term sustainability of service-learning initiatives.
Bethlehem University’s delegation shared reflections from ongoing projects within the English Department and discussed the University’s evolving model of service-learning, one that connects academic learning with social responsibility, solidarity, and intercultural understanding.
Simultaneously, Bethlehem University was represented virtually at the Global Symposium on Service Learning in a Fragile World, held on 6–7 November 2025, by Mr. Elias Alhazin, Instructor at the Faculty of Education, and Dr. Bilal Awad Salameh, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Arts, who presented their joint research titled “Sociology of Learning by Doing: Indicators for Measuring Service Learning among Students at Bethlehem University.”
Their study, based on a mixed-methods approach involving 282 students, proposed a measurement scale grounded in four core dimensions: application of knowledge, personal and professional development, community integration, and self-awareness. The research contributes to the growing body of evidence on the transformative impact of service learning in fostering civic engagement and social responsibility among university students.
Bethlehem University’s active presence in both the HUB meeting and the global symposium highlights its ongoing commitment to experiential and values-based education, its role as a leading voice for Catholic higher education in the region, and its dedication to equipping students to serve as compassionate and capable agents of change in their communities and beyond.
