The Impact of Your Gift
Sumud.
This Arabic word means “steadfast” and it is often used to describe the way the Palestinian people have held fast to their identity, their culture and their aspirations in the face of overwhelming adversity. An example of sumud is the Palestinians’ pursuit of higher education as an asset that cannot be taken away from them.
As the first Catholic university in the Holy Land and the first university in Palestine, Bethlehem University is uniquely positioned to support the Palestinians’ steadfast pursuit of education as a way to secure peace and justice in this land. In the Lasallian tradition, Bethlehem University is dedicated to academic excellence and the development of responsible leaders in Palestinian society.
The support you provide to Bethlehem University allows us to welcome students from diverse religious, social and cultural backgrounds. Bethlehem University annually enrolls more than 3,000 students – two-thirds of them women – in a broad array of undergraduate, graduate and professional diploma programs.
What’s more, your support for Bethlehem University creates an educational experience that extends far beyond the oasis of the university’s pastoral campus. Our graduates emerge as the standard-bearers of sumud, taking their education into the community through transformative partnerships with schools, hospitals, businesses, governmental and non- governmental organizations; as advocates for justice, reconciliation, non-violence, women’s rights, the disabled and the poor.
Your support, no matter how large or small, contributes to the remarkable spirit and dedication of our faculty, staff, students, staff and friends. Your involvement creates a lasting impact here in Bethlehem and around the world.
After earning his MBA in the United States, Raed Handal, a Bethlehem University alumnus,
returned to Palestine to teach the next generation of Bethlehem University students.