News from The Mar Elias Schools in Ibillin
The Mar Elias Schools are currently using a hybrid schooling model with Kindergarten-4th grade live and 5th-12th virtual. Here is a recent picture of Father Chacour greeting 3rd grade students in their classroom!
Starting Monday, February 22 the 10th-12th grade will be back in the classrooms as well so they can begin preparing for the matriculation exams. Junior high and 9th graders will still be at home.
I was recently asked by one of our supporting churches some questions about Mar Elias schools and I thought it was important to share with all. Here are some of the questions and answers.
How many students are in each school at Mar Elias and what is the tuition?
Some Mar Elias Statistics for 2020-2021
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It’s important to note that high schools receive more subsidies than lower grades in Israel. Most Mar Elias students need some assistance, so scholarships are always in need.
Where do the students go after high school? Do you know for instance how many go on to college and do you have statistics how many in Israel and how many abroad?
Mar Elias does not have the funding to track these questions but English teacher Emil Halloun estimates that 60% of high school graduates attend college. According to an article in Israel Hayom in 2020 (https://www.israelhayom.com/2020/06/12/pa-suffering-from-brain-drain-as-students-look-elsewhere-for-higher-education/) 15,000 Arab Israeli students studied abroad or over the Green Line (1/2 in the Palestinian Authority) in 2019. Israel is starting to realize the Arab brain drain and are looking at ways to correct it. Many Mar Elias graduates wish to go into medicine because medical professionals are needed in Israel and its a career that is available to Arab Israelis.
There are many challenges in education in Israel.
Primary education is highly segregated. According to Foreign Policy Magazine, 90% of Arab-Israelis live in all Arab communities. According to The Borgen Project (https://borgenproject.org/education-in-israel-the-arab-jewish-divide/) “Separating children by ethnicity and religion limits their ability to learn about one another’s culture firsthand. In addition to learning in isolation from their Jewish counterparts, Arab-Israeli schools receive less funding and do not meet the same educational benchmarks. Arab-Israelis consistently lag behind in standardized test scores, high school graduation rates, and university matriculation (college entrance exams). Per pupil funding can be almost 88 percent lower than that of Jewish students.”
Originally the Mar Elias schools had Jewish students as well as Christians, Muslims, and Druzes. Sadly, after the 2nd intifada in 2000 that was no longer the case. After 2000, military education was required in Israeli high schools for Jewish students and the Mar Elias schools could not comply. Currently there are two Jewish teachers at Mar Elias and the goal is to attract more. Mar Elias has been involved in multiple projects over the years to give their students opportunities to meet with Jewish students from other schools. I will tell you about one of these inspiring projects next month!
Mar Elias high school students matriculation scores, graduation rates, and standardized test scores are higher than the Israeli Arab public high schools. It attests to the quality of the education and the realization of Father Chacour’s dream of providing a quality education to the Ibillin population and surrounding villages. Thank you for your part in this!
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Your Gifts Making a Difference! |
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Mar Elias high school principal Elias AG and teachers recently had training on how to monitor online exams. Here is a picture of the beautiful new teacher’s meeting room made possible by the Jean Hopson bequest. The school used the Pilgrims of Ibillin gift of a yearly Zoom subscription for the training.
Please consider Pilgrims of Ibillin and MEEI when planning your will!
It can leave a lasting impact.
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Coming Soon
Watch for Pilgrims 2021 Webinars & New Website!
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Webinars - Several Webinars are planned in the coming weeks! Look for your invitation by email or watch for announcements on our website – pilgrimsofibillin.org
New Website - While the web address (URL) will remain the same, a new Pilgrims of Ibillin website will launch in the next few weeks. The site will have a new look and will be easier to navigate for news and content about the work of Pilgrims of Ibillin – fostering peace and justice through education in Israel & Palestine – pilgrimsofibillin.org
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Pilgrimages Back in 2022! |
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Trips Planned for March & June 2022
Are you tired of being at home, missing travel, and wanting to learn and experience the Holy Land? Travel on a Pilgrimage or Study Tour with us in 2022! We have two trips with dates for next year and possibly a third in October of 2022 (those dates to be determined). Check them out:
Meet the Peace Keepers in Israel and Palestine
A Pilgrims of Ibillin Living Stones Pilgrimage to Israel & Palestine
2 March - 13 March, 2022
Instructor, Rev. Dr. James Thomas
West Bank Tour Guide, Usama Nicola
Tour Coordinator, Brenda Mehos
Living Stones Pilgrimages - Father Chacour says,“We invite visitors to see the ruins of holy sites but also engage with the “living stones” — the people that live and make their homes there. With this as inspiration, since 1995 Pilgrims of Ibillin has taken nearly 350 individuals on two-week pilgrimages to “Meet the Peacemakers” in Israel and Palestine. Led by Pilgrims staff, board members, and local partners in the West Bank and the Galilee, we visit Christians, Muslims, and Jews who are working creatively to plant and nourish the seeds of a just peace. Our tours also include visits to various holy sites and conversations which connect our experiences with our faith.
2 March - 13 March, 2022 Pilgrimage
Tour Leaders
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Rev. Dr. James Thomas
Instructor
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Usama Nicola
West BankTour Guide
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Brenda Mehos
Tour Coordinator
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Pilgrims of Ibillin Holy Land Pilgrimage and Study Tour
Christian Women Encountering Women of the Holy Land Where They Lived and Live
4 June - 17 June, 2022
Instructor, Dr. Monte Luker
Tour Host, Rev. Dr. Mary Sue Dreier
Tour Host, Rev. Gail Doering
Pilgrims of Ibillin is offering an exciting new opportunity summer of 2022: a pilgrimage and study tour that focuses on the role of women in the Bible and in the Holy Land today. Pastors Dreier and Doering will offer theological and devotional meditations as we visit places connected to key women of the Bible, we shall meet with modern women who are living stones in the Land today, and Dr. Luker will lecture on the history and archeology of the sites. This will be the perfect chance for those who have already traveled on a Living Stones POI tour, and for those persons who might prefer a study tour that includes not only the living stones but also a more academic and biblical approach. Registration information will be available soon, and early registration is encouraged. And this experience is not limited to women! Men are welcome too, as are students of all ages. Questions may be addressed to Dr. Luker, lluker@me.com
4 June - 17 June, 2022 Pilgrimage
Instructor and Tour Hosts
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Dr. Monte Luker
Instructor
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Rev. Dr. Mary Sue Dreier
Tour Host
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Rev. Gail Doering
Tour Host
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Why I Serve on the Pilgrims Board - Sarah Morgan |
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Pilgrims of Ibillin’s Secretary Sarah Morgan explains why she is on our board. She was key behind the scenes in our webinars in 2020. Thank you for your service, Sarah!
"This should be an outstanding morning."
My grandmother wrote me this email in 2013, trying to convince me to attend her friend Joan Deming's talk with a local church group. Not being one for church groups, I have to admit I was hesitant. I wasn't sure that this was a place for me. But Joan, who was then the executive director of Pilgrims of Ibillin, caught my ear. Here I am eight years later, still listening, and trying to share what I have heard.
That first story I heard from Joan was about Mar Elias Education Institutions, where students and teachers work together to "build peace on desktops." Beneath that foundation story of the school, there lay a history of injustice after injustice. Joan walked us all through the broad outline of this history, so we could start to understand what a monumental task "building peace on desktops" really is. As the story began to sink in, some themes began to emerge that felt very close to my own country and education, as well: injustice of occupied and stolen land, inequitable distribution of resources, disenfranchisement from political power. Schools that grapple with deep-rooted injustice each day and attempt to lay the path for a better future.
Following that first brush with Pilgrims of Ibillin and MEEI, I helped with administrative tasks for Pilgrims, went on a Living Stones Pilgrimage trip, and am now serving as a member of the board. All of this has kept my ears and eyes open, kept me learning, and given me the chance to support in a small way the good work of MEEI and our other partner organizations.
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Rev. Dr. Peter Henry
President
Rev. Dr. Lucy Forster-Smith
Vice President
Ms. Sarah Morgan
Secretary
Kip Nickel
Consultant & Treasurer
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Haifa Bautista
Rev. Don Brown
Rev. Gail Doering
Rev. Mary Sue Dreier
Ms. Rima Kawas
Dr. Lamontte Luker
Ms. Judy Masserang
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Dr. Brenda Mehos
Rev. Bobby Morris
Rev. Susan Mozena
Ms. Wren Shealy
Rev. Dr. James Thomas
Rev. Anne Weirich
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Brenda Mehos
Interim Executive Director
Pilgrims of Ibillin
(303) 928-0923
brenda@pilgrimsofibillin.org
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