NSWAS Week-by-Week

May 30 - June 5 1999

Bulletins:

	Rayek Rizek and Nava Sonnenschein are beginning a month-long coast-to-coast speaking tour of the USA. Details of engagements may be obtained from the American Friends of NSWAS.
	From July 6-8, The School for Peace staff will take part in a national symposium at the Ben Gurion University of the Negev: "Group Work and Group Therapy in a Multicultural Society: Encounter and Difference."

The Community
Visit of President of Rotary International, Mr. Glen Kinross

On Tuesday June 1, The village was honored to receive Mr. Glen Kinross, the President of Rotary International. Mr. Kinross included NSWAS in his tour of the Rotary Clubs of Israel. He was accompanied by past Rotary Governor Gideon Peiper and Mrs. Peiper (who are no strangers to NSWAS). Rayek Rizek escorted the three on a complete tour of the village and its educational institutions. Various projects in NSWAS have been supported by Rotary over many years. These have included both urgent infrastructure projects such as a new sewer system, and educational projects (most recently the SFP project mentioned in NSWAS WBW of April 11-17 1999, and a related project, which will be mentioned in the next issue). The motivation for this generosity on the part of Rotary was made clear during the visit. Mr. Kinross found it possible to draw many comparisons between the village and the ideals and values that Rotary itself tries to inculcate and uphold. In his entry to the visitors' book, Mr. Kinross wrote: "It has been a very special pleasure to visit Neve Shalom/Wahat al-Salam and to see the integration of the Arab/Jewish children. The teaching of language, the understanding of other cultures and the search for common ground along the road to peace are all important to the peace process among the human family everywhere. The ultimate goal of Rotary International and the Foundation is world understanding and Peace. I admire and commend the work you are doing. Your goal and the goal of Rotary International are parallel. Best wishes for the future expansion of your work."

The School for Peace
Participation in symposium

Ahmad Hijazi of the SFP participated in a symposium in Tel Aviv, convened by the Economic Cooperation Foundation. The symposium was attended by some forty representatives of various organizations in Israel that conduct cooperative projects with Palestinian partners. The purpose of the meeting was "to discuss possibilities to expand the circle of participation in dialogue and to discuss with politicians the connection between citizen level dialogue and political processes and persons." Several organizations were invited to make keynote presentations, among these the SFP. In his presentation, Ahmad spoke of the impossibility of obtaining symmetry between the Israeli and the Palestinian group. He suggested that this fact should be acknowledged, and "placed on the table," rather than being denied, in order to allow the dialogue to move forward.

In-service training for the school of Abu Ghosh

The school of the nearby large Arab village of Abu Ghosh turned to the SFP to propose a program for an in-service training to help the teaching faculty crystallize a consensual attitude towards individual and social identity. The SFP submitted a proposal for a 28-hour program that was accepted by the school. This is noteworthy because it will constitute the first such project conducted by the SFP for a uninational group of Palestinian teachers in Israel. The program, to be based on the SFP's previous experience of working with educators, will include both lectures and group work and focus on various aspects of individual, group and professional identity among Palestinian teachers.

The Primary School

Administrative changes

At a board meeting of the Children's Educational System, a new management was elected for the coming three years. After 10 years of service as Administrative Director, Anwar Daoud chose not to submit his candidacy to continue in this capacity. Elected in his place was Boaz Kita'in (who currently serves as Educational Director). Boaz, in turn, will be replaced as Educational Director by Diana Shalufi - Rizek. Effectively, there will therefore be a rotation in the two managerial positions between Palestinian and Jewish staff members.

School Trips

This was a week of school trips for all grade levels of the school. Depending on their ages, the school children spent from one to three days traveling to various places in Israel. Boaz describes the educational purpose of these trips as "to help the children discover and learn to like their country, to learn how to organize themselves independently from their parents, to take part and help one another in the preparation of food, etc., as well as to learn how to overcome social and other difficulties that naturally crop up." A special feature of our binational school trips is the attempt to provide a balanced program that includes Jewish and Palestinian sites, and to heighten the awareness of the children to the differing histories of the two peoples in regard to the places visited.

Preparations for end of school year

Having returned from their school trips the children and the staff is busy finishing their course material, while investing much energy into preparation for the end of school year event for parents and children. This event will take place on June 29. The summer break will begin on July 1.

Preparations for next year

The management is engaged in interviewing applicants for the next school year and organizing the teaching schedule.

New school building

Every Monday, the management meets with planners to discuss plans for the new school building. Currently plans for the interior design are being finalized.

The Kindergarten

On Thursday June 3, the kindergarten conducted a workshop for parents and students. The workshop, which was arranged with the help of the CRB Foundation, included elements of dance, games and play. The aim of the workshop was to create an opportunity for parents to take part in the activities of the kindergarten and to better acquaint parents with each other and with the kindergarten. Meanwhile, the children continue to work on various projects. They recently concluded a project on wheat and foods prepared from it. Together, they participated in making pizza, cake, pita bread and Arab Snenieh (cooked wheat) sweets. Now they are working on a new project; to learn about the life cycles of animals, such as caterpillars.

The Hotel
Recent groups

Recent groups staying at the hotel have included various associations that chose NSWAS as a venue for their meetings and workshops due to the symbolic value of the village as an optimistic social alternative. Among these have been a mental health help group, an association for rape victims, the CRB Foundation and the Israel - Palestine Center for Research and Development (IPCRI).

Plans

The hotel is planning summer weekends for Jewish and Palestinian families, with a focus on providing opportunities to meet the other people on a casual level. The idea behind such projects is to harness the potential of the hotel as a comfortable setting for Jews and Palestinians to meet each other.